Jedson shook his head at this, and said that while he intended to pay his own expenses, he would have to have a free hand in the spending of the fund, particularly with respect to entertainment. He said the time was too short to depend on sweet reasonableness and disinterested patriotism alone - that some of those lunkheads had no more opinions than a weather vane and would vote to favour the last man they had had a drink with.
Somebody made a shocked remark about bribery. I don't intend to bribe anyone,' Jedson answered with a brittle note in his voice. If it comes to swapping bribes, we're licked to start with. I am just praying that there are still enough unpledged votes up there to make a little persuasive talking and judicious browbeating worth while.'
He got his own way, but I could not help agreeing privately with Feldstein. And I made a resolution to pay a little more attention to politics thereafter; I did not even know the name of my own legislator. How did I know whether or not he was a high-calibre man or just a cheap opportunist?
And that is how Jedson, Bodie, and myself happened to find ourselves on the train, headed for the capitol.
Bodie went along because Jedson wanted a first-rate magician to play bird dog for him. He said he did not know what might turn up. I went along because I wanted to. I had never been to the capitol before, except to pass through, and was interested to see how this law-making business is done.
Jedson went straight to the Secretary of State's office to register as a lobbyist, while Jack and I took our baggage to the Hotel Constitution and booked some rooms. Mrs Logan, Joe's friend the committee-woman, showed up before he got back.
Jedson had told us a great deal about Sally Logan during the train trip. He seemed to feel that she combined the shrewdness of Machiavelli with the greathearted integrity of Oliver Wendell Holmes. I was surprised at his enthusiasm, for I have often heard him grouse about women in politics.
But you don't understand, Archie,' he elaborated. Sally isn't a woman politician, she is simply a politician, and asks no special consideration because of her sex. She can stand up and trade punches with the toughest manipulators on the Hill. What I said about women politicians is perfectly true, as a statistical generalization, but it proves nothing about any particular woman.
It's like this: Most women in the United States have a short-sighted, peasant individualism resulting from the male- created romantic tradition of the last century. They were told that they were superior creatures, a little nearer to the angels than their menfolks. They were not encouraged to think, nor to assume social responsibility. It takes a strong mind to break out of that sort of conditioning, and most minds simply aren't up to it, male or female.
Consequently, women as electors are usually suckers for romantic nonsense. They can be flattered into misusing their ballot even more easily than men. In politics their self-righteous feeling of virtue, combined with their essentially peasant training, resulted in their introducing a type of cut-rate, petty chiselling that should make Boss Tweed spin in his coffin.
But Sally's not like that. She's got a tough mind which could reject the hokum.'
You're not in love with her, are you?'
Who, me? Sally's happily married and has two of the best kids I know.'
What does her husband do?'
Lawyer. One of the governor's supporters. Sally got started in politics through pinch-hitting for her husband one campaign.'
What is her official position up here?'
None. Right hand for the governor. That's her strength. Sally has never held a patronage job, nor been paid for her services.'
After this build-up I was anxious to meet the paragon. When she called I spoke to her over the house phone and was about to say that I would come down to the lobby when she announced that she was coming up, and hung up. I was a little startled at the informality, not yet realizing that politicians did not regard hotel rooms as bedrooms, but as business offices.
When I let her in she said, You're Archie Fraser, aren't you? I'm Sally Logan. Where's Joe?'
He'll be back soon. Won't you sit down and wait?'
Thanks.' She plopped herself into a chair, took off her hat and shook out her hair. I looked her over.
I had unconsciously expected something pretty formidable in the way of a mannish matron. What I saw was a young, plump, cheerful-looking blonde, with an untidy mass of yellow hair and frank blue eyes. She was entirely feminine, not over thirty at the outside, and there was something about her that was tremendously reassuring.
She made me think of county fairs and well water and sugar cookies.
I'm afraid this is going to be a tough proposition,' she began at once. I didn't think there was much interest in the matter, and I still don't think so, but just the same someone has a solid bloc lined up for Assembly Bill 22 - that's the bill I wired Joe about. What do you boys plan to do, make a straight fight to kill it or submit a substitute bill?'
Jedson drew up a fair-practices act with the aid of some of our Half World friends and a couple of lawyers. Would you like to see it?'
Please. I stopped by the State Printing Office and got a few copies of the bill you are against - AB 22. We'll swap.'
I was trying to translate the foreign language lawyers use when they write statutes when Jedson came in. He patted Sally's cheek without speaking, and she reached up and squeezed his hand and went on with her reading. He commenced reading over my shoulder. I gave up and let him have it. It made a set of building specifications look simple.
Sally asked, What do you think of it, Joe?'
Worse than I expected,' he replied. Take Paragraph 7-'
I haven't read it yet.'
So? Well, in the first place it recognizes the association as a semipublic body like the Bar Association or the Community Chest, and permits it to initiate actions before the commission. That means that every magician had better by a damn sight belong to Ditworth's association and be careful not to offend it.,
But how can that be legal?' I asked. It sounds unconstitutional to me - a private association like that-'
Plenty of precedent, son. Corporations to promote world's fairs, for example. They're recognized, and even voted tax money. As for unconstitutionality, you'd have to prove that the law was not equal in application - which it isn't! - but awfully hard to prove.'
But, anyhow, a witch gets a hearing before the commission?'
Sure, but there is the rub. The commission has very broad powers, almost unlimited powers over everything connected with magic. The bill is filled with phrases like "reasonable and proper , which means the sky's the limit, with nothing but the good sense and decency of the commissioners to restrain them. That's my objection to commissions in government - the law can never be equal in application under them. They have delegated legislative powers, and the law is what they say it is. You might as well face a drumhead court- martial.
There are nine commissioners provided for in this case, six of which must be licensed magicians, first-class. I don't suppose it is necessary to point out that a few ill-advised appointments to the original commission will turn it into a tight little self-perpetuating oligarchy - through its power to license.'
Sally and Joe were going over to see a legislator whom they thought might sponsor our bill, so they dropped me off at the capitol. I wanted to listen to some of the debate.