AN ELECTION CHRONICLE.

Bruce Herald, Volume VI, Issue 362, 5 April 1871, Page 3

AN ELECTION CHRONICLE.

And It came to pass in process of time that eiectors ; of Molino must choose two men "to represent them in the Council of the State. And behold there was a certain Abdallah, •one of the shepherd-kings of the country, •who was desirous above all things that they should choose him as one. He dwelt . not in vthe Molino, and had neither part nor lot in :all itliat region ; but he was one of: a tribe whose chief dwelling-place was nigh at hand, and, moreover, lie was reputed to have Seiches in abundance. So Abdallah, the shep-herd-king, saddled his ass and journeyed over the whole region, aud as he went he gathered together the people, and spake unto them concerning the public topics of the day. And Abdallah was young in years and inexperienced, and knew nothing; therefore, before proceeding on his journey he took counsel with his kinsmen and friends as to ■what he should say. So. wherever he went he repeated bis story like unto that bird called the parrotus, which; men who go down to the sea in ships brmg> home from distant lands. After finishing his story, one or two of the listeners rose to prove him by questions. On these occasions it became apparent : that he knew nothing, and less than nothing of public affairs. His kinsmen and friends charged him to express liberal •opinions concerning settlement on the lands. For some time the country had been full of •discontent, arising out. of a law called the ■Hundreds law. By this law the j>eople, over and above the price of the land to the Crown, had to pay to the shepherd-kings of the -country, for each acre two shillings aud six■pence current com of the realm. To this law therefore they objected, and Abdallah, the shepherd-king, objected to it also ; not because the people had to pay this sum, but because hia pasture ground, being in a golden region, would then come under a previous law, which would entitle him to even a larger allowance than that written in the Hundreds law. But he did not tell the people this, and some, thinking that his views were self-sac*ri-ficing in the extreme, believed in him, and cried out, " Great is Abdallah.. the shepherdking." One of the customs of the country was very peculiar, aud moreover it had a peculiar name. It consisted of treating, at a house of entertainment, all who happened to be present. He who paid the reckoning was said, in the language of the country, " to shout." Noav, Abdallah, the shepherd-king, was in all his wanderings a liberal patron of this peculiar custom. The gold and silver he paid away in " shouting," in these his political wanderings, no man knoweth, and pro•bably no m&n ever will know. So Abdallah, the shepherd-king, with his fair promises, and his liberal patronage of the peculiar 'custom called shouting, -succeeded in attaching to himself divers of the .unstable and un- • reflecting. As for the shepherd-kings of the 'country, they rejoiced with exceeding great joy, not for the words which Abdallah spake or the shouting which he practised, but for the way they knew he would act should he obtain a seat in the Council of the State. But the people as a whole did not believe in him. They believed that, notwithstanding his fine promises and other things, he would — if successful in the object on which he had set his heart — be simply a blind supporter of Macnoroundo, and his boseni friend the American citizen. And in process of time the day arrived when the electors should record their votes The people of Balmolino were desirous that Abdallah, the shepherdking, should succeed, foi he had promised them that in the event of succeeding he should become their neighbor, and spend among them his gold and his silver. Never before nor since was such a day seen at Balmolino. The citizens were greatly excited, and the streets and bars of the houses •of entertainment were full to overflowing. Chariots crossed the river by the great bridge ;»nd pursued their way to the island called Molino to bring up the electors to vote for Abdallah, the shepherd-king. Boats also plied on the river to the same intent, so that, •the "free and independents" had the right ■of choice between land and water carriage. Chariots also proceeded to the southwards to meet the electors from the country districts, and drive them to the poll. And far over hill and dale chnriots wended their way to •bring in the aged and the feeble to vote for Abdullah. Laborers also were despatched to 'those husbandmen who, provided. their places were supplied, were willing to leave their labor in the fields and record their votes in ■favor of the shepherd-king The recipients ■of the gold and the silver which were scat- ! ■tsred with so liberal a hand were well pleased, but thoughtful people said that Abdallah must have some other object in visw than the good of his country. The moment an ■ elector entered the district he was pou need upon by the friends and admirers of the shepherd-king, who heaped all manner of abuse on the opposing candidates, bat exalted t '> the skies their own favorite. Nevertheless all their efforts were of no avail. The <old members stood too high in the estimation of the people to receive any injury at the hands of Abdallah, his kinsmen, or his friends. Howbeib, in the evening great was the joy at Balmolino, for Abdallah, the shop-herd-king, stood at the head of the poll. But on the morrow, when all the lists came in, their joy waa turneel into sorrow, for Abdallah was found in the ranks of the unsuccessful. And Al-.dallah, the shepherd-king, was wroth, and his countenance fell, and he cried with a loud voice and said, " Hearken unto me, O, men of Balmolino. Had" I been better known I should have been successful." But Abdallah was in error. His pasturegrounds were in the valley called Ida, and he dwelt there, and he' aspired to represent this region in. the Council of the State ; but being aware that fche inhabitants of Ida k aew him well, he did not offer his services unto them, §for he doubted the result. They preferred a certain Strongarmius, a stranger m the land, and who followed a very humble calling, for he wandered over the country extracting human teeth. Had Abdallah, the shepherd-king, been as well known in the Molino as ia the valley called Ida, he would have had an equally humble following But Abdallah must now retire to his sheep pastures, and watch his flocks grazing on the sides of the hills. For this occupation he maybe fitted ; indeed, in the opinion of the dwellers in the land, he is much better qualified for tending his. flocks and his herds than ■for taking part in the great Council of the State.