"Jeff," he said finally, "I'm much obliged to you fur tellin' me all
this. It backs up what I'd sort of figgered out all by myself. The whole
world appears to be engaged in standin' on its esteemed head at this
writin'. I reckin when old Mister Kaiser turned loose the war he didn't
stop to think that mebbe the war was only one of a whole crop of evils
he wuz lettin' out of his box of tricks. Or mebbe he didn't care--bein'
the kind of a person he wuz. And I'm prone to believe also that when the
Germans stopped fightin' us with guns they begun fightin' us with other
weapons almost as dangersome to our peace of mind and future well-bein'.
Different parts of this country are in quite a swivet--agitators
preachin' bad doctrine--some of 'em drawin' pay from secret enemies
across the sea fur preachin' it, too, I figger--and a lot of highly
disagreeable disturbances croppin' up here and there. But I was hopin'
that mebbe our little corner of the world wouldn't be pestered. But now
it looks ez ef we weren't goin' to escape our share of the trouble."

"Jedge," asked Jeff, "ain't they some way dis Duvall pusson could be
fetched up in cote? I suttinly would admire to see dat yaller man
wearin' a striped suit of clothes."

"Well, Jeff," said the judge, "I doubt either the legality or the
propriety of such a step, ef you get what I mean. From whut you tell me
I don't see where he's really broken any laws. He's got a right to come
here and organize his societies and lodges and things so long as he
don't actually come out in the open and preach violence. He's got a
perfect right under the law to organize this here new drill company you
speak about. I sometimes think that ef all the young men in this country
had been required to do a little more drillin' in years gone by we'd be
feelin' somewhat safer to-day. Anyway, it's a mighty great mistake
sometimes to make a martyr out of a rascal. Puttin' him in jail, unless
you're absolutely certain that a jail is where he properly belongs,
gives him a chance to raise the cry of persecution and gives his
followers an excuse to cut loose and smash up things. You git my drift,
don't you?"

"Yas, suh, think I do. Well den, suh, ef I wuz runnin' dis town seems to
me I'd git a crowd of strong-minded gen'elmen together some evenin' in
the dark of the moon an' let 'em call on dis yere slick-haided
half-strainer an' invite him to tek his foot in his hand an' marvil
further. Ef one of 'em wuz totin' a