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.
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