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Chapter 9 
THE SHERIFF 91D THE YELLOW FRINGE 
Thursday, Sep.tember 16, 1926, dawned rather gloo7ily upon Ellsworth and
its environs. As the day progressed, 
the gray and moisture laden skies continued to hover over the village. Enshrouded
in an intermittent and misty drizzle, it was not the type of weather to attract
a goodly crowd on the opening day of the annual Pierce County Fair. Were
one to believe in signs, that Thursday might well be described as lacking
in any propitious elements. For one 
elected official of Pierce County, September sixteenth was to prove a most
inauspicious time. 
Despite the inclemency of the weather, a fair sized 
crowd had filtered through the turnstiles. By early afternoon, attendance
had grown to an even more respectabl.e size. One of the major attractions
was the stock pavilion, though only the fir-t floor devoted to this purpose.
The second floor was utilized for such purposes as horticultural, domestic,
vegetable and fruit displays, In addition, one of the more prominent Ellsworth
organizations, the Eldon C. Kinney Post of the American Iegion, had a booth
in the midst of this symbolic agricultural abundance. As its principal project,
the Legion was offering for sale World War One histories depicting Pierce
County men in action 
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