"Yes, yes," cried Carlton, on his feet, "and what were the figures? What is the population of Cleverly today?"
Smithers straightened to his full height in order to fire his shot straight at the bull's eye. He spoke impressively, even dramatically:
"Cleverly, today," he cried, "has a population of 43,986!"
Two or three members of the Committee and the entire delegation from Cleverly broke out in a ripple of applause. Hudson, seated in a corner of the room, looked sick and crestfallen. The Chairman of the Committee turned to the clerk and said, drily:
"Lay the Cleverly bill aside. It is evidently worthy of further consideration."
The Chairman of the delegation thanked the members of the Committee for their attention and then filed out of the room, with Carlton at their head. As they reached the corridor of the Capitol, the big statesman grabbed the schoolteacher by the hand and cried, impulsively:
"By George, Smithers, but you just came in in the very nick of time!"
Smithers smiled in his homely way.