a Socialist of Laura Hegan . . .

JACK. Oh, stuff, Julia! I've given up chasing after will-o'-the-wisps
like that.

JULIA. -But think what she could do!

JACK. Yes. I used to think what a whole lot of people could do. You
might as well ask me to think what her father could do . . . if he
only wanted to do it, instead of poisoning the life-blood of the city,
and piling up his dirty millions. Go about this town and see the
misery and horror . . . and think that it's Jim Hegan who sits at the
top and reaps the profit of it all! It's Jim Hegan who is back of the
organization . . . he's the real power behind Boss Grimes. It's he who
puts up the money and makes possible this whole regime of vice and
graft . . .

JULIA. My dear boy, don't be silly.

JACK. How do you mean? Isn't it true?

JULIA. Of course it's true . . . but why declaim to me about it? You
forget you are talking to the champion female muckraker of the
country.

JACK. Yes, that's right. But I don't want to meet these people
socially. They mean well, a lot of them, I suppose; but they've been
accustomed all their lives to being people of importance . . . to have
everybody stand in awe of them, because of their stolen money, and all
the wonderful things they might do with it if they only would.