" Thus he babbled on.
All through our meal his talk continued: of _cabarets_
and dances, or fox-trots and midnight suppers, of blondes
and brunettes, "peaches" and "dreams," and all the while
his eye roved incessantly among the tables, resting on
the women with a bold stare. At times he would indicate
and point out for me some of what he called the
"representative people" present.
"Notice that man at the second table," he would whisper
across to me. "He's worth all the way to ten millions:
made it in Government contracts; they tried to send him
to the penitentiary last fall but they can't get him--he's
too smart for them! I'll introduce you to him presently.
See the man with him? That's his lawyer, biggest crook
in America, they say; we'll meet him after dinner." Then
he would suddenly break off and exclaim: "Egad, sir,
there's a fine bunch of them," as another bevy of girls
came trooping out upon the stage.
"I wonder," I murmured, "if there is nothing left of him
but this? Has all the fine old spirit gone? Is it all
drowned out in wine and suffocated in the foul atmosphere
of luxury?"
Then suddenly I looked up at my companion, and I saw to
my surprise that his whole face and manner had altered.
Pages:
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
32
33
34
35
36
37
38