tower of strength.

Then during the day the tension became tight and tighter, for how the
fight was going exactly no one could tell and it seemed well-nigh
impossible to stop the vote steal that was going on all over the city,
protected by the organized government. Defeat seemed inevitable.

So at six o'clock the disgusted Cap picked up his hat and started home
and to the astonishment of the whole headquarters David Kildare calmly
rose and followed him without a word to the others, who failed to realize
that he had deserted until he was entirely gone. Billy Bob looked dashed
with amazement, Hobson sat down limply in the deserted chair, Tom
whistled--but the major looked at them with a quizzical smile which was
for a second reflected in Andrew Sevier's face.

Phoebe sat in Milly's little nursery in the failing winter light which
was augmented by the glow from the fire of coals.

Little Billy Bob stood at her side within the circle of her arm, his head
against her shoulder and his eyes wide with a delicious horror as he
gazed upon a calico book whose pages were brilliant with the tragedy
of the three bears, which she was reading very slowly and with many
explanatory annotations. Crimie balanced himself against her knee and
beat with a spoon against the back of the book and whooped up the
situation in every bubbly way possible to his lack of classified
vocabulary. Milly and Mammy Betty were absorbed in the domestic regions
so Phoebe had them all to herself--all four, for the twins lay cuddled
asleep in their crib near by.

And though Phoebe had herself well in hand, her mind would wander