oping a degree of virulence and intolerance on both sides
that boded no good to Buckeye. The disease which its infancy had escaped
had attacked its adult growth with greater violence. The new American
saloons which competed with Jovita Mendez' Spanish venture had
substituted a brutal masculine sincerity for her veiled feminine
methods. There was higher play, deeper drinking, darker passion. Yet the
opposition, after the fashion of most reformers, were casting back to
the origin of the trouble in Jovita, and were confounding principles
and growth. "If it had not been for her the rule would never have been
broken." "If there was to be a cleaning out of the gambling houses, she
must go first!"

The sounds of a harp and a violin played in the nearest saloon struggled
up to them with the opening and shutting of its swinging baize inner
doors. There was boisterous chanting from certain belated revelers in
the next street which had no such remission. The brawling of the stream
below seemed to be echoed in the uneasy streets; the quiet of the old
days had departed with the sedate, encompassing woods that no longer
fringed the river bank; the restful calm of Nature had receded before
the dusty outskirts of the town.

"It's mighty unfortunate, too," said Brace moodily, "that Shuttleworth
and Saunders, who haven't been in the place since their row, have come
over from Fiddletown to-day, and are banging around town. They haven't
said anything that I know of, but their PRESENCE is quite enough to
revive the old feeling against her shop. The Committee," he added
bitterly, "will be sure to say that not only the first gambling, but the
first shooting in Buckeye took place there. If they get up that story
again--no matter how quiet SHE has become since--no matter what YOU may
say as mayor--it will go hard with her. What's that now?"

They listened breathlessly. Above the brawling of the river, the
twanging of the harp-player, and the receding shouts of the revelers,
they could hear the hollow wooden sidewalks resounding with the dull,
monotonous trampling of closely following feet. Parks rose with a white
face.

"Brace!"

"Yes!"

"Will you stand by me--and HER?"

"Stand by YOU AND HER? Eh? What? Good God! Parks!--you don't mean to say
you--it's gone as far as THAT?"

"Will you or won't you?"

The sound of the trampling had changed to a shuffling on the pavement
below, and then footsteps began to ascend the stairs.

Brace h