e reading quotations from
'Pilgrim's Progress' to the Senate by now to keep the floor."

Bud paused to look at his watch.

The Senator stretched his head out of the window and cried: "Drive
faster!"

"Got your speech all right?" called Bud above the din of the rattling
wheels.

"Yes, here," was the response, the Senator tapping his inner breast
pocket.

"Thought maybe she--" cried Bud, jerking his head back in the
direction from which they had come.

The Mississippian shook his head negatively, and set his jaws
determinedly.

The coach swung up to the Capitol entrance.

"Tell me," asked Langdon, as both jumped out, "how did you find out
that--"

"I 'phoned the house--gave a name Peabody uses--"

"Great heavens! but how did you know where to 'phone?"

They were at the door of the Senate chamber.

"Norton gave me the tip--for your sake and Carolina's--for old times'
sake, he said," was Bud's reply.

CHAPTER XXVIII

ON THE FLOOR OF THE SENATE

Too much occupied in concentrating his thoughts on his speech, Langdon
failed to notice the consternation on the faces of Peabody and Stevens
as he walked to his seat in the Senate. They had failed to succeed in
getting Milbank to conclude, and consequently could not push the naval
base report through. But they noted the passing of over an hour after
their opponent's appointed time and had felt certain that he would not
appear at all.

"The boss of the Senate" leaned across to Stevens and whispered,
hurriedly:

"We must tear him to pieces now--discredit him publicly. It's his own
fault. Our agents can sell the land to Standard Steel. Our connection
with the scheme will be impossible to discover--after we have made the
public believe Langdon is a crook."

"But how about our supposed combination to protect the Government
that Langdon will tell about?" asked Stevens. "We can't deny that, of
course."

"No," answered Peabody. "We can't deny it, but we will not affirm it.
We will tell interviewers that we prefer not to talk about it."

"It's our only chance," replied Stevens, cautiously.

"Yes; and we owe it all to Jake Steinert," went on Peabody. "That
fellow Telfer will do anything to please Jake. Jake has convinced
Telfer that Langdon was responsible for the defeat of Gulf City, and
the Mayor is wild for revenge."

"The boss of the Senate" rose and walked to the rear of the Senate
chamber to issue orders to two of his colleagues.

"Report of the