Larry received hearty congratulations from Mr. Emberg when he got back to the Leader office the next day, for, not only had the young reporter secured a fine “scoop,” but he had sent in an exceptionally good story of the wreck.

“Larry, you did better than I thought you would.  You’ve got the right stuff in you!” exclaimed the city editor, while the other reporters, crowding around the hero of the occasion, expressed, their pleasure at his success.  Not one of them but would have given much to have been in Larry’s place.

“Have much trouble?” asked Mr. Newton.

“Well, I had to hustle.  Struck something rather queer down there, too.”

“What was it?  Some of the men from other papers try to get the best of you?”

“Only my old enemy, Peter Manton, but I put a crimp in him all right.  No, this was something else.”  And Larry told of the disappearance of the man at the hut.

“That is rather odd,” agreed the older reporter.  “If I were you I’d tell Mr. Emberg about it, and then you’ll be in a position to act on what information you have, in case anything turns up.”

Larry followed this advice.  The city editor puzzled over the matter a few minutes, and then decided nothing could be done at present.

“We’ll watch developments in regard to the Olivia wreck,” said Mr. Emberg, “and it may be this mystery will fit in somewhere.  If it does we may get a good story.”

But neither Larry nor the city editor realized in what a strange manner the mystery was to develop.

It was the beginning of the newspaper day in the Leader office.  Reporters were busy writing accounts of meetings they had covered the previous night, and others were going out on assignments to police courts, to look up robberies, murders, suicides, and the hundred and one things that go to make up the news of the day.

“How would you like to try your hand at politics?” asked Mr. Emberg of Larry, when they had finished their talk about the man at the hut.  “I haven’t given you much chance at anything in that line, but if you’re going to be an all-’round newspaper man you’ll have a lot to do with politics.”

“I think I’d like it,” replied Larry.

Certainly this life was one of variety, one day at the wild scene of a rescue from a wreck, and the next peacefully sent to talk to some political leader.

“I want you to go up and have a talk with Jack Sullivan, the leader of one of the Assembly districts,” went on Mr. Emberg.  “You’ve probably read of the trouble in that district.  Thomas Kilburn is a new aspirant for the Assembly and he’s fighting against the re-nomination of William Reilly.  Now Jack Sullivan is the leader of that district, and whoever he decides to support will be elected.  That’s the way politics are run in New York.

“It would be quite an item of news if we could find out whom Sullivan is going to support.  So far he has played foxy and no one knows, not even the candidates themselves, I believe, though I have an idea that Sullivan will swing to Reilly.”