Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1886-07-31

i
In making him suffer, nor any hesitancy in ex-
acting from him the most unreasonable ser.
| that she was trifing with him, and her slight
| est wish or widest within were TO him as the
edicts of Divinity. On one thing alone he re-
manned mistaken and that was his fidelity 10
what he considered his official duty. He
spelled this with capital ID. and even the
otherwise all-powerful Kitty could not make
him swerve a hairs breadth from his conscien.
1 tlouS discharge of it, She had attempted IL
once or twice in the vagaries of some OF her
mad freaks, and though she had succeeded in
rendering him miserable and wringing his
heart until the poor fellow had seemed like
another creature, she had never been able to
weaken him in this particular. The sanctity OF
his word was the Alpha and Omega Of his sim
was not above this-until the patient, loving
eyes would moisten with despairing pain; she
could deny herself to him for days at time
until his suffering and bis hopelessness fairly
changed the lineaments of his face and the
lines OF his figure, but she never could win him
from the full observance of his pledged word,
or his express agreement.
And SO she ruled him with rod Of iron one
day lifting him into the seventh heaven OF
bliss, the next plunging him into the deepest
hell of unutterabe nlisery-blowing hot on
| Monday, and cold on Tuesday, and he bore his
sratefuI for the r,imnseu of hapniness She sona'
times gave him. This man. whose utter fear
| lessness had become a proverb in the lore OF the
| valley; whose incorruptible fidelity was as we'll
| known, and as widely admitted as the exist
| ence OF the mountains, was the sport of a
coquette-the play thing of thoughtless girl.
| He came across the plaza now, bis face bright
| with his honest love.
"Evenin', Kitty" he said, as he came up to
her
You're late tonight she answered care
lessly. while he smiled with pleasure, land
day, l reckon, and hear they've convicted
Tom Mason?''
"Thers so" he said, murder in the first
/ degree, which / allow ez purity strong fer
| Toms shoOtin' o. tibet greaser. Them cattle
troubles o. his'n helped their verdict some, fer
| 1 reckon Tom hez ben toerable free with some
i ~.
| body else than Tom ,though-hangtn ez mean
way ter wind up
don mean TO say they'll hang him?"
81 reckon thets what I'll be tole ter do with
| him."
..Oh, she said with gasp of relief, "t will be
Yes, he answered grimiy; "all SIGH jobs falls
II am glad of it," she said as though dismiss
Ing the subject, 'for then everything will be all
| Il dunno" returned the sheriff doubtfully,
It'll be the first hangin' ever did, an ain I
SO sure kin doit up ter Their handle: Eff it wnz
good shape, but this rope business Ell new ter
| me. AN I'm a little skeery of it,"
Don't talk that way even in joke" said Kitty
! lmpatlently, q ScOwl of displeaSure drawing her
brows together, II don't like it,
The sheriff looked at her questioningly with a
trace of surprise in his eyes Finally he said:
| Fer ther sake o. old friendship, hope ther
/ won't be no hitch in ther show. Ell I'D he'd
some practice it wud be all right. but Halter ter
begin larnin' on Tom. They ought ter keep
| him TIL I'd swung up greaSsr er two. / tole
| Tom so jest now, but he allowed ther thing wud
| run smoOth-like-TOmS a real encOurayin man,
an thet's one reason why 1 don't want him dis
apinted in any o Their engagements"
/ You told Tom you were going to hang him?'
she demanded, half incrediousy and half
an ~ ny -
| sheriff, astOnished at her tone and manner, and
involuntarily preparing himself tor a STORM he
ieit was coming, but the cause Of which he
/ Rnf vntl Er,n1 -ro Of 'fSl,a coS1
sively: There was dash OF doubt in her voice
though. 1t was dawning on her that perhaps
/ the sheriff was not joking.
| I'll hev ter, ef I'm alive"
| DO you mean TO say that you will deliber-
ately hang Tom Mason, a friend of mine"-Tom
was one of kittys devoted siaves-"just
because parcel of MeXcans say SO? Sandy
bradshaw, dare you stand there and tell me
ne.that you're going to hang white man
| ~ don't see how kin help it, he said hum
bly, "
NO, said the sheriff oubiously. 81 don't see
no hole to crawl out o. When / wuZ sworn in
l swore ter do my duties 'thout regard ter
feelins, though didn't look ter no hangin'
bees, an amt never yit bruk my word-it
wudn,t be squar' an honest-like, we know
! but Tom might escape ii he had half a
CHANGER" she insinuated nervously. She was
realizing the danger now, and she liked Tom
Mason.
