Idaho County free press. [volume] (Grangeville, Idaho Territory) 1886-current, 1889-12-06
The Senator's Story.
Hss:y Speech for Which lie Dearly Paid.

lected fresh cigar and reached over
for match, "you may not think it,
but | came mighty near being hung
once"
The whole party stared. Any one
less likely to be accused of serious
crime than our host-a distinguished
lawyer and State Senator of Califor-
matt would have been hard to i'm
agine.
"How was that" asked"
"When / was a young chap l got
my sheepskin from yarmouth, and
as l had a few dollars, | made my
way out of this State. l mined for IL
while, and then went to Sacramento,
where / hung out my shingle
and waited for business. 1t was lit
orally single, too, painted by my
self. soon after met a girl, Polly
Sinclair, the daughter of Robert Sin
clair, a builder. There were not so
many girls there then, and Polly had
plenty of fellows after her But
somehow she took a shine to me,
poor as was, and was as much in
love with her as ever man could be.
Her people did not like me, though,
naturally enough, too, for l was on
ly poor struggling lawyer, and they
thought Polly could do better. Her
brother was specially against me.
Poor Bob, perhaps l was to blame
most in the matter. Anyway, Polly
and | had found out that we cared
for each other, and one night, when
we were walking together, we met
Bob. He began calling me all the
names he could think of, and nv
temper being none of the best, / got
mad.
"Polly kept begging me not to
quarrel, and at last l turned away,
leaving her with him. AS left Isaid
to him that we would meet again
when l would make him explain his
words.
II was so excited thai | could not
go home, and l walked along the
road for, should think, five miles
from the town. Then turned and
walked back, went to my room, and,
being tired out, went to sleep.
Gin the morning was walked up
by the sheriff, and arrested for MUIR
dering Bob. The poor fellow had
been found in the street with his head
crushed in by blow from behind
and everything he had with him TAX
en-. There were dozen witnesses to
what | had said to him and to the
quarrel. No one had seen me during
the evening; my boarding house keep
er had not seen me come in, and al
together things looked rather black
for me. The only thing in my favor,
and that was little enough, was that
there was nothing of poor Bob's
found in my possession.
well, | was locked up in the old
Jail, and to tell you the truth, Ididn t
see my way out of the trouble.
Every one in town believed me to be
guilty, and there was some talk
aboutlynching me out ofhand. When
| say every one, / must make an ex-
ception. Polly, bless her. believed in
me still, although her father was one
of the bitterest, naturally enough.
Il had been in Jail about ten days,
when one day the door of my cell
opened, and Polly came in How she
managed to persuade Sheriff Hughes
to let her see me, do not know, but
she did somehow.
II am not going to tell you what
sort of a meeting that was; l could
not if would. OF course, | told her
l was innocent of poor Bob's death
and she sobbed out her belief in me
as | held her in my arms. At last she
whispered her plan to me. was to
escape, and the dear girl showed II
file into my pocket as she talked.
"No one, she said, in Stockton
would ever believe that | was inno-
cent; and i'll did not run away /
Nouid w PiONC lfllOCcllCt,
and if she succeeded we would never
marry any one else. Naturally, said
l would stand my trial, as was in
nocent; but when Polly pressed me as
to how | was to prove this, did not
know. She talked and begged, and
at last | consented So as Sheriff
Hughes came back, she had to leave
me.
81 did not like the job, but still |
worked away with the file, and as the
bars were pretty poor stuff, | got one
Sof them out. crawled through and
Preached the street, and then made my
way along it towards the edge of the
town. l was to strike out arcoss the
plains, hiding in the daytime and
traveling a nights only. Preached the
open country, and just about daylight
Jay downto sleep in a hollow, between
two ridges. Icould not sleep long how
lever, and after time | was lying there
swide awake. got so nervous at last
THAT made up my mind to go on,
land started once more. | had not
been walking very long, and, as you
may suppose, | was taking advan-
ztage of every bit of cover that | could
yet, when | saw long line of men
zriding over the plains toward me.
with them We're any number of dogs,
1or, although we had no bloodhounds