Fort Worth daily gazette. (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1882-1891, 1890-06-01

| the negroes or the whites lynched the old
man and killed him, so much the bet
ter, F" thought the revengefuI old woman.
She knew about Dawsey's habits, his
mysterious visitors, his midnight abb
| sences.
She suspected that he was making
moonshine whisky, for neither she nor
any one else suspected that false money
was being coined. The shrewd counter
feiters circulated none OF their base coin
in the neighborhood.
Aunt Valley co1ld only suspect of the
crimes about which she knew, and she
had no hopes to convict Dawsey of any
such popular offense. Then the brilliant
idea came to her to festen o fictitious
! crime on him, taking advantage Of his
real absence.
BY occasional gifts of food to the half
starved boy, for whom she felt certain
| sympathy as the fellow victim of Daw-
sey, she had won his confidence. It was
not hard to engage him in the plot by
which the crafty old woman planned to
run Dawsey out of the country. In her
simplicity she expected that she could
walk over and take Mr.. Henderson
away, once Dawsey was gone.
Larry had written the notes, but Aunt
Valley had fired the gun and shouted,
Larry helping on the dinner horn and
also clashing two tin pans together with
a frightful CHATTER.
Such was the sum and substance of
Aunt Valleys confession, made with
many sobs and groans, for she was now
thoroughly repentant, because thoroughly
scared.
Sally took the role Of comforter.
"Never you mind, Aunt Valley and
Larry, we'll protect you.
''If we can, j." said Ally, who couldn It
| forget his caution.
awe will, anyhow cried Sally, her
! eyes glowing, "why Ally Seyton do you
mean you won't protect Larry after he
has confessed for your sake and got
Cobbs out of prIson-or just the same
thing-and there he Is trusting you SO!
| Will you be so mean as to desert him?"
"oh, put your eyes back. sisI" said
Ally easily, al didn't say 1 wouldn't
1 was only talking about couldn't.
Maybe they better light out. We can
tell the sheriff. -
"No we can't; he II say we are maxi
ing it up to get Cobbs of. - Ally was
| dumb.
It was Cecil who finally suggested that
| they get written confession and then
that Aunt Valley and ALLY take the train
at the station and go away. He would
! furnish the money.
This plan was favorabIy received by
the children. Aunt Valley groaned as
sent, and Larry said he was willing to do
whatever Ally wanted.
"Well, - said Larry, fit's time for
dinner now, so let us all go home, and,
| after dinner, they can do it.
,,,.A l. ot,fl 81
a very large meal with every sign OF ap-
! petite, but I dare say Aunt Valley did
| not eat so heartily In the kitchen.
After dinner they all assembled In the
| library, where Sally had provided writ
| ing materials.
Gwen have to write It, - said Cecil.
Ally knitted his brows. "Hadn't
they better write it themselves? Maybe
they IL say we made 1t up.''
"Oh, 1t isn't necessary. They sign,
you know, and there can be witnesses. -
"BeHdes, - said Sally, "they can't
write well enough. Aunt Valley can't
write at all, and 1t would take Larry till
| plumb dark, and then he wouldn't do
it.. :"
''But they'v got to sign it?''
"Oh, yes, and say, Il acknowledge
this to be my voluntary act, and that's
the way papa does when he signs deeds. -
Aunt Valley uttered deep groan.
al new did know it ben a waller in
AIRY act, - she protested. ~ jls lowed
e git ole man Dawssy outer the kentry.
Nor l new did hurt nary!"
"Oh, that's all right, Aunt Valley, -
SAID Alan, "that just means you re
willing to sign to please US. -
cam cause missy. she done foun'
out, - SAID Aunt Valley. "Oh, Lawdy,
missy, is 1 got t. go way an leabe my
mules?'
"How you gong to begin it., Cousin
Cecil?'' said Sally. avoiding an answer.
"Hadn't it ought to begin like wills
'In the name of God, amen so as to be
kind Of solemn like? l know that's the
way wills begin, cause 1 read a story
all about bad man that burned one."
Cecil didn t quite think that the be-
ginning of a will was exactly the begin
ming of q confession. He inclined,
rather, to 'tknow all men by these pres
ents.
"what presents?" said Ally, ''they
can I give us no presents. -
"Oh, that's just form-to make 1t
sound better.
"Why don't you put them both in,
then, and then say they did it?''
So, after little writing, Cecil said:
"Knew all men by these presents, in
the name Of God, Amen. We, Mrs.
Valley Peat and Laurence Saunders,
were the parties who were the Ku KIux
and scared the negroes on the night Of
-, lS-.
"What night was itp'' Cts broke off to
ask. at the same instant he glanced
out Of the window his attention attracted
by the sound of wheels.
What he saw made him turn pale and
dart out of the room crying, "Ally,
they've all comei" Alley, too, ran to
the window. ''Hurrahln he shouted,
"Aally, looki they we come, pa sud ma.
And-oh, thunder, Cobbs is there tooIn
Certainly Cobbs wac there, placidly
holding the horses; but It was not to
Cobbs or to the Seytons that Cecil
bounded. He caught tall gentleman 3
hand with both his own. "'Oh, dadl
Oh, dadl'' was all that he could say.
Blu In moment be saw Cobbs and
shook hands with him with an usion
that made Mr.. Raimund stare.
'.0h, Cobbs, we've got the proof.
We can clear you, 81 he cried.
"Law I'm all right" said Cobbs,
"the counsel done clared me an sent
that Mitchell baout his business.