"A young lady. She's free to choose for herself."
"Is she?" cried Baldwin.
"As between two brothers of the lodge I should say that she was," saidthe Boss.
"Oh, that's your ruling, is it?"
"Yes, it is, Ted Baldwin," said McGinty, with a wicked stare. "Is ityou that would dispute it?"
"You would throw over one that has stood by you this five years infavour of a man that you never saw before in your life? You're notBodymaster for life, Jack McGinty, and by God! when next it comes to avote--"
The Councillor sprang at him like a tiger. His hand closed round theother's neck, and he hurled him back across one of the barrels. In hismad fury he would have squeezed the life out of him if McMurdo had notinterfered.
"Easy, Councillor! For heaven's sake, go easy!" he cried, as he draggedhim back.
McGinty released his hold, and Baldwin, cowed and shaken gasping forbreath, and shivering in every limb, as one who has looked over thevery edge of death, sat up on the barrel over which he had been hurled.
"You've been asking for it this many a day, Ted Baldwin--now you've gotit!" cried McGinty, his huge chest rising and falling. "Maybe you thinkif I was voted down from Bodymaster you would find yourself in myshoes. It's for the lodge to say that. But so long as I am the chiefI'll have no man lift his voice against me or my rulings."
"I have nothing against you," mumbled Baldwin, feeling his throat.
"Well, then," cried the other, relapsing in a moment into a bluffjoviality, "we are all good friends again and there's an end of thematter."
He took a bottle of champagne down from the shelf and twisted out thecork.
"See now," he continued, as he filled three high glasses. "Let us drinkthe quarrelling toast of the lodge. After that, as you know, there canbe no bad blood between us. Now, then the left hand on the apple of mythroat. I say to you, Ted Baldwin, what is the offense, sir?"
"The clouds are heavy," answered Baldwin
"But they will forever brighten."
"And this I swear!"
The men drank their glasses, and the same ceremony was performedbetween Baldwin and McMurdo.
"There!" cried McGinty, rubbing his hands. "That's the end of the blackblood. You come under lodge discipline if it goes further, and that's aheavy hand in these parts, as Brother Baldwin knows--and as you willdamn soon find out, Brother McMurdo, if you ask for trouble!"
"Faith, I'd be slow to do that," said McMurdo. He held out his hand toBaldwin. "I'm quick to quarrel and quick to forgive. It's my hot Irishblood, they tell me. But it's over for me, and I bear no grudge."
Baldwin had to take the proffered hand, for the baleful eye of theterrible Boss was upon him. But his sullen face showed how little thewords of the other had moved him.
McGinty clapped them both on the shoulders. "Tut! These girls! Thesegirls!" he cried. "To think that the same petticoats should comebetween two of my boys! It's the devil's own luck! Well, it's thecolleen inside of them that must settle the question for it's outsidethe jurisdiction of a Bodymaster--and the Lord be praised for that! Wehave enough on us, without the women as well. You'll have to beaffiliated to Lodge 341, Brother McMurdo. We have our own ways andmethods, different from Chicago. Saturday night is our meeting, and ifyou come then, we'll make you free forever of the Vermissa Valley."
Chapter 3
Lodge 341, Vermissa
On the day following the evening which had contained so many excitingevents, McMurdo moved his lodgings from old Jacob Shafter's and took uphis quarters at the Widow MacNamara's on the extreme outskirts of thetown. Scanlan, his original acquaintance aboard the train, had occasionshortly afterwards to move into Vermissa, and the two lodged together.There was no other boarder, and the hostess was an easy-going oldIrishwoman who left them to themselves; so that they had a freedom forspeech and action welcome to men who had secrets in common.
Shafter had relented to the extent of letting McMurdo come to his mealsthere when he liked; so that his intercourse with Ettie was by no meansbroken. On the contrary, it drew closer and more intimate as the weekswent by.
In his bedroom at his new abode McMurdo felt it safe to take out thecoining moulds, and under many a pledge of secrecy a number of brothersfrom the lodge were allowed to come in and see them, each carrying awayin his pocket some examples of the false money, so cunningly struckthat there was never the slightest difficulty or danger in passing it.Why, with such a wonderful art at his command, McMurdo shouldcondescend to work at all was a perpetual mystery to his companions;though he made it clear to anyone who asked him that if he livedwithout any visible means it would very quickly bring the police uponhis track.
One policeman was indeed after him already; but the incident, as luckwould have it, did the adventurer a great deal more good than harm.After the first introduction there were few evenings when he did notfind his way to McGinty's saloon, there to make closer acquaintancewith "the boys," which was the jovial title by which the dangerous gangwho infested the place were known to one another. His dashing mannerand fearlessness of speech made him a favourite with them all; whilethe rapid and scientific way in which he polished off his antagonist inan "all in" bar-room scrap earned the respect of that rough community.Another incident, however, raised him even higher in their estimation.
Just at the crowded hour one night, the door opened and a man enteredwith the quiet blue uniform and peaked cap of the mine police. This wasa special body raised by the railways and colliery owners to supplementthe efforts of the ordinary civil police, who were perfectly helplessin the face of the organized ruffianism which terrorized the district.There was a hush as he entered, and many a curious glance was cast athim; but the relations between policemen and criminals are peculiar insome parts of the States, and McGinty himself standing behind hiscounter, showed no surprise when the policeman enrolled himself amonghis customers.
"A straight whisky, for the night is bitter," said the police officer."I don't think we have met before, Councillor?"