Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1886-04-15
THE BANK OF CALIFORNIA
BY PRENTICE MULFoRD.
fcorYRrGHTED ny THE AUTHOR. ALL RIGHTS Hr
SERVED
Meantime the other cloud on Bull Bar wa.

secret was on Pratts mind. He inferred
there must have been a quarrel and much
Ill will betwixt Pratt and some one previous
to he-ahem-accident. Pratt raved con
unualiy about the young un,n who thought
he owned the whole mountain He was
ever being ''dogged about the chapparsl by
him. and so on
Mr.. William Setter drank in with hi.
cosby, greedy ears Pratt's utterances and
the doctors opinions. He visited Pratt's
cabin on his way to work in the morning
dropped In at noon and again at night Hi
made himself an assistant nurse to Pratt
brought him choice dishes and broths of hi,
own making, and he could make them well
he was really useful. Besides he carried
from Pratt's house messes of gossip, which
he distributed as labor of love all over Bull
Bar. Mr. Settlers forte as a suspicion
breeder lay in differences. He had no direc
charge against any one But he said it was {
queer piece of business Pratt, poor man
had been trying to get along and earn al
honest living. He as good as supported Hill
year, who hadn't much gumption anyway
Young Holder, he added, found Pratt witt
those hurts on his head Pratt couldn't beal
the sight of Holder Always set him to run
MIN on about shootin and rowin'. Holder
was up the mountain that day. He saw hin
at least it looked like his shirt in th,
bushes. Well, it was queer business
Such is a sample of the applications mad,
by DIR. Setter for individuals singly and in
dlviduals in groups for eight or ten DAYS
he was in this work earnest and persevering
IN season and out of season He s.set people
to thinking He educated them, in fact. tc
think suspiciously of me in connection with
Pratt. Ordinarily ON Bull Bar "shootin
scrapen between two men, even if one was
killed, might not get any farther than the
local Justices court: might not get even
there. The community tacitly acknowledged
the pistol as the main arbiter in all manner
of disputes. Smith "jumpedn Jones' claim.
Jones shot Smith dead Nobody had time tc
inquire closely into the matter The affair
was a two days sensation. In week it was
quite forgotten
But in this case here was Mr. Settlers
poor sick man. and his partner devotine
his whole time to him, and /, John Holder
in some mysterious way mixed up with them
Mr.. Setter played several chords on the
various human hearts of a. thousand string.
he handled. First sympathy, next mystery
and beyond that something darl-he would
not say what-only something resembling
myself or my red shirt on Scrub mountain
could in the many views presented by him to
his audiences be vaguely made out in the
general indistinctness.
50 this busy man went on poisoning the
Bull Bar mind against me-
Broener left for Marysville on the day
Pratt was pronounced worse His interest
in the Bank" seemed now secondary to
another elsewhere
After his departure | went down to Ran
k1n's. 1t was noon / arrived at the store
Just after the fifteen or twenty boarders had
finished their dinner, and were now congre.
gated for a smoke and talk, preparatory to
the long afternoons work in their claims
along the river bank.
just before entering heard Settlers tongue
rafting on at livelier pace than ever The
gravity of Pratt's case seemed to act as n
stimulant upon him, exciting his Imagination
and touching up his suspicious differences re-
gardlng this queer business in more pro-
nounced colorings than ever
And why don't he come out and tell the
whole story" said he
As entered that hush ensued so peculiar
to the unexpected advent of the party talked
about.
knew they were talking of me in connec-
tion with Pratt-or rather / felt it. had
felt it for some days-felt it in certain cool
ness, in averted looks, and hints and inuen-
does, whose full import and meaning now
burst upon me-
The silence was finally broken by one
'Long Macs" asking me if l 'knew how
Pratt was
Il hear he is worse" was my reply, and /
felt my face redden and burn as spoke. Ac-
tually did feel then like Pratt's murderer.
and on trial before a jury prejudiced against
me, without favorable witness or extenuat-
ing circumstance in my behalf So strong
seemed the effect of the predominant thought
from the group in that store to make me feel
as they betiered.
There was another silence. A great deal
of renewed and possibly unnecessary pipe
filling and cleaning of stems with broom
straws went on; possibly as a mental relief
to the more sensitive, and consequently en-
barrassed, of the party.
Was you coming down Scrub mountain
when you found Pratt" asked another
NO l replied II went up to him.
Il wonder how he came by two bullets in
his head, asked Long Mac
81 don't know that he has any bullets in
mis- head / replied
You DON'T was the rejoinder from Long
Mac The emphasis on the pronoun was
peculiar. did not mistake its meaning, but
made no reply.
Meantime Mr.. Setter was silent Perhaps.
for the first time, a sense of the response
bility Of his loquacity had come over him.
He did not like talking in face of the
accused. The matter was now in sterner
hands.
We'll, said Long Mac, 81 think for one
this thing needs looking into It's bout time
this robbin' and murderin' was stopped
Somebody needs stringin' up.n
The mortality list for Bull Bar, and saw.
a stretch of river for two miles up and down.
averaged man killed by known or unknown
parties about once in ten days. But the Bar
was now in the throes of one of those spasms
of law and order, peculiar to all communi-
ties. Woe to the wight guilty or not guilty,
caught during such spasm He would hang.
1t was worse than any direct trial, this
being accused by hint, inference and inuendo
There was, | felt, but one thing to do. re-
solved to make the issue and meet it.
''Look herer / said. what are you fell
lows driving at, anyway You talk as if
some one had tried to murder Pratt Now, as
I'm considerably mixed up in this matter,
I'd like to know if any one is suspected of
crooked business, and if so who it isp'
No one replied. / was now started
and kept on. !,
ut strikes me-" said, s'from the way that
this talk has gone on that Pm the man you're
aiming at. Now, if anybody's got any
charge against me he. can back. up with
proof, this is as good time to make it as
any other. l object to being tried behind
my back and without any chance to defend
myself. Has anybody here seen me waylay
Pratt, shoot him or rob hims If there is let
him talk am ready to hear what he has
to say"
My audience was very quiet
Have you, Mr.. Setter. l believe you've
had good deal to do and say in this matter.
You seem to know as much, if not more,
If this affair than anybody elsea You were
with me when we brought Pratt down the
mountain Why shouldn't think it o very
queer piece of business to talk of your being
up on Scrub mountain the day Pratt was
hurt, poor man, trying to get an honest liv-
ing and all that. l tell you, Bill Setter, that
sort of talk has put the halter round more
than one mans neck in this country when it
didn't belong there. This buzzing suspicious
in peoples ears, until the man that buzzes
and those he buzzes to can't tell the difference
between mere hearsay and absolute proof is,
think, about the same as murder
Setter was silent felt myself warming
up as concentrated myself upon him alone,
and, what was to me a relief, l felt also the
letters of a constitutional backwardness for
any sort of expression for the time falling
from me-whether that expression should be
one of deeds or words of mind or muscle