Someone had sprung his mine before he had intended--it had exploded prematurely and with, what seemed to him, as he read on, a futile insipidity.
There were full two columns of it.

There were hints and innuendoes, too well veiled, but no names mentioned.

The specific act of graft was not brought to the surface.

It was as if the writer had a "spread" of some vaguely uncertain rumor, and yet there was not doubt that Colonel Guthrie and Mayor Stitz and the fire-extinguishers were meant.

The attorney could see that, and he had an idea that the writer had meant to tell more than he really did tell.