Samuel now had his evidence; and he went straight back to Dr. Vince. “Doctor,” he said, “I am able to tell you that I know. I have heard it from one of the men who got the money.”
“Who is he?” asked the doctor.
“I could not tell you that,” said the boy—“it would not be fair. But you know that I am telling the truth. And this man told me with his own lips that Mr. Hickman paid twenty thousand dollars to Slattery, the Democratic boss, to be paid to ten of the supervisors to vote against the other company's water bill.”
There was a long pause; the doctor sat staring in front of him. “What do you want me to do?” he asked faintly.
“I don't know,” said Samuel. “Is it for me to tell you what is right?”
And again there was a pause.
“My boy,” said the doctor, “this is a terrible thing for me. Mr. Hickman is my wife's brother, and she loves him very dearly. And he is a very good friend of mine—I depend on him in all the business matters of the church.
“Yes,” said Samuel. “But he bribed the city council.”
“This thing would make a frightful scandal if it were known,” the other went on. “Think what a terrible thing it would be for St. Matthew's!”
“It is much worse as it is,” said the boy. “For people hear the story, and they say that the church is sheltering evil doers.”
“Think what a burden you place upon me!” cried the clergyman in distress. “A member of my own family!”
“It is just as hard for me,” said Samuel quickly.
“In what way?”
“On account of Mr. Wygant, sir.”
“What of that?”
Samuel had meant to say—“He is to be my father-in-law.” But at the last moment some instinct told him that it might be best to let Miss Gladys make that announcement at her own time. So instead he said, “I am thinking of Sophie.”
“It is not quite the same,” said the doctor; and then he repeated his question, “What do you want me to do?”
“Truly, I don't know!” protested the boy. “I am groping about to find what is right.”
“But you must have some idea in coming to me!” exclaimed the other anxiously. “Do you want me to expose my brother-in-law and drive him from the church?”
“I suppose,” said Samuel gravely, “that he would be sent to prison. But I certainly don't think that he should be driven from the church at least not unless he is unrepentant. First of all we should labor with him, I think.”
“And threaten him with exposure?”
“I'll tell you, doctor,” said the boy quickly. “I've been thinking about this very hard; and I don't think it would do much good to expose and punish any one. That only leads to bitterness and hatred—and we oughtn't to hate any person, you know.”
“Ah!” said the doctor with relief.
“The point is, the wicked thing that's been done. It's this robbing of the people that must be stopped! And it's the things that have been stolen!—Let me give you an example. To-day I met the man who came here with me to rob your house; and I learned for the first time that he had carried off some of your silver.”
“Yes,” said the other.
“And the man asked me to say nothing about what he had done, and I promised. I felt about him just as you do about your brother-in-law—I wouldn't denounce him and put him in jail. But I saw right away that I must do one thing—I must make him return the things he had stolen! That was right, was it not, doctor?”
“Yes,” said Dr. Vince promptly, “that was right.”
“Very well,” said the boy; “and the same thing is true about Mr. Hickman. He has robbed the people. He has got a franchise that enables him and the Lockman estate to make about ten thousand dollars a month out of the public. And they must give up that franchise! They must give up every dollar that they have made out of it! That is the whole story as I see it—nothing else counts but that. You can make all the fuss you want about bribery and graft, but you haven't accomplished anything unless you get back the stolen money.”
There was a pause. “Don't you see what I mean, doctor?” asked Samuel.
“Yes,”............