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"
I
know
,
"
put
in
Mr.
McKenty
.
"
I
have
heard
something
of
it
.
"
"
Quite
so
,
"
replied
Cowperwood
.
"
Because
of
their
opposition
I
made
them
an
offer
to
combine
these
three
companies
and
the
three
new
ones
into
one
,
take
out
a
new
charter
,
and
give
the
city
a
uniform
gas
service
.
They
would
not
do
that
--
largely
because
I
was
an
outsider
,
I
think
.
Since
then
another
person
,
Mr.
Schryhart
"
--
McKenty
nodded
--
"
who
has
never
had
anything
to
do
with
the
gas
business
here
,
has
stepped
in
and
offered
to
combine
them
.
His
plan
is
to
do
exactly
what
I
wanted
to
do
;
only
his
further
proposition
is
,
once
he
has
the
three
old
companies
united
,
to
invade
this
new
gas
field
of
ours
and
hold
us
up
,
or
force
us
to
sell
by
obtaining
rival
franchises
in
these
outlying
places
.
There
is
talk
of
combining
these
suburbs
with
Chicago
,
as
you
know
,
which
would
allow
these
three
down-town
franchises
to
become
mutually
operative
with
our
own
.
This
makes
it
essential
for
us
to
do
one
of
several
things
,
as
you
may
see
--
either
to
sell
out
on
the
best
terms
we
can
now
,
or
to
continue
the
fight
at
a
rather
heavy
expense
without
making
any
attempt
to
strike
back
,
or
to
get
into
the
city
council
and
ask
for
a
franchise
to
do
business
in
the
down-town
section
--
a
general
blanket
franchise
to
sell
gas
in
Chicago
alongside
of
the
old
companies
--
with
the
sole
intention
of
protecting
ourselves
,
as
one
of
my
officers
is
fond
of
saying
,
"
added
Cowperwood
,
humorously
.
McKenty
smiled
again
.
"
I
see
,
"
he
said
.
"
Is
n't
that
a
rather
large
order
,
though
,
Mr.
Cowperwood
,
seeking
a
new
franchise
?
Do
you
suppose
the
general
public
would
agree
that
the
city
needs
an
extra
gas
company
?
It
's
true
the
old
companies
have
n't
been
any
too
generous
.
My
own
gas
is
n't
of
the
best
.
"
He
smiled
vaguely
,
prepared
to
listen
further
.
"
Now
,
Mr.
McKenty
,
I
know
that
you
are
a
practical
man
,
"
went
on
Cowperwood
,
ignoring
this
interruption
,
"
and
so
am
I.
I
am
not
coming
to
you
with
any
vague
story
concerning
my
troubles
and
expecting
you
to
be
interested
as
a
matter
of
sympathy
.
I
realize
that
to
go
into
the
city
council
of
Chicago
with
a
legitimate
proposition
is
one
thing
.
To
get
it
passed
and
approved
by
the
city
authorities
is
another
.
I
need
advice
and
assistance
,
and
I
am
not
begging
it
.
If
I
could
get
a
general
franchise
,
such
as
I
have
described
,
it
would
be
worth
a
very
great
deal
of
money
to
me
.
It
would
help
me
to
close
up
and
realize
on
these
new
companies
which
are
entirely
sound
and
needed
.
It
would
help
me
to
prevent
the
old
companies
from
eating
me
up
.
As
a
matter
of
fact
,
I
must
have
such
a
franchise
to
protect
my
interests
and
give
me
a
running
fighting
chance
.
Now
,
I
know
that
none
of
us
are
in
politics
or
finance
for
our
health
.
If
I
could
get
such
a
franchise
it
would
be
worth
from
one-fourth
to
one-half
of
all
I
personally
would
make
out
of
it
,
providing
my
plan
of
combining
these
new
companies
with
the
old
ones
should
go
through
--
say
,
from
three
to
four
hundred
thousand
dollars
.
"
(
Here
again
Cowperwood
was
not
quite
frank
,
but
safe
.
)
"
It
is
needless
to
say
to
you
that
I
can
command
ample
capital
.
This
franchise
would
do
that
.
Briefly
,
I
want
to
know
if
you
wo
n't
give
me
your
political
support
in
this
matter
and
join
in
with
me
on
the
basis
that
I
propose
?
I
will
make
it
perfectly
clear
to
you
beforehand
who
my
associates
are
.
I
will
put
all
the
data
and
details
on
the
table
before
you
so
that
you
can
see
for
yourself
how
things
are
.
