Juniata sentinel and Republican. [volume] (Mifflintown, Juniata County, Pa.) 1873-1955, 1893-03-29
A MISSISSIPPI JUDGE,
Bound to Work Up Business for His EK.
checquer Was Low

Bound to Work Up Business for His Er.
checquer Was Low
Business has been dull; remarkably
.ull. The town jail-called by cour-
teSy a jail, for tramp could have
crept in and out of it-had not had
an occupant for some weeks This
Jail was a remarkable affair; 1t had
bars before the windows and no one
could get out that way. 1t had a
pOnderOus lock on its massive door
and no one could get out that way.
But If these means of egreS5 were
closed, so that the building might by
courtesy be called Jail, there were
plenty of other ways of getting out,
for the boards Of VIII ch its sides were
formed were old and worm eaten, the
roof leaked, and where there were no
holes, IL was extremely easy to make
them. 1t was a most uncomfortable
habitat on and even tramp who had
crawled in not knowing its official
character, left in disgust, driven
away by those fieas which for fifty
weeks out of tiity-two are the sole
occupants. The time done by dis
orderl es there during the year would
probably aggregate fortnight On
these state occasions the permanent
10 gers receive the transient with
every evidence OF cordiality, as
though they were trying TO make him
feel right at home.
An arrest is the signal for great ex-
Clement, and, aS it means a fee for
the Constable and the Judge, there
was naturally engendered a great
deal of hard feeling between the good
CiUiLenS and the representatives OF
law AMI order. The little town lies
on the gulf and over half OF its pop
u alton are colored people. The
Judge could ent a disturbance from
afar. No sooner was a quarrel well
under way than he saw visions OF
about 81 for himself and assistants
Consequently he arrived on the scene
with the creates speed. Then no
matter how enragel we're the COM
batants, whether or not one Of them
was engaged in the friendly act Of
butt ng his opponent with h wOoliy
head, or the excited group were ut
tering words intended to encourage
the principal actors in the scene upon
seeing the judge the men separated,
for they had no relish for the fines
which he chased by daY and night
After the Judge had retired they
wO Id go up the shell road ana when
they reached the boundary they would
resume operations.
At the time OF writing the Judge
was getting desperate. Fines he'd
been unusually slow. He had not had
a case for over month and was out
OF tobacco and hardly supplied with
the ordinary luxuries of life. Tony,
you must arrest some one today" he
said to the Constable.
Pm try. ledge, but those fellows
are dead onto US. They do their
lighting just beyond the ne"
"Tony, L thought you lad Of
discernment. The Official treasury is
so low that if we wanted glass OF
rum at this blessed moment, we
would have no way of satisfying na-
ture. A deplorable condition of af-
fairs, Tony"
Tony a~Sented.
some one"
That night about sundown Tony
,ame in with prisoner who was
manacled with old-fashiOned hand
cuffs, as though he was desperate.
The crowd Indignantly protested that
the man had been fighting beyond
the line. IL was the old argument.
How many Lines had the Judge suoOd
on the boundary and gaZed over the
imaginary line with wistful ewes,
while the crowd jeered at him be-
| cause he was powerless TO make an
arrest.
I'VE can prove by witnesses thai
the fight took place beyond the
line, " continued the speaker.
How is that, TOny?"
"I'm not sure that / noticed. But
che man fought me after we got over
the line, Judge"
"Tnen we will pat MIN in jail for
resisting an officer OF the law. This
community has got to be purified.
Take him away, Tony, and see that
there are plenty of guards at the jail,
so that he shall not escape"
''But you have no right to hola
that man. He was fighting beyond
the line" continued the bystander.
mo right to hold him."
"No lie was out OF your jurisdic
ZION"
well, sir; see that you know lit
tie about law, said the Judge, i'm
pressively. 'Out OF my jurisdiction,
indeed? What woulG you say, sir, if
| met the exigencies OF the case by
extending my Jurisdiction? What
would you say to that, sir? Tony,
lake the man to jail. Lock him up
for resisting an officer. and tomorrow
| Justice shall be Neted out"