t visited.

A number of men were threshing grain a few hundred yards away, the steam
threshing machine attracting farmers from all the country about. One a
peculiar man, more refined appearing than the others, had once been a
college professor; overstudy had partially unbalanced his reason. He was
versed in the classics. He took an especial interest in Alfred.

Bill Joseph is the luckiest man that ever tapped a slot machine. When
traveling he often steps off the train while it halts at a depot and
pulls his expenses out of a slot machine. On this day he was unusually
lucky. The hotel had a varied assortment of drop-a-nickle-in-the-slot
devices. Joe tapped them in a row. The hotel people looked upon him with
suspicion. But when he carried the winnings into the bar, ordering the
hotel man to slake the thirsts of the threshers, they were sort of
reconciled. The old college professor, unlike the others, demanded
something stronger than beer. His neighbors, who evidently had him in
charge, endeavored to persuade him to go home.

[Illustration: On the Crowd Cheered]

"Wait! Hold a minute. I want to talk to this man Field. He is a
scientific man. His father laid the Atlantic cable. His family is noted
the world over. I want to talk to him. The Field family are noted
scientists."

One of those who seemed most intimate with the professor was an old
soldier, very deaf.

"What did you say his name was?" he inquired.

"Field," replied the professor. "F-i-e-l-d."

"Field," repeated the old soldier. "Field. Well, I want nuthin' to do
with _him_. Field was my captain's name in the army, an' he was the
damnedest beat I ever knowed."

The old professor stuck to Alfred quoting Latin. He quoted a striking
climax from one of Bryan's speeches, a quotation Bryan has been using in
his Chautauqua lectures and political speeches for years. The old
professor observed Claudius evolved this idea years ago. Alfred had no
idea of who Claudius was, or how long ago he lived. However, when he
located him four hundred years back, the old professor said "Huh, four
hundred years ago? H-ll! Four thousand years." Alfred did not delve into
the classics further.

Alfred presented the claims of Geo. Karb for the office of Sheriff and
concluded his talk by inviting all to call on Karb when they happened in
Columbus. "And when election day comes around, I hope you will all see
your way clear to cast your votes for him, even though you are opposed
to