-
Главная
-
- Книги
-
- Авторы
-
- Теодор Драйзер
-
- Титан
-
- Стр. 26/332
Для того чтобы воспользоваться озвучкой предложений, необходимо
Войти или зарегистрироваться
Озвучка предложений доступна при наличии PRO-доступа
Купить PRO-доступ
The
entrance
of
Gen.
Judson
P.
Van
Sickle
threw
at
the
very
outset
a
suggestive
light
on
the
whole
situation
.
The
old
soldier
,
over
fifty
,
had
been
a
general
of
division
during
the
Civil
War
,
and
had
got
his
real
start
in
life
by
filing
false
titles
to
property
in
southern
Illinois
,
and
then
bringing
suits
to
substantiate
his
fraudulent
claims
before
friendly
associates
.
He
was
now
a
prosperous
go-between
,
requiring
heavy
retainers
,
and
yet
not
over-prosperous
.
There
was
only
one
kind
of
business
that
came
to
the
General
--
this
kind
;
and
one
instinctively
compared
him
to
that
decoy
sheep
at
the
stock-yards
that
had
been
trained
to
go
forth
into
nervous
,
frightened
flocks
ofits
fellow-sheep
,
balking
at
being
driven
into
the
slaughtering-pens
,
and
lead
them
peacefully
into
the
shambles
,
knowing
enough
always
to
make
his
own
way
quietly
to
the
rear
during
the
onward
progress
and
thus
escape
.
A
dusty
old
lawyer
,
this
,
with
Heaven
knows
what
welter
of
altered
wills
,
broken
promises
,
suborned
juries
,
influenced
judges
,
bribed
councilmen
and
legislators
,
double-intentioned
agreements
and
contracts
,
and
a
whole
world
of
shifty
legal
calculations
and
false
pretenses
floating
around
in
his
brain
.
Among
the
politicians
,
judges
,
and
lawyers
generally
,
by
reason
of
past
useful
services
,
he
was
supposed
to
have
some
powerful
connections
.
He
liked
to
be
called
into
any
case
largely
because
it
meant
something
to
do
and
kept
him
from
being
bored
.
When
compelled
to
keep
an
appointment
in
winter
,
he
would
slip
on
an
old
greatcoat
of
gray
twill
that
he
had
worn
until
it
was
shabby
,
then
,
taking
down
a
soft
felt
hat
,
twisted
and
pulled
out
of
shape
by
use
,
he
would
pull
it
low
over
his
dull
gray
eyes
and
amble
forth
.
In
summer
his
clothes
looked
as
crinkled
as
though
he
had
slept
in
them
for
weeks
.
He
smoked
.
In
cast
of
countenance
he
was
not
wholly
unlike
General
Grant
,
with
a
short
gray
beard
and
mustache
which
always
seemed
more
or
less
unkempt
and
hair
that
hung
down
over
his
forehead
in
a
gray
mass
.
The
poor
General
!
He
was
neither
very
happy
nor
very
unhappy
--
a
doubting
Thomas
without
faith
or
hope
in
humanity
and
without
any
particular
affection
for
anybody
.
"
I
'll
tell
you
how
it
is
with
these
small
councils
,
Mr.
Cowperwood
,
"
observed
Van
Sickle
,
sagely
,
after
the
preliminaries
of
the
first
interview
had
been
dispensed
with
.
"
They
're
worse
than
the
city
council
almost
,
and
that
's
about
as
bad
as
it
can
be
.
You
ca
n't
do
anything
without
money
where
these
little
fellows
are
concerned
.
I
do
n't
like
to
be
too
hard
on
men
,
but
these
fellows
--
"
He
shook
his
head
.
"
I
understand
,
"
commented
Cowperwood
.
"
They
're
not
very
pleasing
,
even
after
you
make
all
allowances
.
"
"
Most
of
them
,
"
went
on
the
General
,
"
wo
n't
stay
put
when
you
think
you
have
them
.
They
sell
out
.
They
're
just
as
apt
as
not
to
run
to
this
North
Side
Gas
Company
and
tell
them
all
about
the
whole
thing
before
you
get
well
under
way
.
Then
you
have
to
pay
them
more
money
,
rival
bills
will
be
introduced
,
and
all
that
.
"
The
old
General
pulled
a
long
face
.
"
Still
,
there
are
one
or
two
of
them
that
are
all
right
,
"
he
added
,
"
if
you
can
once
get
them
interested
--
Mr.
Duniway
and
Mr.
Gerecht
.
"
"
I
'm
not
so
much
concerned
with
how
it
has
to
be
done
,
General
,
"
suggested
Cowperwood
,
amiably
,
"
but
I
want
to
be
sure
that
it
will
be
done
quickly
and
quietly
.
I
do
n't
want
to
be
bothered
with
details
.
Can
it
be
done
without
too
much
publicity
,
and
about
what
do
you
think
it
is
going
to
cost
?
"
"
Well
,
that
's
pretty
hard
to
say
until
I
look
into
the
matter
,
"
said
the
General
,
thoughtfully
.
"
It
might
cost
only
four
and
it
might
cost
all
of
forty
thousand
dollars
--
even
more
.
I
ca
n't
tell
.
I
'd
like
to
take
a
little
time
and
look
into
it
.
"
The
old
gentleman
was
wondering
how
much
Cowperwood
was
prepared
to
spend
.
