Clarksville weekly chronicle. (Clarksville, Tenn.) 1873-1890, 1882-08-05
1 TRfAL IN LONELY GULcR.
Arthur's Magazine.

blacker the shadows of the rocks
which threw back the rays from
their massive fronts, and reflected
the light over the forms of dozen
miners who We're gathered around
il.
The well-deserved name of Lone
~ Gulch was applied to the place,
and the proceedings which occupied
the attention of the men that night
seemed i'm keeping with its charac-
ter.
The country had been Overrun
with desperadoes, camps had been
robbed, horses stolen, and OCCASION
ally a man murdered, until the law
abiding portion of the population
had determined TO execute sum
mary vengeance upon every ma
rauder who should fall into their
hands.
That day, a youth, apparently
not more than eighteen years of age,
had been taken in the act of riding
away on horse belonging to one
ofthe company. Only his youthful
appearance saved him from being
shot down at once, but the men
who had captured him brought
him 10 camp to await the return
of the whole party, when his fate
might be determined by the gener-
al will.
lie stood leaning against tree to
which he had been tied, with his
broad brimmed hat slouched down,
almost cOncealing his features,
while he listened TO the discussion
which was of SO much Importance
TO him.
Some were in favor of giving him
a chance OH account of his youth,
but they had suffered so much from
lawless desperadoes, that others
were inclined To execute him forth
with.
They were pretty evenly divid-
ed, when one who had not yet spo-
ken came forward. His usual
demeanOr had given him the cog
nomen OF singular Bill" He was
stern and reserved, never speaking
of his own affairs, and never joining
in the anusements of his comrades,
but sitting quietly, during the long
evenings in which the others whiled
away the hours in games of cards,
as If brooding over some deep
wrong, which time had failed to
efIace from his memory.
His companions. respected him
i'm spite of his peculiarities, for he
never wrOnged any man out of a
dollar, and had q most strict and
conscientious regard for the rights
of others. As they expressed it,
all his dealings were "fair and
square, open aud above board" but
this he claimed was only right, and
he demanded the same Open-hand-
ell dealing from every other man.
1t will be readily understood that
such a man had but little charity
for evil-dOers.
His comrades knew nothing of
his former history, but the truth
was, that in his early years he had
married beautiful woman whom
he had loved with all the strength
of his ardent nature, and while he
was as strong, true and earnest as 1T
is possible for man to be, she was
weak, frivOulOus and unprincipled.
Being unwilling TO conform to his
strict idea of right and wrong, and
perhaps finding an uncOngenial
companion in the man who would
not encourage her unwomanly con-
duct, she took advantage of his
brief absence upon business and fled
from him, taking their only child,
IL boy of four years.
For a while he had searched for
her, for his heart was bound up i'll
the boy, but after the lapse of few
weeks he received a letter purport-
ing to come from physician in a
distant city, which stated that the
child had died from a contagious
disease, to which he had been eX-
posed through the mothers care
lCSSneSS.
The father spirit was completely
broken, and, cursing not only the
woman who had brought this sOr-
row and trouble upon him, but all
others vino trampled upon the
right, he left his native State and
tried to forget his grief in the excite
ment of hunting gold. Taking a
position where the light shone full
upon his stern, unyielding features,
he said:
Comrades, | claim that no man
has any right to do wrong. 1t is
this evil doing, this following ones
own inclination, regardless of the
sacred rights of another, that blights
mems lives ana brings desolatiOn to
homes and fircsiCes.
"As long as wrong is allowed to
20 unpunished, SD long will people
commit acts which leave the hearts
of their fCllOw-beingS scared and
scathcd with wrongs that cannot be
wiped out.
"If cVil-dOCrs were visited with
prompt and certain punishment,th they
would not flourish and grow rich at
the expense of those who would
scorn to trample upon a single right
of their fellow men. The world in
general is too willing to overlook
crime and offer paltry excuses for
deeds which ought TO be visited
with swift and awful vengeance.
"SOme of you offer this boys
youth i'll palliatiOn of his o1lense.
y ou might as well urge the youth
of an infant viper. He is probably
tho son of some villianous father,
who has left the States on account
of his crimes, and comes here to
prOwl around in search of wealth
which he is too lazy to earn for
himself. l regard il as a case of
inherited dishonesty; of natural
prOpenSities. cropping out early;
and If he is allowed 10 escape this
time, he will propably grow crafty
with years and develop into dcs-
pcrado who may take the life of
some of W as reward of the mis-
taken charity that spares him,
"Nou all remember our cODrade
who was shot and killed by one of
these desperate characters few
days ago. The murderer probably
began to practice these things in
his youth, and if he had been
caught and promptly executed at
the commission of his first crime,
our friend might have been living
to-day"
This speech decided the fate of
the prisoner, and he was sentenced
To be hung on the following morn
ing, and given over to "Singular
Bill" for safe-keeping until time for
his execution. .-..
He was taken into rude cabin
and allowed to sit down. A biaz-
ing fire OF pine knots lighted the
building, and the boy glanced at
the cord which cut deep into the
flesh of his swollen wrists.
Eyes, they're painful, no doubt"
said the taller sin ALWAYS brings