“MAGUIRE ON TOP!”
“The Old Man is Friendly. A Peace-making Dinner at the Manhattan Club. Friends in Council. Labor and Democracy Shoulder to Shoulder. A United Front to the Enemy.”
The third, printed in an insignificant little penny paper, never read and almost unknown by reading people, yet which had more city advertising than all the other papers put together, and a circulation to match the largest, announced:
“TACITURNITY JUNIOR’S”
“ONCE MORE AT THE BAT!”
“NO MORE NONSENSE.”
“HE PUTS MAGUIRE OUT ON THIRD BASE.”
“NOW PLAY BALL!”
And unintelligible as this latter sounds, it was near enough the truth to suggest inspiration. But there is no need to reprint the article that followed, for now it is possible, for the first time, to tell what actually occurred; and this contribution should alone permit this work to rank, as no doubt it is otherwise fully qualified to, in the dullest class of all books, that of the historical novel.
The facts are, that Peter alighted from a hansom one evening, in the middle of July, and went into the Manhattan Club. He exchanged greetings with a number of men in the halls, and with more who came in while he was reading the evening papers. A man came up to him while he still read, and said:
“Well, Stirling. Reading about your own iniquity?”
“No,” said Peter, rising and shaking hands. “I gave up reading about that ten years ago. Life is too short.”
“Pelton and Webber were checking their respectability in the coat-room, as I came up. I suppose they are in the café.”
Peter said nothing, but turned, and the two entered that room. Peter shook hands with three men who were there, and they all drew up round one of the little tables. A good many men who saw that group, nudged each other, and whispered remarks.