Part 52 (1/2)
”I cannot imagine,” Marie said. ”It makes everything so much easier-and you were clever enough to squeeze it out of the government.”
”And the Americans,” Galtier said. ”You must not forget the Americans.”
”I am not likely to forget the Americans.” His wife's voice was tart. ”Without the Americans, we would not have the son-in-law we now have, nor the grandson, either. Believe me, I remember all this very well.”
”Without the Americans, we would not be living in the Republic of Quebec,” Galtier said, looking at the large picture as well as the small one. ”We would still be paying our taxes to Ottawa and getting nothing for them, instead of paying them to the city of Quebec...and getting nothing for them.” Neither independence nor wealth reconciled him to paying taxes. Wealth, indeed, left him even less enthusiastic than he had been before, for it meant he had to pay more than he had when he was not doing so well.
”When the Americans came, we thought it was the end of the world,” Marie said.
”And we were right,” Lucien answered. ”It was the end of the world we had always known. We have changed.” From a Quebecois farmer, that was blasphemy to rank alongside tabernac tabernac and and calisse calisse. ”We have changed, and we are better for it.” From a Quebecois farmer, that was blasphemy viler than any for which the local French dialect had words.
His wife started to contradict him. He could tell by the way she opened her mouth, by the angle at which her head turned, by any number of other small things he could not have named but did see. Before she could speak, he wagged a finger at her-only that and nothing more. She hesitated. At last, she said, ”Peut-etre-it could be.”
That was a greater concession than he'd thought he could get from her. He'd been ready to argue. Instead, all he had to say was, ”We are lucky. The whole family is lucky. Things could so easily be worse.” He thought again of the farmer out in Manitoba who'd tried to kill General Custer.
”G.o.d has been kind to us,” Marie said.
”Yes, G.o.d has been kind to us,” Galtier agreed. ”And we have been lucky. And”-he knew just how to forestall an argument, almost as if he'd read a book on the subject-”this is excellent, truly excellent, coffee. Could you fix me another cup, exactly like this one?” His wife turned to take care of it. Galtier smiled behind her back. He'd had good luck and, wherever he could, he'd made good luck. And here he was, in his middle years and happy. He wondered how many of his neighbors could say that. Not many, unless he missed his guess. With an open smile and a word of thanks, he took the cup from Marie.
Jake Featherston tore open the fat package from the William Byrd Press. Dear Mr. Featherston, Dear Mr. Featherston, the letter inside read, the letter inside read, Thank you for showing us the ma.n.u.script enclosed herewith. We regret that we must doubt its commercial possibilities at the present time, and must therefore regretfully decline to undertake its publication. We hope you will have success in placing it elsewhere Thank you for showing us the ma.n.u.script enclosed herewith. We regret that we must doubt its commercial possibilities at the present time, and must therefore regretfully decline to undertake its publication. We hope you will have success in placing it elsewhere.
He cursed. He couldn't place Over Open Sights Over Open Sights anywhere, and a lot of the letters he got back from Richmond publishers-and even from one down in Mobile-were a lot less polite than this one. ”n.o.body wants to hear the truth,” he growled. anywhere, and a lot of the letters he got back from Richmond publishers-and even from one down in Mobile-were a lot less polite than this one. ”n.o.body wants to hear the truth,” he growled.
”Nothing you can do about it now, Jake,” Ferdinand Koenig said, slapping him on the back in consolation. ”Come on. Let's get out of here.”
”Stupid b.a.s.t.a.r.ds,” Featherston snarled. ”And they're proud of it, d.a.m.n them. They want to stay stupid.” But he was glad to escape the Freedom Party offices. Even to him, they stank of defeat.
When he went out onto the streets of Richmond, he could have pulled the brim of his hat down low on his forehead or tugged up his collar so it hid part of his face. He could have grown a chin beard or bushy side whiskers to change his looks. He didn't. He hadn't. He wouldn't. As always, he met the world head-on.
The world was less fond of him than it had been before Grady Calkins murdered Wade Hampton V. About every other person on the street recognized him, and about every third person who did recognize him showered him with abuse. He gave as good as he got, very often better.
Koenig shook his head while Jake and a pa.s.serby exchanged unpleasantries. After the man finally went on his way, Koenig said, ”Christ, sometimes I think you look for trouble.”
”No such thing.” Featherston shook his head. ”But I'll be G.o.dd.a.m.ned if I'll run from it, either. After the d.a.m.nyankee artillery, fools with big mouths aren't enough to put me off my feed.”
”I still think you ought to lay low till it gets closer to the next election, let people forget about things,” Koenig said.
He was one of the very few people these days who spoke frankly to Jake instead of telling him what they thought he wanted to hear. That made him a valuable man. All the same, Jake shook his head again. ”No, dammit. I didn't do anything I'm ashamed of. The Party didn't do anything I'm ashamed of. One crazy man went and fouled things up for us, that's all. People need to forget about Calkins, not about me.”
”They didn't forget last November,” Koenig pointed out.
”We knew that was going to happen,” Featherston said. ”All right, it happened. It could have been a lot worse. A lot of people reckoned it would be a lot worse.”
”You know what you sound like?” Koenig said. ”You sound like the War Department in the last part of 1916, the first part of 1917, when the d.a.m.nyankees had started hammering us hard. 'We hurt the enemy very badly and contained him more quickly than expected,' they'd say, and all that meant was, we'd lost some more ground.”
