The Black Hills union. [volume] (Rapid City, Pennington County, Dakota [S.D.]) 1889-1904, 1890-09-19

ossal scheme Of brigandage and assasi-
nation.
Surely it was q queer sight under the.
sun to see a lot OF outlaws and land
pirates take charge OF acommunity and
in the name of law and order elect their
most lawless braves district attorneys,
sheriffs and high officials OF the county.
When this was done, OF course robbery
and murder became safe and unpunish-
able, and hence legal to all intents and
purposes. And, oh, what a merry and
prosperous time of it this brotherhood
OF thugs did have until their reign OF
blood and rapine terminated at the
ropes end! Murder and robbery were
everywhere, while life and property were
nowhere. The honest miners and
ranchers were completely cowed at first,
as some Of us are now, because it was
indeed a dazing spectacle for a man with
an orthodox experience as q citizen to
see all the machinery OF government run
by the deadly enemies OF Christian civili-
zation. Such was the case in Helena,
Montana, in the far-away summer OF
1868. But it did not last; for it could
not.
Goods mills grind slowly, but they
grind exceeding SMALL" and at the last
they grind all crime into non-existence.
And so it came about IN Helena in that
far-away summer Of 1868 that good
men and true began whispering to one
another behind closed doors and in the
silence and darkness Of the night. And
they said to one another, "a pirate
captain and u pirate crew are on deck
in this good ship OF ours and are sailing
us all to their father, the devil. We
must supercede their villianous master.
ship or we are lost" And there was
more earnest whispering in silent places
and all good men and true knew ON
another by look and touch. And 10
one black midnight, when the murderers
district attorneys, sheriffs and con
8 stables had drank and reveled them
selves into crapulous slumber, up ros'
the v~igilants. Then was there indeed
. = scant regard paid to officials who wer,
panoplied with all the sacredness OF dull,
:. elected legal functionaries. "Touch m,
t not, screamed the blear-eyed debauchee
u when suddenly awakened from thei
: sleep. 81 am your district attorney
your sheriff, your constable" But 10,
these foul miscreants had come eth
B night that knows no breaking" Stern
; strong hands seized and bore then
"under the pine trees withered branch
Around their necks went hedreadnoose
and their foul souls were soon %strangled
out of their foul bodies, and thus right
eously persisted the monsters who
wrought crime in the name of law and
justice.
Such events are much to be deplored,
but their possibility lies very near the
surface in our western human nature;
and such fragrant provocation which we
are now enduring may bring them out
sooner than the enemies Of justice may
be anticipating.
We hope that the moral uprising of
the people this fall through the indepen-
dent party will cure this evil. Let the
people declare that law must be equity;
that law must work toward justice; that
law must not Cypress the righteous; that
law must not shield horse thieves, and
10, a new day Of pure governors, pur'
members OF the bar and true laws will
dawn upon us as a condition, preceden
to this happy time the good men OF tn
It land must be organized and work tc
gether for righteous ends.
JAMES MCCURDY.
P. S.-If this don't find the waste
q basket, you shall hear from me again.
j. MCC.