"Never you worry about thot, mon," he said. "I'll fix thot all right if I'm elicted to the boord."
"You mean city contracts?" I said.
"Sure."
I began to see. The liquor house was looking for more licenses and would get their pay out of Dan even if the firm didn't make a cent. But Dan with such capital back of him as well as his aldermanic power was sure to get the contracts. He would leave the actual work to me and my men.
I sat down and for two hours tried to make Dan realize how this crowd wanted to use him. I couldn't. In addition to being blinded by his overwhelming ambition, he actually couldn't see anything crooked in what they wanted. He couldn't understand why he should let such an opportunity drop for someone else to pick up. He had slipped out of my hands completely. This was where the difference between five or six years in America as against two hundred showed itself. And yet what was the old stock doing to offset such personal ambition and energy as Rafferty stood for?
"No, Dan," I said, "I can't do it. And what's more I won't let you do it if I can help it."
"Phot do yez mane?" he asked.
"That I'm going to fight you tooth and nail," I said.
He turned red. Then he grinned.
"Well," he said, "it'll be a foine fight anyhow."