he adjoining room where Sheriff Jim sat on the floor,
his coat off, while his youngest deputy, clad only in an abbreviated
essential garnished with a safety-pin, sat opposite, gravely tearing up
the evening paper and handing the pieces to his proud father, who
stuffed the pieces in his pants pocket and cheerfully asked for more.

"Election?" queried Shoop.

"And all coming Jim's way," commented Corliss.

The baby paused in his balloting and solemnly surveyed the dusty
strangers. Then he pulled a piece of paper from his father's pocket
and offered it to Shoop. "Wants me to vote, the little cuss! Well,
here goes." And, albeit unfamiliar with plump aborigines at close
range, the foreman entered into the spirit of the game and cast his
vote for the present incumbent, deputizing the "yearlin'" to handle the
matter. The yearling however, evidently thought it was time for a
recount. He gravitated to the perspiring candidate and, standing on
his hands and feet,--an attitude which seemingly caused him no
inconvenience,--reached in the ballot-box and pulling therefrom a
handful of votes he cast them ceiling-ward with a shrill laugh,
followed by an unintelligible spluttering as he sat down suddenly and
began to pick up the scattered pieces of paper.

"You're elected," announced Shoop.

And the by-play was understood by the three men, yet each maintained
his unchanged expression of countenance.

"You see how I'm fixed, boys," said the sheriff. "Got to stick by my
constituent or he'll howl."

"We're in no hurry, Jim. Just drove into town to look around a little."

"I'll take him now," said Mrs. Jim, as she came from the kitchen drying
her hands on her apron.

The elector, however, was of a different mind. He greeted his mother
with a howl and a series of windmill revolutions of his arms and legs
as she caught him up.

"Got mighty free knee-action," remarked Shoop. "Mebby when he's bedded
down for the night you can come over to the 'Palace.'"

"I'll be right with you." And the sheriff slipped into his coat. "How
you feeling, Jack?"

"Pretty good. That's a great boy of yours."

"Sure got your brand," added Shoop. "Built close to the ground like
his dad."

Sheriff Banks accepted these hardy compliments with an embarrassed grin
and followed his guests to the doorway.

"Good-night!" called Mrs. Jim from the obscurity of the bedroom.

"Good-night, ma'am!" from Shoop.

"Good-night!" said Corliss. "Take