Despite private hand-wringing about the federal probe that swirls around House Speaker Jim Black, no member of the Democratic House caucus has defected.

The reason? Democrats view the 70-year-old Charlotte optom-etrist as their one irreplaceable man.

Black, the four-term speaker, has been the House Democrats' chief moneyman, strategist, deal-maker and peacemaker. He is a major reason the Democrats have controlled the House throughout this decade, despite a strong Republican tide.

The birds of prey are circling Black and some of his allies, raising questions about political favors involving the state lottery and the video poker industry.

The federal prosecutor is putting Black's operation under a microscope. Four newspapers have called for his resignation. There is the jimblackmustgo.com Web site. The state GOP Web site has a standing headline that reads: "The Heat Is On ... and Jim Black Can Feel It."

But if the heat is on, the Democrats aren't wilting.

Black is a tireless road warrior who is willing to spend night after night away from home raising millions for the House Democratic caucus' war chest.

As a moderate, pro-business Democrat, Black has been able to hold together an ideologically diverse caucus that ranges from liberals to conservatives. And it is Black who has the savvy, intelligence and experience to run the House.

Among Black's defenders is Democratic Gov. Mike Easley, who depends on the speaker to do a lot of his heavy lifting in the legislature.

Irreplaceable?

If Black falls, the Democrats have no ready replacement.

The most likely candidate was former Rep. Bill Culpepper, 58, an Edenton attorney, who was Black's chief lieutenant. It was Culpepper who sat down with Republican Richard Morgan at the Player's Retreat bar and restaurant and mapped out a bipartisan power-sharing agreement on the back of a menu that enabled the Democrats to hold on to power in 2003.

But Culpepper recently landed a plum job on the N.C. Utilities Commission, which removes him from the speaker stakes.

House Majority Leader Joe Hackney, a 60-year-old Chapel Hill attorney, has the experience and smarts to be speaker. But he dislikes political fund raising and might be unacceptable to the more conservative House Democrats.

Rep. Hugh Holliman, a 61-year-old Davidson businessman, is sometimes mentioned as a possibility.

The Democratic bench is short. Black's public relations skills are abysmal -- he admitted errors only last week after being cajoled by Democratic consultants and fellow caucus members.

But Black might very well be the most politically gifted House speaker in North Carolina history, surpassing his mentor, the late Liston Ramsey.

Democrats are sticking with the mumbling eye doc. Some think he has done nothing wrong. Others are personally loyal. But most see Black as their lifeline to stay in power.