ong way and he's going
to get even with you. He's mighty bitter--bitterer than it's healthy for
one man to be against another. If it hadn't been for this newspaper fuss
I shouldn't ever have said a word to you about it; but I advise you to
straighten things up with Edward. You'd better do it for your own
good--for Hallie and the children. You've insulted him and held him up
to the whole state of Indiana as a fool. You needn't think he doesn't
know just where you gripped that convention tight, and just where you
let him have it to play with. He's got more money than you have, and
he's going to spend it to give you some of your own medicine or worse,
if he can. He's like a mule that lays for the nigger that put burrs
under his collar. You're that particular nigger just now. You've made a
mistake, Morton."

"But Aunt Sally--I didn't--"

"About that newspaper, Morton," she continued, ignoring him. "I've
decided that I'll just hang on to my stock. You've built up the
'Courier' better than I expected, and that last statement showed it to
be doing fine. I don't know any place right now where I can do as well
with the money. You see I've got about all the farms I can handle at my
age, and it will be some fun to have a hand in running a newspaper. I
want you to tell 'em down at the 'Courier' office--what's his name?
Atwill? Well, you tell him I want this 'Stop, Look, Listen' business
stopped. If you can't think of anything smarter to do than that, you 'd
better quit. You had no business to turn a newspaper against a man who
owns half of it without giving him a chance to get off the track. You
whistled, Morton, after you had pitched him and his side-bar buggy into
the ditch and killed his horse."

"But who had put him on the track? I hadn't! He'd been running over the
state for two years, to my knowledge, trying to undermine me. I was only
giving him in broad daylight what he was giving me in the dark. You
don't understand this, Aunt Sally; he's been playing on your feelings."

"Morton Bassett, there ain't a man on earth that can play on my
feelings. I didn't let him jump on you; and I don't intend to let you
abuse him. I've told you to stop nagging him, but I haven't any idea
you'll do it. That's your business. If you want a big bump, you go on
and get it. About this newspaper, I'm going to keep my shares, and I've
told Edward that you wouldn't use the paper as a club on him while I was
interested in it. You can print all th