"Well, Sally, how about Mort Bassett?" asked the admiral. "I hope you
don't mind my speaking of him."

"Not in the slightest," Mrs. Owen replied. "The fact that Morton Bassett
married my niece doesn't make it necessary for me to approve of all he
does--and I don't. When I get a chance I give him the best licks I can.
He's a Democrat, but I'm not; neither am I a Republican. They're all
just as crooked as a dog's hind leg. I gave up when they beat Tilden out
of the presidency. Why, if I'd been Samuel Tilden I'd have moved into
the White House and dared 'em to throw me out. The Democratic Party
never did have any gumption!" she concluded vigorously.

"A sound idea, Sally," grumbled the admiral, "but it's not new."

"Bassett isn't a bad fellow," remarked Ware. "You can hardly call him a
boss in the usual sense of the term."

"Personally, he's certainly very agreeable," said Mrs. Martin. "You
remember, Mrs. Owen, I visited your niece the last time I was home and
I never saw a man more devoted to his family than Mr. Bassett."

"There's no complaint about that," Mrs. Owen assented. "And Morton's a
very intelligent man, too; you might even call him a student. I've been
sorry that he didn't keep to the law; but he's a moneymaker, and he's in
politics as a part of his business."

"I've wondered," said Professor Kelton, "just what he's aiming at. Most
of these men are ambitious to go high. He's a state senator, but there's
not much in that. He must see bigger game in the future. I don't know