A bellman stood in a brocade uniform, and the sight of him brought to mind one of his profession who had been listed among thousands of Clinton donors who were mega by another measure in the Federal Election Commission records, which include occupation and amount.

Hotel bellman—$45
School librarian—$100
Registered nurse—$38
Retired horticulturalist—$100
Retired Episcopal priest—$100
Student—$10
Teacher—$25
Unemployed bank teller—$5
Rabbi—$25

If the Clinton campaign had used meaning and not just moolah as a measure of mega, if she had insisted that a dollar from a contributor who did not have a dollar to spare and was giving it with no expectation of anything in return meant more than millions from a mogul looking to buy influence and cachet, then she might have had a party at the grand ballroom of the Plaza Hotel to outdo any in its storied history.

Just imagine if the guest list to Clinton’s “thank you event” had included the hotel bellman who had given $45 rather than a hedge fund guy who had given $20 million. Picture the bellman and the unemployed bank clerk and the school librarian and the registered nurse and the others partying with their candidate in the same ballroom where Truman Capote held his legendary “Black and White Ball” in 1966.