St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1889-09-11
CLEANED OUT THE sANCTUM
A Frontier Editors Lively Inter-
view With a HorSethief.

"A
out violently in New Mexico, and the
ranch owners were losing horses and
cattle in great nun bers, when Gen.
Lew Wallace, then governor of the ter
ritory, was finally prevailed upon to
offer reward of $500 for the capture
and conviction of the thieves. Bill Car
mis- had had good deal to do with
prompting the governors action by pub
fishing rafting story of the depreda-
lions under the sensational title of 1.-THE
Forty Thieves" and sending it to the
general along with very appreciative
fve-column review of "Ben Hur." Car
mis- was the newspaper boss of New
Mexico.
Just as soon as the reward was offered
Jim Goodspeed. the deputy sheriff of
Lincoln county, which adjOined the
county in which Carnis' paper was pub
lished, turned up in the editorial rooms.
Pm for law and order, l am" he
shouted, land Pm going in for that ERE
reward. Wallace is brick"
Good enough" replied the editor.
.'Go it,
Strange to say. the depletion of the
ranch beeves continued and the horses
grew scarcer. Carnis took hand in in
vestigating the mystery on his own hook
and got evidence that the deputy sheriff
was Gin" with the cattle thieves. He
printed the news with big headlines. 1t
made tremendous sensation among
the gamblers and toughs, and the re-
spectacle citizens as well.
Two days later the mail brought this
message:
Take that back or I'll get square. JIM.
The paper came out next issue day
with a lot more about the forty thieves,
but no retraction of the story that the
deputy sheriff was cattle thief. Word
came to the Office that GOodspeed had
said that he would kill the man who
wrote the lie.
He sailed into the sanctum one day
with tremendous flourish. He hadn't
sent in any card beforehand. He had a
big OvercOat on, and the way the pocket
bulged showed that he had shooting
irons in both sides of the coat. His
shooting irons were always loaded, too.
He went at Carnis like cyclone sweep
ing the prairie, when the latter got up
and looked around at him.
''Say, you're the duck that wrote
that?'
"Ah!"
"Huh" (clutching his revolver.)
81 said 'Ah.'"
"Don't alb me. say you wrote that
Screed in the paper"
"Well?"
"Huh!" stepping forward threaten
inglyD
"Well! Well it's damed lie, that's
well. And came to lay you out if you
don't say so in your damned paper"
.'Yes?''
"What's that?''
81 said, Yes"
me. I'll blow your head off for a cop
per-"
Don't"
"W-w-w-what?" with a gasp of
amaZement.)
Carnis had gripped a shooting-iron of
his own by this time, and strange
look came into his eye. lie strobe
close up to Goodspeed.
81 said, DON'T You heard me, too.
| mean it,"
"Git out"
mo. there isn't any git out to it. l
see you've brought your guns with you.
If you draw I'll try some of the drop
business myself"
Don't get excited, now" (Goodspeed
was toning down fast in his bravado
crescendo0
~ may not get there first, but if 1
don't, and Mike hears of it there will
be funeral in Lincoln county, and
Jim Goodspeed will play the sad and
solemn role of the man in the coffin"
Mike was the boss gambler in New
Mexico, and he was known all over the
territory as Carnis' friend. That meant
he'd fight anybody who troubled the edI-
tor. AS he was dead shot his likes
and dislikes were treated with whole
some Difference by the tOnghs. Good
speed backed water as the editor talked
business.
'Say, there isn't any use of getting
mad because a fellow objects to being
called thief"
why, d-n your hide, you're a thief,
and you know it,"
The editor pulled his revolver sud-
denly as he said it and continued:
Cit! or I'll try some target practice
on that ugly face of yours"
Goodspeed got. He fed to Lincoln
county as fast as his horse could carry
him. The fever to clear out the sane
of CarniS, but he did have wholesome
dread of Mike, the boss gambler. He
had narrowly escaped running into
bullet from Mikes pocket annihilator
in little tilt with the boss gambler,
and he wasn't anxious to test the cur
rent report about Mixes proves with
firearms.
Three weeks later marked copy of
Lincoln county exchange came into the
sanctum of the editor who had the boss
gambler for a friend and promoter. 1t
had column of poorly printed matter
with this stirring heading:
Jim Goodspeed Lynchedl
Lincoln County Deputy Sheriff Caught Steal
ing Horse and Hung by Vigilance
Committeeman
And, what's more, the men who
caught him didn't apply for Gen.Lew