The new Northwest. [volume] (Portland, Or.) 1871-1887, 1874-09-25

motherless children, have been q very
slave TO the sons of men. How we'll ]
have succeeded in protecting my or
phaned brood unaided by man, let these
my sisters attest. And now, before God
and these witnesses, swear to you that ]
am not only innocent of the charges pre-
ferred against me, but that am in total
ignorance as to what the charges may
be.n
"fhen how dye know yer innocent?i
queried the officer, brutally.
Annie turned her eyes upon him and
flashed mute defiance. Then reeollect-
ing that she was in his power, she said
sadly; "Fetch me my hat and gloves,
Fanny. And you'd better bring my
waterproof and change OF clothing. /
have no idea what is coming next"
OF course the crowd of customers
stood and looked on aghast.
Annie Lee, well-beloved of her numer-
Gus household, was soon the only one
among them all who was calm and self
/ possessed. She seemed suddenly inn
bued by some strange power, and rose
at once above the terrors of her humil-
iating situation.
"That girls a hero" said a young
lady who suddenly remembered that the
last act of Annie, in her business, had
been to select and adorn her plump and
peachy features with a most becoming
hat. "She's perfect hero, and I'd stake
my life upon her innocencew she ex-
claimed, stamping her foot in vexation.
"That shows how much you know
about the world" said the officer de-
risively, and he roughly seized Annie by
the arm.
"Unhand me, sirm said the prisoner
recoiling, as though he had been a snake.
81 have my instructions, Miss. Guess
the Courts III take little o. that sndp
out o. We before yer done with 'emn'
"Sir, l promise upon my honor that l
will walk by your side to the county Jail,
if you will let me-"
"Yer not goin' there, Miss. Full an
runnin' over now. Yer goin' to the
city prison to wait till yer trial comes
Off"
"Well, l promise, upon my honor,
that will walk peaceably beside you to
the city prison, then. Iappeal to your
magnaminity, sir. You surely will not
condemn me to the indignity of being
marched to the Jail like fugitive from
justice, who has just been recapturedD'
"Must obey instructions, Miss"
'Have you mother, sir?"
The rigid muscles around the mans
mouth relaxed.
"Have you a sister, also?"
The face grew flushed and sympa-
thetic.
"lf you have any memories OF loved
ones, that you wish to cherish, sir, beg
that you will spare me the modification
Of being marched off to prison like a con-
demned malefactor"
Yielding to the deep pathos of her
voice, the officer relented, and she de-
murely walked of beside him, feeling
that for her the end of the world had
come. Hercheeks burned with rage and
modification, but her carriage was as
queenly and her step as proud as any
bellies in the city.
"Can you give me no satisfaction rela-
tive to the cause of this high-handed
outrage?" she asked, turning to the Off
Ger and looking him fully in the eye.
"Nothin' except what the warrant in
dicates. Maybe you can give bail till
the meeting of the Circuit Court,
though. How much money are you
worth?"
al decline TO answer, sir"
But for the majesty of the law and
the exorbitant fines, she knew would be
imposed her for speaking her mind, the
policeman would have received lee
ture upon the spot which he would have
remembered to his dying day.
The ponderous doors that creaked and
groaned upon their hinges, reminding
Annie with vivid distinctness of her first
Incarceration within these walls, here
opened, and the poor, hunted victim of a
wicked conspiracy was rudely thrust
into the same dark, dismal cell where
she, years before, under the protection
Of the same code of laws, had been COM
PEELED to pass wretehed and soul-de-
grading night.
In the cell next to hers lay her besotted
brother James, of whose arrest that
morning she was not before aware. He
was so deeply intoxicated as TO be utterly
unconscious of her presence, and Annie
almost envied him the oblivion of his
potations, as she compared her own
acute sense of disgrace and ruin with
his unconscious and apparently comfor-
table unconcern.
The Police Judge kindly volunteered
little advice; assuring her that counsel
should be provided and that she might
be released on bail as soon as a prelimi-
nary trial could be had.
II scOrn the counsel and refuse tba
bail"' the prisoner declared vehemently.
81 have been snatched from my busi-
ness in the broad glare of MONDAY, and
hurried off to Jail like common male
factor, without even being allowed to
know whereof or by whom l am ac-
cused. Mems laws have placed me in
this bad predicament, and by the great
Eternal, men shall see enough of itr'
"What do you propose to do, Miss