“Tell me, sir; how did you happen to know all this?” he asked.

“I’ve been looking up Hopkins’s record.  I have disliked the man ever since he treated us so shabbily on the night of the meeting.”

“Never mind him.  We’ve done with him.”

Mr. Watson shifted uneasily in his chair.

“I wonder if we have?” he said.

“Why not, sir?”

“Well, Kenneth, we have to reside at Elmhurst, which is Hopkins’s district.  Also I believe Elmhurst to be the most important estate in the district, and you to be the largest taxpayer.  This man wishes to go to the State Legislature and make laws for you to obey.”

“Well?”

“Well, it’s our duty to watch him.  If he isn’t a fit man it’s our duty to prevent him from representing us.”

The young man nodded somewhat dreamily.

“Some of these country yokels must represent us,” he observed.  “It doesn’t matter much whether it’s Hopkins or someone else.”

“Except that you, being a prominent man, owe it to the community to protect its interests,” added the lawyer.

“Do you want me to mix in these petty politics?” asked the boy, irritably.

“Oh, do as you like, my boy.  If you can shirk your duties with a clear conscience, I’ve nothing to say.”

For a time the young man was silent.  Finally he asked: 

“Why isn’t Hopkins a good Representative?”

“He’s what is called a ‘grafter’; a term signifying that he is willing to vote for any measure that he is paid to vote for, whether it benefits his constituents or not.”

“Oh.  Is he singular in this?”

“By no means.  The ‘grafter’ is all too common in politics.”

Again the boy fell into a thoughtful mood.

“Mr. Watson, am I a Democrat or a Republican?”

The old gentleman laughed outright.

“Don’t you know, Ken?”

“No, sir, I haven’t asked myself before.”

“Then I advise you to be a Republican.”

“Why?”

“Because Hopkins is a Democrat, and we may then fight him openly.”

“What is the difference, sir, between the two parties?”

“There is no difference of importance.  All Americans are loyal citizens, whichever side they adopt in politics.  But the two parties are the positive and negative poles that provide the current of electricity for our nation, and keep it going properly.  Also they safeguard our interests by watching one another.”

“What is your preference, sir?”

“I’ve always been a Republican, whenever I dabbled in politics, which hasn’t been often.”

“Then I will be a Republican.”

“Very good.”

“I am sorry to say that I know nothing about politics and have no convictions on the subject.  Who is to oppose the Honorable Erastus on the—­on our side?”

“I don’t know yet.  The primaries for the nomination are not to be held for two weeks, and the Republican candidates seem shy about coming forward.”