Lon perhaps made the best summary of Jack’s case, his remarks being addressed to the assembled club, gathered of a showery afternoon in the Parker garage. There had been some good-natured jests at the expense of Poke, who recently had brought in the salvage from the Saracen, and who was understood to be meditating further experiments in motor transportation, about which he declined to be communicative.
“Maybe I have an idea, but I’m not advertising it,” he remarked. “I’m going to take my time this trip. You see, the trouble with the Saracen, I’ll always maintain, was because I tried to fly just a wee too quick. As it was, we did fly—a little; otherwise, how’d we have got over that wall and into the road? No; I don’t say there’s going to be another aeroplane; but, whatever it is, I’m not going to hurry too much. You see, I learned something, anyway, from that experience.”
This seemed to give Lon his text.
“I’m right down sorry for that Hagle boy,” he said. “Still, there’s more or less o’ what’s called alleviatin’ circumstances. He’s like a feller that’s been needin’ a bath mighty bad, but when he gets one, finds he’s in awful hot water. And he squirms, and wriggles, and sweats, but all the while it’s doin’ him a heap o’ good. Why? Because he’s gettin’ clean. And when the dirt’s good and thick and caked on, as you might say, it takes a real b’ilin’ out to start it good and proper. But I reckon Hagle’s gettin’ his laundryin’ all right. He’s doin’ well, to date. The next p’int is for him to come out of it with a backbone starched till there’s some stiffness in it. And if that happens—well, it’ll be wuth to him all it cost—and a leetle more. What say to that?”
He might have read agreement in all the faces before him, but nobody put the answer into words.
Lon chuckled softly. “Well, then, if none of you’s moved to give testimony, I’ll say it again: this thing’ll be wuth to Hagle all it cost—and then some—if it makes a man of him. That’s the truth, and truth’ll bear repeatin’. That’s about the best way there is o’ makin’ sure it is the truth.... Tell you what, boys! Truth’s bound to come out top o’ the heap!”
Several heads nodded; but Poke spoke, meditatively, if not doubtfully:
“I know—only sometimes it doesn’t seem to come running.”
“Oh, that’s jest because it happens to have a long way to go in some cases,” said Lon impressively. “But it gets there every time—yessiree, every time!”