“Speak against it, too?” Briggs could not resist the temptation to lure West on. The revelation of the workings of this man’s mind had a fascination for him; they were strangely free from any relation to the principles which he had always believed in, if he had not always practised them.
“Yes. That will turn the tables on the papers that have been attacking you. It will make you seem like a martyr, too. It’s worth thousands of votes to you.”
Briggs walked slowly across the conservatory. His curiosity had suddenly changed to strong temptation. After all, the scheme was practicable. It was merely another expression of the deceit he had been practising for years. In spite of his confidence in his safety, it would be wise for him to take every precaution to protect his reputation. The attacks on his character by the opposition papers would probably grow more violent as the time for his re-election approached. But at the thought of getting up in the House and attacking the bill he had worked for, of making himself an object of contempt to the very men who were his partners in the deal, he turned sick. “No, thank you,” he said, suddenly. “I may have done worse things, but I couldn’t do that!” For a moment, in spite of the sordid quality of his motive, he had the delicious exhilaration of feeling that he had resisted a temptation.
West shrugged his shoulders. “It’s what Aspinwall has done over and over again in the Senate. It doesn’t seem to hurt him. He’s one of the most popular men in the country—and the biggest fraud,” he added, with a laugh.
Briggs had begun to pace the narrow walk of the conservatory. He stopped as if on impulse. “West!” he said.
West looked up in surprise. “Well?”
“I have something to say to you. I’ll stand by you in this railroad business till it goes through. I’ll vote for the bill, because I’ve pledged myself to it. You can get along without my vote, I know. The bill is sure to pass. But if there’s any odium to be attached to me for supporting it, I’ll take the consequences.”
“Oh! I thought you were a little nervous about your election, that’s all,” West remarked, carelessly.
The lines running from the corners of Briggs’s mouth deepened. “I’ve lied pretty constantly so far, and I suppose I’ll go on lying till the deal goes through.”
“That won’t be till the next session. We never can bring it up before adjournment.”