" I urged "central" to try several times, but all I could get
was, "I am ringing them." Carpenter, no doubt, was praying. What
were the others doing? I kept on trying, but finally gave up.
Could the mob have taken them away? But Old Joe answered, no, a
definite hour had been set. The ex-service men were to gather on the
stroke of midnight. We had nearly an hour yet.
My first thought was that we should hurry to the Socialist
headquarters and get Carpenter out of the way. But my friend pointed
out that the place was certain to be watched, and we might find
ourselves held up by the armed detectives; they would hardly take a
chance of letting their prey escape at this hour. Also, I realized
there was no use figuring on any plan that involved spiriting
Carpenter away quietly, by the roof, or a rear entrance, or anything
of that sort. He would insist on staying and facing his enemies.
I put my wits to work. We needed a good-sized crowd; we needed, in
fact, a mob of our own. And suddenly the word brought to me an
inspiration; that mob which T-S had drilled at Eternal City! I
recalled that a year or so ago I had been lured to sit through a
very dull feature picture which the magnate had made, showing the
salvation of our country by the Ku Klux Klan; and I knew enough
about studio methods to be sure they had not thrown away the
costumes, but would have them stored.
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