got enough."

The fellow sat up and looked around. The blood was streaming from his
nose and from a wound in his head. He had a savage and hunted look. He
was unsubdued, but was too much dazed to be able to do anything more
than swear at them all.

"What a' yuh chasen' me fur, y' damn cowards? Six on one!"

"What're you do-un ridin' across the country like this fur?"

"None o' your business, you low-lived"--

Bacon brought the doubled leading-strap which he held in his hand down
over the fellow's shoulders with a sounding slap.

"What you need is a sound tannun," he said. He plied the strap in
perfect silence upon the writhing man, who swore and yelled, but dared
not rise.

"Give him enough of it!" yelled the crowd.

"Give the fool enough!"

Bacon worked away with a curious air of taking a job. The strap fell
across the man's upheld hands and over his shoulders, penetrating even
the thick coat he wore--but it was not the blows that quelled him, it
was the look in Bacon's eyes. He saw that the old man would stand there
till sunset and ply that strap.

"Hold on! Dam yeh--y' want 'o kill me?"

"Got 'nough?"

"Yes, yes! My God, yes!"

"Climb onto that horse there."

He climbed upon his horse, and with Bacon leading it, rode back along
the road he had come, covered with blood.

"Now I want you to say with y'r own tongue ye lied," Bacon said, as
they came to the last polling-place he had passed.

The crowd came rushing out with excited questions.

"What y' got there, Bacon?"

"A liar. Come, what ye goun't' say?" he asked the captive.

"I lied--Deering aint withdrawn."

They rode on, Councill and Milton following Bacon and his prisoner. At
the Oak Grove schoolhouse a great crowd had gathered, and they came out
in a swarm as the cavalcade rode up. Bradley left his book and came out
to see the poor prisoner, who reeled in his saddle, covered with blood
and dirt.

They rode on to the next polling-place, relentlessly forcing the man to
undo as much of his villainy as possible. Milton remained with Bradley.
"That shows how desperate they are," he said as they went back into the
schoolhouse. "They see we mean business this time."

* * * * *

All was quiet, even gloomy, when Bradley and Milton reached Rock River.
The streets were deserted, and only an occasional opening door at some
favorite haunt, like the drug-store or Robie's grocery, showed that a
living soul