IN THE SADDLE AGAIN 173 



supposed that wooden pavements and flagged 

 sidewalks had turned the trick and the city gov- 

 ernment was besieged until streets radiated into 

 the surrounding wilderness like threads of a spi- 

 der's web from its center. These streets were 

 graded, flagged, curbed, sewered, and paved, and 

 possessed every attribute of prosperity, except- 

 ing that they were bare of buildings. 



In the course of time pavements rotted, the 

 wilderness reclaimed the unimproved streets, and 

 the pall of bankruptcy settled upon the city be- 

 cause of unwise extension of its credit. Far and 

 wide was the failure proclaimed, with always full 

 discredit to me, no distinction being made be- 

 tween asking for public facilities where a million 

 dollars was being privately expended and in- 

 veigling the city into speculation in which no 

 investment but its own was made. 



I grew as callous to criticism as I had become 

 inured to flattery and when press comments were 

 shown me often replied that I cared nothing for 

 them, that it was my obituary I wanted to read. 

 The thought became almost an obsession and at 



