peril; in the Republican camp it was
thought that while Thatcher might not control the convention he would
prove himself strong enough to shake the faith of many of Bassett's
followers in the power of their chief. There had been, apparently, a hot
contest at the primaries. In the northern part of the state, in a region
long recognized as Bassett's stronghold, Thatcher had won easily; at
the capital the contestants had broken even, a result attributable to
Thatcher's residence in the county. The word had passed among the
faithful that Thatcher money was plentiful, and that it was not only
available in this preliminary skirmish, but that those who attached
themselves to Thatcher early were to enjoy his bounty throughout his
campaign--which might be protracted--for the senatorship. Bassett was
not scattering largess; it was whispered that the money he had used
previously in politics had come out of Thatcher's pocket and that he
would have less to spend in future.

Bassett, in keeping with his forecast to Harwood, had made a point of
having many new men, whose faces were unfamiliar in state conventions,
chosen at the primaries he controlled, so that in a superficial view of
the convention the complexion of a considerable body of the delegates
was neutral. Here and there among the delegations sat men who knew
precisely Bassett's plans and wishes. The day following the primaries,
Bassett, closeted with Harwood in his room at the Boordman Building, had
run the point of a walking-stick across every county in the state,
reciting from memory just how many delegates he absolutely controlled,
those he could get easily if he should by any chance need them, and the
number of undoubted Thatcher men there were to reckon with. In Dan's own
mingling with the crowd at the Whitcomb the night before the convention
he had learned nothing to shake his faith in Bassett's calculations.

The Honorable Isaac Pettit, of Fraser, was one of the most noteworthy
figures on the floor. Had he not thrown off the Bassett yoke and
trampled the lord of Fraser County underfoot? Did not the opposition
press applaud the editor for so courageously wresting from the
despicable chieftain the control of a county long inured to slavery?
Verily, the Honorable Isaac had done much to encourage belief in the
guileless that such were the facts. Even the "Courier" proved its sturdy
independence by printing the result of the primary without extenuation
or aught set down