Mower County transcript. [volume] (Lansing, Minn.) 1868-1915, 1890-04-09
THE FREED PRISONER,
Pathetic Story of a Convict Moon
sinner.

II consider 1T the only hope for him,
judge" said the doctor.
1T will esta blish a bad precedent.
The prisoners will think all they have
to do is to get sick so as to get free,"
said the Judge, testify.
1T is but question of time and q
very short time, too, before a greater
Judge, even than you, will give him his
discharge. and not only him, but good
many others, besides," said the doctor,
much provoked.
'Eh, is that so?'' said the Judge, ig-
noring sarcasm, lis there really so much
sickness in the jail?'
"A good deal, and chiefly confined to
the United States prisoners. Spotted
fever RACES with fatal effects among
them.
THAT is strange. How do you &C.
count for it? Is illicit distilling an I'M
healthy occupation?"
when it reaches it's natural result of
landing the operator into Jail, there to
sicken, it may be called decidedly I'M
healthy. But, testing aside, these
mountain fellows suffer more than the
other prisoners for the reason that they
have always lived free life in the open
air, therefore the close confinement of
the Jail proves very irksome and they
sicken under it. This spotted fever, is
l think, the result of lack of proper cir
culation of the blood. 1t is a sort of
epidemic among the mountainee,s.
Some of them have died of it and others
are very low, and they will die too, if
they stay in that Jail. The thought of
going home is all that will save them
now-Jack Bigby, especially; release is
the only hope for him."
HE has no one to thank but HIMSELF"
said the judge. ''Why did he NEEDLE
with illicit distilling?"
81 grant all you say; but death is a
severe sentence for few gallons of
mountain dew" said the doctor.
''True,'' said the Judge, after pause
81 will suspend sentence in his case, and
let him go home. Here is his release"
said he, as he filed out blank; ''take
it to him-a new sort of physic truly!
But tell him he won't get off SO easy the
next time he NEEDLES with the revenue"
Thanks" said the doctor as he took
the paper. ''It will be many day, if
ever, before he will feel like playing
with edged tools Judge, this is the first
time ever envied your high position
when l see the mercy you can show"
SIS the sun a-shinin' outside. Pap?''
The sick man lay on his bunk in his
cell; his fever-scorched tongue was stiff
and blackened so that he could scarcely
speak. It was difficult to recognize in
the wan shadow lying there, the stall
wart mountaineer of few months ago.
His blue eyes were sunk deep in his
head; his matted hair and beard were
sickly straw-color. and over the hollow
caverns OF his cheeks the white skin,
blanched by prison danl1, was tightly
drawn. On it's bloodless surface the red
blotches of the spotted fever showed
with startling vividness.
''Could this be Jack Bigby, the man
who could outshoot, outride, outjump
and Guidance any of his companions?
Old Bigby, otherwise Pap, as he sat
by the bedside of his sick son, felt dazed
and stunned by the change. He had
only arrived that morning, and in the
few hours that had passed, failed yet
to realize it. Could that be Jack? He
was changed in his ways as we'll as in
his looks. How strange he talked!
''Set whar I kahn see ye, Pap" he
said, when his father had arrived
1.-THE sight of ye is good for sore eyes
And, as he said it, all at once the
father had choked up and felt like cry
ing; he didn't know why. But hi
hadn't done it. Fl
t'Iit war powerful curious. Jest tel
think o. Jack a-sayin' sech thing
Rough an ready Jack ter wanter lay
thar an look at his ole pap!
Mr. Bigby, it is true, was not YER!
beauteous object, nor one on which
most people would crave to feast thei
eyes. He looked as If the sun lad saoul
upon him very hot, and the winter rail-