Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1882-05-30
A PRAIRIE ANTI.MONOPOLIST.
How Patrick Shannahan Defended Hi.
Demesne Against q Railroad.

recently valiantly resisted not by political STRAIT
egy, but by Winchester rifle and ''navy six"
at Vinita, Indian Territory. "Vinita'' (named
for Winnie Ream, the artist lisa town Of dozen
stOre-hOuses or so. at the junction of the St.
Louis and San Francisco and the Missouri Kan
sas and Texas railroads, in the Indian Territory
and the late terminus of the latter. The broad
gently undulating prairie stretches around at
this season like green sea, fecked with the
light and shade Of the cloud shadows and softly
reflected sunlight, and dotted with herds Of
bright-cOlOred CATTLE with here and there
cowboy riding slowly around the feeding circles.
The horizon is almost as wide as that of the sea,
and the whole landscape wears a softly radiant
glow. The small blue and yellow prairie-fowers
are In bloom, much finer and more delicate than
the later growth, and chOruses Of bobolinks
balancing on the taller stems, and a thousand
other birds, make vocal this emeral sea- North
and south and due east stretch the double lines
OF the railroads until they come to converging
points In the far distance. To the west extends
the dark earth of the newly-fOrmed railroad bed,
and it is with this that my heroic tale is to be
told.
Four miles west of Vinita the constructing
engineers of the st. Louis and San Francisco
railroad came up to the stake-and-rider fence
inclosing the corn-field of Patrick Shannahan.
a native Of Ireland. but q putative citizen by
marriage of the Cherokee nation. The en-
gineers were about to have the obstruction
torn down, when the owner appeared upon
the scene with his Winchester at the full
his well-girdled belt. with his short
brimmed caubeen well settled down upon
his shock of red hat. spark of fire in his
blue eye and voice of command tinctured
with pure Kerry brOgue, he babe them Lave
stirred the top rail would get hurt" Patrick
Shannahan, like many heroes, is not Of COM
handing presence. His build might be de-
scribed as ''stulnpy;" his cheeks are broad and
we'll freckled, burned red rather than black by
and in attire decidedly of the class that is de-
scribed in the free western parlance as the
''One-gallus crowd" But there was that in his
eye and manner that betokened that he meant
business, and the free flow Of his vOluble vitu-
peratiOn of all railroads. and the seed and breed
OF them did not conceal the fact that it came
from determined, as well as indignant spirit
The engineers, vainly protesting and persuad-
ing. withdrew, leaving Pat triumphantly enfilad-
ing his enclosure from a fence corner. The next
morning the constructing gang appeared at this
point in numbers that they supposed would over
awe the Irish Obstructionist, even if a nights
reflection had not brought conviction Of the
futiity Of his OPP ositiOn. But Mr.. Shannalan
was Of the same stuff AZ Mr.. Parnell, and, in
stead Of faltering, he had gone forward. In
place OF the mere skirmish line Of defence az
fOrded by the fence there was regular fort
built of rails and earth, with several port-holes
from which appeared the muzzles Of rifles. Over
1t foated banner in color not of green as might
have been supposed, but of red, and which on
closer observation appeared to be an intimate
undergarment of q different sexuality than that
under which Master Jack Easy and GascOigne
fought the felucca- The countenance of the re-
dOubtable General Shannatan appeared over the
wall, and he repeated his warning of the pre-
vious day with even more emphasis and yolu-
bility.
In substance his remarks were that might the
devil fly away with him from there to West Car
berry if he would allow himself to be overriden
by any railroad without payment for his rights,
that payment to be upon delivery and not con-
tingent promise, and In hard cash and not dubi-
Gus vouchers. 1t may be mentioned that he
wanted 81 600, money down, for the right of
way, in place of the $500 which the railroad had
offered him in the form Of a voucher, and with
all due respect fer Mr.. Shannahan's assertion of
a right to q voice in the bargain, it must be adj
mitted that his ideas Of remuneration were
rather liberal, in view of the fact that the lands
of the nation are held in common. and the prac-
tical injury would be chiefly confined to that OF
his fence and his feelings.
However, it was apparent that General Shan
nahan had raised a strong back" among the
faction Of his dusky BRIDE including his broth
er-ln-law, who sympathiZed with his indignation
and determined to assist him in maintaining his
right. Half dozen ready shots. armed with
two or three Winchester rifles apiece and a cor
responding number of revOlvers formed the gar
risOn of Fort Shannahan. and it was not to be
encountered with impunity by force of peace
full railroad hands, and it did not seem to occurto
them to undertake regular siege operations, in
which their use Of the spade might have given
them the advantage. This party, too, acknowl-
edged a balk and retreated.
Complaint was made to the authorities at
Vinita. who consist of deputy United States
marshals from Fort Smith, whose existence and
characters are not such as to make them easily
subject to bluff or to scare. party of these.
headed by the redOubtable Young Six-killer. a
halfbreed Cherokee, whose formidable name is
an index to his family record and his own
temper, rode out expecting to clear Shannahan
with similar reception and had the shrewd
understanding not to desire the job Of stOrming
the fort. In short, when Shannahan, waxing
Indignant, babe them be of out of that for a
pack p OF .'moroguing rapparees," they wheeled
their horses and rode back, coming into Vinita
with decidedly crest-fallen air, and even the
valiant Six-killer with a subdued cOuntenance.
For ten days Shannahan was master of the
The railroad paused at that point,
and although it fianked the Shannahan demesne
by commencing work on the next section, it's
direct transcOntinental march was STAYED Day
and night, If the garrison did not maintain it's
post, 1t kept out pickets and was ready to man
It's PORTFOLIOS at the first alarm. And it's final
surrender was not to any force of the railroad or
the United States. Chief Bushyhead, of the
Cherokee nation. was notified of this resistance
to the DEGREES of the council by putatye sub
iect, and when he rode up to the scene Shanna-
han, true to his adopted allegiance. came out
and surrendered. Fort Shannahan was disman-
tied and the railroad passed over its ruined heap
Not even telegraph pole now marks it's loca-
ton; but II there is any gratitude in the human
race and the fabric of our liberties survives the
contest with the giant tyranny Of monopoly. it
should be as sacred as Runnymede and the
cabin of Patrick Shannahan attract as MANY
pilgrims as the manor house of Richard Hamp-
den.
1t grieves me to be obliged to state that. like |
HoratiO Nelson and some others of heroic |
temper, Mr.. Shannahan's domestic relations
were not altogether orthodox. In fact, it an |
pears that he was not married to the clark |
ladye" under whose nativity he claimed adopted |
citizenship, and had no legal claim to the rights
Of property which he 80 manfully maintained. |
But this may be characteristic Of other anti
and In any event does not affect |
the force Of the heroic example Of what stout |
heart and six-shooter gun can do even in a |
contest with railroad.
PRoMPT ACTION
Is NEEDED WHEN CRAMpRD.