If
you
should
find
at
any
time
that
I
have
misrepresented
anything
you
are
at
full
liberty
,
of
course
,
to
withdraw
.
As
I
said
before
,
"
he
concluded
,
"
I
am
not
a
beggar
.
I
am
not
coming
here
to
conceal
any
facts
or
to
hide
anything
which
might
deceive
you
as
to
the
worth
of
all
this
to
us
.
I
want
you
to
know
the
facts
.
I
want
you
to
give
me
your
aid
on
such
terms
as
you
think
are
fair
and
equitable
.
Really
the
only
trouble
with
me
in
this
situation
is
that
I
am
not
a
silk
stocking
.
If
I
were
this
gas
war
would
have
been
adjusted
long
ago
.
These
gentlemen
who
are
so
willing
to
reorganize
through
Mr.
Schryhart
are
largely
opposed
to
me
because
I
am
--
comparatively
--
a
stranger
in
Chicago
and
not
in
their
set
.
If
I
were
"
--
he
moved
his
hand
slightly
--
"
I
do
n't
suppose
I
would
be
here
this
evening
asking
for
your
favor
,
although
that
does
not
say
that
I
am
not
glad
to
be
here
,
or
that
I
would
not
be
glad
to
work
with
you
in
any
way
that
I
might
.
Circumstances
simply
have
not
thrown
me
across
your
path
before
.
"
As
he
talked
his
eye
fixed
McKenty
steadily
,
almost
innocently
;
and
the
latter
,
following
him
clearly
,
felt
all
the
while
that
he
was
listening
to
a
strange
,
able
,
dark
,
and
very
forceful
man
.
There
was
no
beating
about
the
bush
here
,
no
squeamishness
of
spirit
,
and
yet
there
was
subtlety
--
the
kind
McKenty
liked
.
While
he
was
amused
by
Cowperwood
's
casual
reference
to
the
silk
stockings
who
were
keeping
him
out
,
it
appealed
to
him
.
He
caught
the
point
of
view
as
well
as
the
intention
of
it
.
Cowperwood
represented
a
new
and
rather
pleasing
type
of
financier
to
him
.
Evidently
,
he
was
traveling
in
able
company
if
one
could
believe
the
men
who
had
introduced
him
so
warmly
.
McKenty
,
as
Cowperwood
was
well
aware
,
had
personally
no
interest
in
the
old
companies
and
also
--
though
this
he
did
not
say
--
no
particular
sympathy
with
them
.
They
were
just
remote
financial
corporations
to
him
,
paying
political
tribute
on
demand
,
expecting
political
favors
in
return
.
Every
few
weeks
now
they
were
in
council
,
asking
for
one
gas-main
franchise
after
another
(
special
privileges
in
certain
streets
)
,
asking
for
better
(
more
profitable
)
light-contracts
,
asking
for
dock
privileges
in
the
river
,
a
lower
tax
rate
,
and
so
forth
and
so
on
.
McKenty
did
not
pay
much
attention
to
these
things
personally
.
He
had
a
subordinate
in
council
,
a
very
powerful
henchman
by
the
name
of
Patrick
Dowling
,
a
meaty
,
vigorous
Irishman
and
a
true
watch-dog
of
graft
for
the
machine
,
who
worked
with
the
mayor
,
the
city
treasurer
,
the
city
tax
receiver
--
in
fact
,
all
the
officers
of
the
current
administration
--
and
saw
that
such
minor
matters
were
properly
equalized
.
Mr.
McKenty
had
only
met
two
or
three
of
the
officers
of
the
South
Side
Gas
Company
,
and
that
quite
casually
.
He
did
not
like
them
very
well
.
The
truth
was
that
the
old
companies
were
officered
by
men
who
considered
politicians
of
the
McKenty
and
Dowling
stripe
as
very
evil
men
;
if
they
paid
them
and
did
other
such
wicked
things
it
was
because
they
were
forced
to
do
so
.
"
Well
,
"
McKenty
replied
,
lingering
his
thin
gold
watch-chain
in
a
thoughtful
manner
,
"
that
's
an
interesting
scheme
you
have
.
Of
course
the
old
companies
would
n't
like
your
asking
for
a
rival
franchise
,
but
once
you
had
it
they
could
n't
object
very
well
,
could
they
?
"
He
smiled
.
Mr.
McKenty
spoke
with
no
suggestion
of
a
brogue
.
"
From
one
point
of
view
it
might
be
looked
upon
as
bad
business
,
but
not
entirely
.
They
would
be
sure
to
make
a
great
cry
,
though
they
have
n't
been
any
too
kind
to
the
public
themselves
.
