There were three doctors in
Lebanon, but none was an institution, none had prestige save Rockwell,
and he often wished that he had less prestige, since he cared nothing for
popularity.
He had made his preparations for possible "accidents" in no happy mood.
Fresh from the bedside of Ingolby, having had no sleep, and with many
sick people on his list, he inwardly damned the foolishness of both
towns. He even sharply rebuked the Mayor, who urged surgical preparations
upon him, for not sending sooner to the Government for a force which
could preserve order or prevent the procession.
It was while he was doing so that Jowett appeared with Gabriel Druse to
interview the Mayor.
"It's like this," said Jowett. "In another hour the funeral will start.
There's a lot of Manitou huskies in Lebanon now, and their feet is
loaded, if their guns ain't. They're comin' by driblets, and by-and-bye,
when they've all distributed themselves, there'll be a marching column of
them from Manitou. It's all arranged to make trouble and break the law.
It's the first real organized set-to we've had between the towns, and
it'll be nasty. If the preelate doesn't dope them, there'll be pertikler
hell to pay."
He then gave the story of his visit to Monseigneur Lourde, and the
details of what was going forward in Manitou so far as he had learned.
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