shire。〃　She　smiled；　lowering　her　voice

dramatically。　〃But　which　side　are　they　on？　Are　they　for　us　or　agin'　us？〃

Her　humor　drifted　unanswered　into　the　stale　schoolhouse　air　as　Howard

ushered　her　into　the　meeting　hall；　led　her　onto　the　stage；　and　ges　tured

her　into　a　seat。　He　took　one　by　her　side。　As　though　on　cue；　the　crowd

silenced　and　the　moderator　began。

〃Ladies　and　gentlemen；〃　he　said　in　a　voice　made　flat　by　its　broad　New

England　slant；　〃on　behalf　of　my　friends　and；　uh〃…he　cast　an　enpassing

glance　backward；　then　turned　a　cough　into　a　snicker；　bringing　chuckit's

from　the　audience@'adversaries　here　on　the　stage　with　me；　I　would　like

to　thank　you　for　ing　tonight。　It's　a　rare　pleasure　to　see　so　many　of

you　gathered　at　once。　We　realized　that　the　issue　of　the　Rye　Beach　Resort

and　Condominium　plex　would　stir　a　few　of　you　to　action；　but　we　had　no

idea　how　many。　I　don't　believe　we've　had　a　response　like　this　since　that

talk　of　a　state　prison　here　a　while　back。〃

Chloe　was　wondering　who　the　man　was　when　Howard　whispered；　〃He's　Felix

Hart…town　manager；　missioner　of　public　safety；　President　of　the

United　States　in　his　dreams。〃

She　smiled　at　the　quip。　Nodding　her　thanks　for　the　information；　she

refocused　on　the　speaker。

and　they　listened　to　us　then；　just　as　they　listened　to　us　when　they

mentioned　a　hazardous　waste　disposal　center　six　miles　fr