San Marcos free press. [volume] (San Marcos, Tex.) 1877-1892, 1882-03-09
ATRIAL IN THE EARLY DAYS.

~
ITO those of our readers who have
been following the devious mazes OF
the Guiteau trial, the following from
Mark Twain's "Roughing It," will
prove refreshing and interesting.
These murder and jury statistics re-
mind me of certain very extraordi-
nary trial and execution of twenty years
ago; it is "a scrap of history familiar to
all old Californians, and worthy to be
known by other people of the earth
that love simple, straightforward JUS
tice uncncumbered with nonsense. l
would apologize for the DEPRESSION but
for the fact that the information am
about TO offer is apology enough in it.
self. And since / digress constantly
anyhow, perhaps it is as well to eschew
apologies altogether, and thus prevent
their growing irksome. 49,
Capt. Ned Blakely-that name will
answer us well as any other fictitious
one (for he was still with the living at
last accounts, and may not desire to be
famous) sailed ships out of the harbor
of San Francisco for many years. He
was stalwart, warm hearted, eagle
eyed veteran, who had been sailor
nearly fifty yearS-a sailor from early
boyhood. He was rough, honest
creature, full OF pluck, and just as full
of hard-headed simplicity, too. He
hated trifing OBSERVATION-DISCLOSURES
ness" was the word with him. He had
all sailors vindictiveness against the
quips and quirks Of the law, and stead
fastly believed that the first and last
aim and object of the law and lawyers
was to defeat justice.
He sailed for the Chincha Islands III
command of guano ship. He had
fine crew, but his negro mate was his
pet--on him lie had for years lavished
his admiration and esteem. 1t was
Capt. Ned's first voyage to the Chin
chas, but his fame had gone before him
the fame of being man who would
fight at the drop OF handkerchief,
when imposed upon, and would stand
no nonsense. 1t was fame well
earned. Arrived in the Islands, he
found that the staple of conversation
was one Bill Noakes, bully, the mate
of trading ship. This man had Gre
ated small reign of terror there. At
nine o'clock at night, Capt. Ned, all
alone, was pacing his deck in the star
light. A form assembled the side and
approached him. Capt. Ned said:
"Who goes there?"
"I'm Bill Noakes, the best man in the
Islands"
"What do you want aboard this ship?"
"I've heard of Capt. Ned Blakely,
and one of us is better man than
'tother.-I'll know which before go
ashore"
you've come to the right shop-I'm
your man. I'll learn you to come
aboard this ship without an invite"
He seized Noakes, backed him up
against the mainmast, pounded his face
to pulp, and then threw him over
board.
Noakes was not convinced. He re-
turned the next night, got the pulp re-
newed, and went overheard head first,
as before. He was satisfied.
A week after this, while Noakes was
carousing with sailor crowd on shore,
at MONDAY, Capt. Ned's colored mate
came along, and Noakes tried to pick a
quarrel with him.. The negro evaded
the trap, and tried to get away. Noakes
followed him up; the negro began to
run: No .kes fired with a revolver and
killed him. Half dozen sea captains
the whole affair. Noakes re-
treated to the small after-cab of his
ship, with two other DULLES, and gave
out that death would be the portion OF
any man that intruded there. There
was no attempt made to follow the vii
lains: there was no disposition to do 1t,
and Indeed very little thought of such
an enterprise. There were no courts
and no officers; there was no govern
ment; the islands belonged to Peru,
and Peru was far away; she had no Of
fetal representative on the ground;
and neither had any other nation.
However, Capt. Ned was not per-
picking his head about such things.
Thew concerned him not. He was
boiling with rage and furious for JUS
ice. At nine o'clock at night he loaded
, double-barreledgu gun with slugs, fshed
,ut a pair of handouts, got a ships
antern, summoned his quartermaster,
md went ashore. he said:
do you see that ship there at the
iock2-
@Ay, ay, sir.
ITS the Venus
@Ay, az, sir.
L