Pudd'nhead Wilson by Mark Twain
Author:Mark Twain [Twain, Mark]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Wordsworth Editions Limited
Published: 2014-10-02T23:00:00+00:00
Seventeen
Even popularity can be overdone. In Rome, alone at first, you are full of regrets that Michelangelo died; but by and by you only regret that you didn’t see him do it.
Pudd’nhead Wilson’s Calendar
July 4 – Statistics show that we lose more fools on this day than in all the other days of the year put together. This proves, by the number left in stock, that one Fourth of July per year is now inadequate, the country has grown so.
Pudd’nhead Wilson’s Calendar
The summer weeks dragged by, and then the political campaign opened – opened in pretty warm fashion, and waxed hotter and hotter daily. The twins threw themselves into it with their whole heart, for their self-love was engaged. Their popularity, so general at first, had suffered afterward; mainly because they had been too popular, and so a natural reaction had followed. Besides, it had been diligently whispered around that it was curious – indeed, very curious – that that wonderful knife of theirs did not turn up – if it was so valuable, or if it had ever existed. And with the whisperings went chucklings and nudgings and winks, and such things have an effect. The twins considered that success in the election would reinstate them, and that defeat would work them irreparable damage. Therefore they worked hard, but not harder than Judge Driscoll and Tom worked against them in the closing days of the canvas. Tom’s conduct had remained so letter-perfect during two whole months now that his uncle not only trusted him with money with which to persuade voters, but trusted him to go and get it himself out of the safe in the private sitting-room.
The closing speech of the campaign was made by Judge Driscoll, and he made it against both of the foreigners. It was disastrously effective. He poured out rivers of ridicule upon them, and forced the big mass-meeting to laugh and applaud. He scoffed at them as adventurers, mountebanks, side-show riff-raff, dime-museum freaks; he assailed their showy titles with measureless derision; he said they were back-alley barbers disguised as nobilities, peanut pedlers masquerading as gentlemen, organ-grinders bereft of their brother-monkey. At last he stopped and stood still. He waited until the place had become absolutely silent and expectant, then he delivered his deadliest shot; delivered it with ice-cold seriousness and deliberation, with a significant emphasis upon the closing words: he said he believed that the reward offered for the lost knife was humbug and buncombe, and that its owner would know where to find it whenever he should have occasion to assassinate somebody.
Then he stepped from the stand, leaving a startled and impressive hush behind him instead of the customary explosion of cheers and party cries.
The strange remark flew far and wide over the town and made an extraordinary sensation. Everybody was asking, ‘What could he mean by that?’ And everybody went on asking that question, but in vain; for the Judge only said he knew what he was talking about, and stopped
Download
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.
In Control (The City Series) by Crystal Serowka(35363)
The Wolf Sea (The Oathsworn Series, Book 2) by Low Robert(33849)
We Ride Upon Sticks by Quan Barry(33289)
Crowbone (The Oathsworn Series, Book 5) by Low Robert(32336)
The Book of Dreams (Saxon Series) by Severin Tim(32242)
The Daughters of Foxcote Manor by Eve Chase(22291)
Trainspotting by Irvine Welsh(20056)
Call Me by Your Name by André Aciman(18967)
Shot Through The Heart (Supernature Book 1) by Edwin James(17928)
The Secret History by Donna Tartt(16627)
The Girl from the Opera House by Nancy Carson(14988)
Sad Girls by Lang Leav(13354)
American King (New Camelot #3) by Sierra Simone(12985)
Pimp by Iceberg Slim(12932)
All the Missing Girls by Megan Miranda(12753)
The Betrayed by Graham Heather(11699)
The Betrayed by David Hosp(11672)
4 3 2 1: A Novel by Paul Auster(11052)
Still Me by Jojo Moyes(9905)