human
Hello there, Danton--going to shake down the furnace fires of revolution this morning, I understand.
gpt
Well, Mr. Brotherton, the time has come, when I must fight. To-day is the day!
human
Yes, replied Brotherton,
gpt
I heard a few minutes ago that they were going to run you out of the district to-day. The meeting in the Commercial Club rooms is being called now.
human
Yes, said Grant,
gpt
I guess they are going to try and bluff you out, Grant,
human
I got wind of it last night, said Grant,
gpt
his face turned grim and a fanatic flame lighted his eyes as he spoke.
human
Somewhere the delegates of the Council will meet to-night, and I shall talk to them--or--
gpt
Soh, boss--soh, boss--don't get excited, counseled Mr. Brotherton.
human
They'll blow off a little steam in the meeting this morning, and then you go on about your business.
gpt
But you don't know what I know, George Brotherton, protested Grant as he leaned forward.
human
I have converted enough spies--oh, no--not counting the spies who were converted merely to scare me--but enough real spies to know that they mean business! He stopped, and sitting back in his chair again, he said grimly,
gpt
And so do I--I shall talk to the men to-night, or--
human
All right, son; you'll talk or 'the boy, oh, where was he?' I'll tell you what, cried Mr. Brotherton;
gpt
Mr. Brotherton dropped a weighty hand on Grant's shoulder,
human
That is why I am here this morning; it's about Kenyon. George Brotherton, that boy is more than life to me. The fanatic light was gone from Grant's eyes, and the soft glow in them revealed a man that George Brotherton had not seen in years.
gpt
Mr. Brotherton, continued Grant,
human
Again he hesitated. Then he went ahead as if he had decided for the last time.
gpt
George Brotherton, if I should be snuffed out, I want you to look after Kenyon--if ever he needs it. You have no one, and-- Grant leaned forward and grasped Brotherton's great hands and cried,
human
George Brotherton, if you knew the gold in that boy's heart, and what he can do with a violin, and how his soul is unfolding under the spell of his music. He's so dumb and tongue-tied and unformed now; and yet--
gpt
Well--say! It came out of Mr. Brotherton with a crash like a falling tree,
human
Grant--well, say! Through sickness and health, for better or for worse, till death do us part--if that will satisfy you. He put his big paw over and grabbed Grant's steel hook and jerked him to his feet.
gpt
You've sure sold Kenyon into bondage. When I saw him last night--honest to God, man--I thought I'd run into a picture roaming around out of stock without a frame! Him and me together can do Ariel and Prospero without a scratch of make-up. Grant beamed, but when Brotherton exclaimed as an afterthought,
human
Say, man, what about that boy's eyes? Grant's features mantled and the old grim look overcast his face, as Brotherton went on:
gpt
Why, them eyes would make a madonna's look like fried eggs! Where did he get 'em--they're not Sands and they're not Adams. He must take back to some Peri that blew into Massachusetts from an enchanted isle. Brotherton saw that he was annoying Grant in some way. Often he realized that his language was not producing the desired effect; so he veered about and said gently,
human
You're not in any danger, Grant; but so long as I'm wearing clothes that button up the front--don't worry about Kenyon, I'll look after him.
gpt
We deem this, sir, a life and death struggle for our individual liberties; a life and death struggle for our social order; a life and death struggle for our continuance to exist as individuals. There was a long repetition of the terms
human
They appealed to some tin-pan rhythmic sense in the Judge's oratorical mind. But the phrase struck fire in Grant Adams's heart. Life and death, life and death, rang through his soul like a clamor of bells.
gpt
We have given our all, bellowed the Judge,
human
But all Grant Adams heard of that sentence was
gpt
as the great bell of his soul clanged its alarm.
human
We are a happy, industrial family, intoned the Judge, the suave Judge, who was something more than owner; who was Authority without responsibility, who was the voice of the absentee master; the voice, it seemed to Grant, of an enchanted peacock squawking in the garden of a dream; the voice that cried:
gpt
I am the resurrection and the life,