NO" said the other slowly, "he can't git
way while I'm sheriff wuzn't Iected to let
prisoners git off,
|
know" she suggested, not willing to admit the
impossibility OF making a breach in her lovers
| rugged honesty.
.'some o. 'em wud git hurt" he said simply
| IL wish they d hang yOu," she said impetu-
ously: IL hate YOU 1 don't want to ever see
| and hate YOU Then the storm burst into
| tears, and she ran into the house.
The sheriff stood as though petrif1ed, staring
! biankly at the door which she had slammed be-
hind her. She had often in her tempestuous
moods told him that she hated him. He was
used 70 this, but she had never before accom-
panied her anger with Hood of tears. The
sight OF those glistenlng drops in her pretty
eyes went straight TO his heart: He loved the
| bright girl with all the strength and fervOr of
his simple, fearless nature, and the thought
that he had caused her pain tortured him be-
yond measure. With a deep sigh he walked
| slowly across the plaza and went to his dull
| bare room in the primitive Jail.
| For the next week when he called, Kitty re-
| fused TO see him, and day after day he would
| sOrrowiuliy turn away and go mechanically
| about his duties. All life seemed To have lett
| him. and he performed his labOrs without ill.,
terest and simply AS a matter of pure habit
| Then came the sentencing OF TOm-the first
| time that q judicial decree of capital punish
| meDt had ever been uttered in the county. The
| prisoner listened to the solemn words Of the
Judge without apparent concern. Tom did not
| believe that his cowboy friends or even sheriff
| Sandy would permit him to be hung He
| chaied at his confinement. bat worried not a
whit at what he felt sure would be its ultimate
outcome. This scene in the court was followed
| a few days afterwards by an attempted rescue
| of the doomed man. A party of horsemem had
IlUucu up 10 the JAN one night ana demanded
the opening OF the heavy door
| "Thars enough o us here, Sandy" said the
leader, ''ter handle yer purity lively, an Well
do 1T, ef yer try any backin' and buckin'. No
white man kin be hung in this valley, less he
sheriff er sOmethin' eZ bad. We wont hurt
ye any Of we play sQuar though thar few o.
us eZ amt lOvin you with all our souls" a
statement patiently true, for they were a hard
lot and most OF them had already passed
through the sherlffs hands in punishment for
various crimes against the rights of property.
Il reckon, Gentlemen, ye amt got enough
gus an men yit. said Sandy quietly from the
narrow, n-guarded window OF his room over
the entrance, '.leastwlse thems my calculations
an I've counted ye over twice." Then as he
pushed the barrel of his Winchester rifle be-
tween the bars OF the easement, he added in a
painfully loud imitation OF q whisper. This
| yere household hez retired ter rest, an dom t
boarder Mister Mason. wud never iergive me ef
wuZ ter waken him up at this unreasonable
hour o the night, even ter do the squar thing
by We gen lemen. We want ter be perlite an
sociabie-iike, but yer q better go ternight an
don make no noise eZ yer mosey long. Call
in ther mOrnin' an We'll hev way up time.
Me an Tom eZ alters glad ter our friends
when We're wake, which mostly i'll day
! time. We're all asleep nOw-thets Tom snOr-
hear I'd from the prisoner who had been aroused
by the sounds oil the new arrivals and the loud
conversation.
''Stop yer damn jaw an open Their door afOre
We buSts it In an hiiS ye chuck full of Lead
cried the leader impaiiently.
"Hu-sh, cautioned the imperturbable San
dy, invisible in the darkness within, while the
horsemen stood clearly revealed in the bright
moonlight. "Im alters nervous an trembly
| hon i'm I,o'r