Featherston grunted. Comparing him to the department he hated hit home. Stubbornly, he said, ”The Freedom Party's going to get the ground back, though. The War Department never did figure out how to manage that one.”
”If you say so, Sarge,” Ferdinand Koenig replied. He didn't sound like a man who believed it. He sounded like a man humoring a rich lunatic-and he made sure Featherston knew he sounded that way.
”We can come back,” Jake insisted. As long as he believed it, he could make other people believe it. If enough other people believed it, it would come true.
He and Koenig turned right from Seventh onto Franklin and walked on toward Capitol Square. Jake's hands folded into fists. After the war was lost-thrown away, he thought-discharged soldiers had almost taken the Capitol; only more soldiers with machine guns had held them at bay. A good bloodbath then would have been just what the CSA needed. he thought-discharged soldiers had almost taken the Capitol; only more soldiers with machine guns had held them at bay. A good bloodbath then would have been just what the CSA needed.
And in 1921 he'd come so close to storming his way into power in spite of everything the Whigs and all their Thirds and Fourths and Fifths could do to stop him. Sure as h.e.l.l, he would have been elected in 1927. He knew he would have been-if not for Grady Calkins.
If even he was thinking about what might have been instead of what would be now-if that was so, the Freedom Party was in deep trouble. A man with a limp-wounded veteran, Jake judged-came toward him along Franklin. Jake nodded to him-he still had plenty of backers left, especially among men who'd fought like him. Jake judged-came toward him along Franklin. Jake nodded to him-he still had plenty of backers left, especially among men who'd fought like him.
”Freedom!” the fellow said by way of reply, but he loaded the word with loathing and made an obscene gesture at Jake.
”You go to h.e.l.l!” Featherston cried.
”If I do, I'll see you there before me,” the man with the limp answered, and went on his way.
”b.a.s.t.a.r.d,” Jake muttered on his breath. ”f.u.c.king b.a.s.t.a.r.d. They're all f.u.c.king b.a.s.t.a.r.ds.” Then he saw a crowd on the sidewalk ahead and forgot about the heckler. ”What the h.e.l.l's going on here, Ferd?”
”d.a.m.ned if I know,” Koenig answered. ”Shall we find out?”
”Yeah.” Jake elbowed his way to the front of the crowd, ably a.s.sisted by his former running mate. He'd expected a saloon giving away free beer or something of that sort. Instead, men and women were trying to shove their way into...a furniture store? He couldn't believe it till Ferdinand Koenig pointed to the sign taped in the window: NEWEST MAKES OF WIRELESS RECEIVERS, FROM NEWEST MAKES OF WIRELESS RECEIVERS, FROM $399. $399.
”They're all the go nowadays,” Koenig said. ”Even at those prices, everybody wants one.”
”I've heard people talking about them,” Featherston admitted. ”Haven't heard one myself, I don't think. I'll be d.a.m.ned if I can see what the fuss is about.”
”I've listened to 'em,” Koenig said. ”It's-interesting. Not like anything else you'll ever run across, I'll tell you that.”
”Huh.” But, having got so close to the store's doorway, Featherston decided not to leave without listening to a wireless receiver. More judicious elbowing got him and Koenig inside.
The receivers were all big and boxy. Some cabinets were made of fancier wood than others; that seemed to account for the difference in price. Only one machine was actually operating. From it came tinny noises that, after a bit, Jake recognized as a Negro band playing ”In the Good Old Summertime.”
”Huh,” he said again, and turned to the fellow who was touting the receivers. ”Why would anybody want to listen to this c.r.a.p, for G.o.d's sake?”
”Soon, sir, there will be offerings for every taste,” the salesman answered smoothly. ”Even now, people all over Richmond are listening to this and other broadcasts. As more people buy receivers, the number of broadcasts and the number of listeners will naturally increase.”
”Not if they keep playing that garbage,” Ferdinand Koenig said. He nodded to Featherston. ”You were right-this is lousy.”
”Yeah.” But Jake had listened to the salesman, too. ”All over Richmond, you say?”
”Yes, sir.” The rabbity-looking fellow nodded enthusiastically. ”And the price of receivers has fallen dramatically in the past few months. It will probably keep right on falling, too, as they become more popular.”
”People all over Richmond,” Jake repeated thoughtfully. ”Could you have people all over the CSA listening to the same thing at the same time?”
To his disappointment, the salesman replied, ”Not from the same broadcasting facility.” But the fellow went on, ”I suppose you could send the same signal from several facilities at once. Why, if I might ask?”
Plainly, he didn't recognize Featherston. ”Just curious,” Jake answered-and, indeed, it was hardly more than that. Behind his hand, he whispered to Koenig: ”Might be cheaper to make a speech on the wireless than hold a bunch of rallies in a bunch of different towns. If we could be sure we were reaching enough people that way-”
One of the other customers in the shop was whispering behind his his hand to the salesman. ”Oh?” the salesman said. ”He hand to the salesman. ”Oh?” the salesman said. ”He is is?” By the tone of voice, Jake knew exactly what the customer had whispered. The salesman said, ”Sir, I am going to have to ask you to leave. This is a high-cla.s.s establishment, and I don't want any trouble here.”
”We weren't giving you any trouble.” Featherston and Koenig spoke together.