d him. "I want to see you
confidentially about this capital ring which is making so much
trouble."

"I thought you were in it," replied the mayor, turning very red in the
face, for he had heard of Mr. Pullwool as the leader of said ring; and
being an iracund man, he was ready to knock his head off.

"In it!" exclaimed the possessed one. "I wish I was. It's a fat thing.
More than fifty thousand dollars paid out already!"

"Good gracious!" exclaimed the mayor in despair.

"By the way, this is between ourselves," added Pullwool. "You take it
so, I hope. Word of honor, eh?"

"Why, if you have anything to communicate that will help us, why, of
course, I promise secrecy," stammered the mayor. "Yes, certainly; word
of honor."

"Well, I've been looking about among those fellows a little," continued
Ananias. "I've kept my eyes and ears open. It's a way I have. And I've
learned a thing or two that it will be to your advantage to know. Yes,
sir! fifty thousand dollars!--the city has voted it and paid it, and
the ring has got it. That's why they are all working so. And depend
upon it, they'll carry the legislature and turn Slowburg out to grass,
unless you wake up and do something."

"By heavens!" exclaimed the iracund mayor, turning red again. "It's a
piece of confounded rascality. It ought to be exposed."

"No, don't expose it," put in Mr. Pullwool, somewhat alarmed. "That
game never works. Of course they'd deny it and swear you down, for
bribing witnesses is as easy as bribing members. I'll tell you what to
do. Beat them at their own weapons. Raise a purse that will swamp
theirs. That's the way the world goes. It's an auction. The highest
bidder gets the article."

Well, the result of it all was that the city magnates of Slowburg did
just what had been done by the city magnates of Fastburg, only, instead
of voting fifty thousand dollars into the pockets of the ring, they
voted sixty thousand. With a portion of this money about him, and with
authority to draw for the rest on proper vouchers, Mr. Pullwool, his
tongue in his cheek, bade farewell to his new allies. As a further
proof of the ready wit and solid impudence of this sublime politician
and model of American statesmen, let me here introduce a brief
anecdote. Leaving Slowburg by the cars, he encountered a gentleman from
Fastburg, who saluted him with tokens of amazement, and said, "What are
you doing here, Mr. Pullwool?"

"Oh, just breaking up these fellows a l