"No, you won't--not if you take this job," said McGivney. "We can
fix that. A man like you, who has special abilities, is too precious
to be wasted." Peter decided forthwith that he would accept the
proposition. It was much more sensible to spend a few days in jail
than to spend a few years in the trenches, and maybe the balance of
eternity under the sod of France.
Matters were quickly arranged. Peter took off his good clothes, and
dressed himself as became a workingman, and went into the
eating-room where Donald Gordon, the Quaker boy, always got his
lunch. Peter was quite sure that Donald would be one of the leading
agitators against the draft, and in this he was not mistaken.
Donald was decidedly uncordial in his welcoming of Peter; without
saying a word the young Quaker made Peter aware that he was a
renegade, a coward who had "thrown down" the Goober defense. But
Peter was patient and tactful; he did not try to defend himself, nor
did he ask any questions about Donald and Donald's activities. He
simply announced that he had been studying the subject of
militarism, and had come to a definite point of view. He was a
Socialist and an Internationalist; he considered America's entry
into the war a crime, and he was willing to do his part in agitating
against it.
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