Zona Gale

“ ARPEGGIO SHADD was working in his garden. He was happy. The summer morning was hot and bright. The garden had been neglected for a week. He had on his oldest clothes. And Stack Mayhew and Dodd Purcell, the other two commissioners of Banning, had gone to the city to a commissioners' convention.
"You'd ought to come, too," Stack had admonished him. "If it ain't you that's always sicking us on to do things like other towns, who in time is it?" ”

“ Arpeggio worked on until the shadow of the visitor fell upon the hoe. Then Arpeggio looked up, appearing to straighten his back a muscle at a time.
Hernie Nichol stood there, on his way down-town. Hernie was by occupation a livery-stable keeper, and, therefore, by the fortunes of progress and invention, nearly a leisurist. But by nature Hernie was a monarch. He had what social-efficiency experts call qualities of leadership. Or perhaps not so much qualities as quantities. That was it—quantities of leadership Hernie had. In short, at five-and-thirty Hernie Nichol was political boss of Banning. ”

“ If two of the business men met on the street, and both spoke to once proposing the same thing, they'd both switch off and claim they misspoke, rather 'n to agree with each other. Every place but Banning they's only four directions. But Banning has got just as many directions to kick out in as it has got folks to do the kickin'."
"No public spirit," said Bayliss.
"Public spirit?" repeated Arpeggio. "Say! If you was to come to Banning with the earth for sale half-price, they wouldn't go in on it together." ”

“ It's always like pullin' teeth to get folks out to a convention—that don't make 'em any money." It occurred to him to get her point of view. He waved his hand about the table. He leaned toward her. "What's the game?" he confidentially inquired.
But already—or was it not quite already?—she was looking beyond him to Bayliss, and Bayliss was speaking.
"—nice little place," he said, "at the foot of the mountain. Every advantage the earth could yield them. And, by Jove! they turned their faces on the whole prospect and squeezed that little town dry for what they could make it earn." ”

“ And there was Arpeggio, who, two hours back, had confidently expected to spend the day cultivating the earth, there he was, looking into the faces of at least a dozen "nice" people; and Bayliss—whoever Bayliss was—expected him to tell them about Banning, while Miss Edith Granger and Miss Fleda Barnett were served to salad and listened. ”

“ To his surprise, they all laughed spontaneously, enjoyably.
"Not a little town in the country," said Bayliss, "whose inhabitants won't tell you confidentially that their town is peculiarly conservative."
"Is that so?" said Arpeggio, his jaw dropping.
The talk drifted away from him. Bayliss became absorbed in a housing chart which Miss Granger was showing him. Mrs. Ebens was talking with Plunkett on a river-front improvement. Across the table Miss Fleda Barnett and a good-looking young fellow were discussing the adaptation of the English half-timbered shops to use in small American cities. ”

“ Why, man, I wouldn't be bothered!"
"He wants," said Hernie, addressing the unbounded blue, "he wants to be urged—by his lovin' friends."
"Here's Stack and Dodd, chasin' off to some fool commissioners' meetin' this minute, eatin' up their good time. I can't do it. I won't do it. Look at my potatoes—early Ohios- and you can't beat 'em. Look at my strawberries groanin' for attention. I want to raise pigeons. I'm goin' to start an asparagus-bed. I wouldn't be commissioner again for all the graft folks thinks is in it. Go to thunder!" said Arpeggio, and hoed. ”

“ If a man had a store, he put in a good stock, advertised well, and thought that was all there was to it. He co-operated in exchange, in banking, and so on—but he sold alone. Naturally, when he began to get the radiant idea of selling co-operation, it's gone to his head and he's abusing it. ”

“ Factory sites, eh? Factory location. Grand! If Banning just had another factory or two, it 'd make the town—make it. Like enough some of these folks was looking round for a big bonus, or a low tax-rate the first year, and they was for softening up the Banning commissioners. Dodd and Stack it would be easy enough to flatter like the dickens. Miss Granger and Miss Barnett could be taken in, same as angels. But he, Arpeggio, would be onto them fast enough. ”

“ Encouraged, he spoke again. "Banning," said he, "is all right on the morals of the folks. The homes, you understand. It's all right on the business of the merchants. The individual houses, you understand. But when you come to town decency and business co-operation—say! Believe me, there ain't it."
Bayliss nodded absently. "It's the picture of a lot of them," he said.
Positively kindled, Arpeggio went forward. "Banning," said he, with a frown and a sidewise look—"Banning is a very peculiar town, though. In this way—Banning is very, ve-ry conservative." ”

“ Arpeggio offered.
"The circular says them commissioners as don't u-nite with others to talk things over 'ain't got no right to be it," said Dodd Purcell.
"Yes, well, mebbe," said Arpeggio, "but them fellows 'ain't seen the bugs on my early Ohios."
Secretly he was hungering for a day close to the ground.
"They's different ways of being outdoors," Arpeggio had once said. "Some folks slips along over. Some folks takes in the outside of outdoors and never digs down in. But some folks, just the minute they step into outdoors, they just kind of burrow. ”

“ Your kind of uplift stuff 'ain't queered nothin'—gettin' a circus here, low license, for the kids, like you done, standin' for a liberary, monkeyin' a little reform in the school—that ain't goin' to hurt nobody. ”