Elmore bulletin. [volume] (Rocky Bar, Idaho) 1889-1906, 1890-09-13
JUSTICE WITHOUT LAW.
a Judge In Tucson who Seat All onen.
ers ca the R.ok Pin

ers to the R"ck PIN.
Capt. Bonrke. of the army, In an in
teresting story teller, and possesses a
rich fund Of reminiscence and anec-
dote.
Twenty years ago, said the cap
tain, II was in Tucson. No place was
ever worse governed. Outlaws abound
ed and they did about as they pleased.
Finally the good citizens Of the place
merchants and men OF property
determined 10 bring about reform,
and the way they decided 20 do II was
TO elect a judge who would deal hon
estly with the scalawags who were
running the town and corrupting the
courts. So they chose man named
Charlie Meyers 10 be judge. Char
4 lie was a druggist, who knew moth
I ing about law, but he was perfectly
honest, and that was the only qualit-
cation the citizens desired. Accord
ingly, Charlie set up law dispensary
in the same building with his drug
shop, and dealt out justice and patent
medicines with equal grace. In his court
he established library OF calf bound
books, consisting chiefly Of the Mate
ria Medica and Somebody on Fractured
Bones. tie engaged as an officer OF
the court a man who was afraid o.
nothing or nobody - old Jimmy
Douglas, who carried in his leg a bul
let that he had picked up at Gettys
burg, and who walked with some diff
hculty and with a peculiar though
not graceful limp. The first thing tina
Charlie did was 10 establish a chaiI
, gang and sentence 10 various term
in its service every offender that wa
brought before him. The shyster law
yers who had run the town b,
fore Charles incumbency proteste
against this as a violation of the col
stitution of the United States, but the
protested in silence. In fact, the PR
, test was useless. The process of III
, Judge was rather summary, but III
' result was very gratifying 10 the goo
p citizens Of Tucson. The wild, roug
1 characters who had ruled the tow
. were now engaged in cleaning Il
/, streets. and Tucson was seeing an el
2 of prosperity that it had not know
since its foundation. But if the bus
o ness men were pleased, the lawye
Z were proportionately disguised. II
court refused TO recognize them al
e their business was gone. One da
n however, one OF them plucked /
Q spirit enough to go before the court
q behalf of his client and demanded
a trial by jury The court was abo
,s to sentence the prisoner to term
!, the chain gang, when the lawyer j
n terposed demurrer. My client,
n said, objects TO being tried by Il
p court, on the ground OF prejudice, al
|. demands to be tried by jury
II by shury. said Charlie. WI
a is dot shuryl'
!. He demands, said the lawyer,
,e be tried by his peers
"a "'Oh, ne does, does her said CHI
= lie. Well | sendence him TO T.
a weeks in the shain gang and | Sc
r. dence you 10 one week. Now how y
,e like dot trial by shuryT and into
xe chain gang the lawyer went and th'
n he stayed until his term was up.
m "One day a man named Wolf v
no brought before the court for cheat
~ some Indians out of s3. He was
n. unscrupulous man but a shrewd c
ds and he knew all the tricks of
law. Charlie felt tina: in his case
Materia Medica was not sufficient
thority and so he adjourned the co
10 get an opportunity to consult so
ou books on the law or to obtain adv
IN from somebody with a knowledge
el, it. AS he declared the case postpor
no and the court adjourned. however
rs turned 10 the prisoner and said: w
VI il is de unanimous opinion of dis &C
munity dot you are - tief and
ca court comedies fully in dot opinion
le wolf lost color and raising his
ne he said: Judge, don't let any ,
W speak 10 me in that way
ne ne Dis court fines you $40 for r
2s1 ing your fist against it. said Char
ne and you stands committed 10 de sh
sh gang until il IS paid.
eu wolf knew that there was no
ne course and he reluctantly paid
lol $40. The judge gravely took il ,
III after dividing IS between himself |
Ia Jimmy Douglas. he gave Is TO
ne Indians And 10 this day. in the
ne nails of that Indian tribe, Char
Meyers is the most righteous in
ler that ever held court, for did they
on on sue for $3 before him and recover