Fort Worth weekly gazette. [volume] (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1882-1891, 1890-06-05

as TO forco Dawsey to run away. fIt
the negroes or the whites lynohed the ole
man and killed him, so much the bet.
ter, - thought the revengeful old woman
She knew about Dawsey's habits, hi
mysterious visitors, bis midnight ab-
sences.
She suspected that he was making
moonshine whisky, for neither she mol
any one else suspected that false money
was being coined. The shrewd counter
feiters circulated none of their base ooir
in the neighborhood.
Aunt Valley could 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 tasten a 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-
sev, she had won his confidence. 1t 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 1,
Larry helping on the dinner horn and
also clashing two tin pans together with
frightful clatter.
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, - 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 prisoner just the same
thing-and there he Is trusting you so!
VIII you be so mean as to desert him?
ooh, put your eyes back. sisI'' said
! Ally easily, 81 didn't say 1 wouldn It,
I was only talking about couldn't.
Maybe they better light out. We can
| tell the sheriff. -
emo we can't; he'll say we are max
| ing it up to get Cobbs off. - 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 favorably received by
| the children. Aunt Valley groaned as
sent, and Larry said he was willing to do
whatever Ally wanted.
"well,'' said Larry, s'it's time for
dinner now, so let us all go home, and {,
after dinner, they can do it. -
| Larry dined with the children, eating
a very large meal with every sign of ap-
petite, but 1 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 III say we made it up.''
''Oh, it isn't necessary. They sign,
you know, and there can be witnesses. -
''Besldes, - said Sally, "they can t
write well enough. Aunt Valley can It
write at all, and 1t would take Larry till
plumb dark, and then he wouldn t do
it. -
''But they we got to sign itP"
OH, yes duu dShhOnl
this to be my voluntary act, and that IS
the way papa does when he signs deeds. -
Aunt Valley uttered deep groan.
''I new did know it ben waller in
airy act, - she protested. 81 jIs lowed
t. git ole man Dawsey outer the kentry.
Nor new did hurt naryI''
sob, 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 got t. go way an leabe my
mules?'
elbow 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? 1 know that's the
way wills begin, cause [ read a story
all about bad man that burned one. -
Cecil didn t quite think that the be-
ginning of will was exactly the begin
ming of a confession. He inclined,
rather, to ''know all men by these pres
ents. -
'what presentsp'' said Ally, "they
can't give us no presents.
''Oh, that's just form-to make it
sound better.
"Why don't you put them both in,
then, and then say they did it?,'
So. after little writing, Cecil said:
"Know 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 Klux
and scared the negroes on the night of
-, 1S-.
ssWhat night was it?" 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 We all comeI' Alley, too, ran to
the window. s'Hurrahi'' he shouted,
'tAally, lookI they We come, pa and ma
And-oh, thunder, Cobbs is there too!'
Certainly Cobbs was there, placidly
holding the horses; but It was not TO
Cobbs or to the Seytons that Cecil
bounded. He caught tall gentleman g
hand with both his own. .'Oh, dadl
Oh, dadln was all that he could say.
Bur IN moment he saw Cobbs and
shook hands with him with an usion
that made Mr.. Raimund stare.
t'Oh, Cobbs, we've got the proof.
We can clear you, he cried.
Law. I'm all right, said Cobbs,
''the counsel done clared me an sent
that Mitchell baout his business.
Presently they were all back in the
library, where they found Larry in a