Western Kansas world. [volume] (WaKeeney, Kan.) 1885-current, 1894-11-10
HIS NAME WAS MUD.
FiddleIs was excited.


Not that there was anything eX-
Jraordinary in that, for the Flat was
in a normal cond ton of excitement
over one thing or another every hour
in the day and vented it in much
drinking, 10 I'd talking and fighting;
but on this particular occasion the
excitement was of an unique order
that in its still intensity chilled aud
silenced the mob OF meG That crowded
the doors Of the 'sMary'S Eyes" Sa-
loon and gambling house, the pro-
prietor of which, Velvet Jack, was at
that moment being tried for his life
before that most terrible of earthly
courts. Judge Lyn h.
1t was not the first killing at the
! Flat. This shooting sCrape was only
! one Of the doZ MS of others during
| the i've months Of Fiddler's exist
| ence, but the victim was a peculiar
| ly lnofensiye creature known as
mud" to the camp
| He had no other name that he
knew of, ard had earned his sobri-
Quet by his IN al ing ill lu k at the
gaming tables, and his equally unfail-
ing remark as he rose pennilesS from
his bout with the tiger: ''Wal, my
names mud agin;" but on this partic-
ular occasion Mud'S luck had run his
way, and he had sat hour after hour
at the little oblong faro table since
the night before aud won with I'M
failing regularity through every deal
Velvet himself had the shift at
deal when Mud had won the last
ounc1 in the ''bank roll. and, as the
lucky player rose from his seat oppo-
site him, the gambler had without
word shot him through the heart
The cold fiendishness Of the act was
too much for the nerves of the Fid-
dlers, and the camp rose to man
and cried aloud for vengeance.
They were waiting now for the SEN
tence.
Long Smith was the Judge. He
occupied a chair placed on a faro table
at one end of the long, low cabin, the
Identical chair that Velvet sat in
when he shot Mud.
Velvet sat little to his lett,
guard at either side, on his right, the
hastily CHOSEN jury of twelve sat or
stood, and beyond rope stretched
across the room, was the silent, eX-
pectant crowd.
The evidence was all in, and Long
Smith was setting himself down into
a comfortable pos on to listen to
the counsel for defense, when Velvet
suddenly rose to his feet and said:
'.See here, boys. what's the use Of
going on with this monkey business
any longer? l shot Mud, and you've
determined that | must hang. Can't
4
hang me and be done with it, instead
of torturing me with all this nom
sense? You know you're only doing
it to amuse yourselves
The eyes of every man in the crowd
were fixed on the prisoner during this
speech, and then turned eXpectantly
to the Judge.
''frisner ct the bar yer bein' tried
fer murder by the only kim O. er cot
this yer kentry heZ. Eff theirs eny-
thin We hev ter say We II b V er
chance to say 1T furder on"
There was hum of approval from
the audience, and the counsel for the
defense went on with his argument,
followed by the counsel for the pros
ecution. The court summed up and
charged the jury, which, without
moments, hesitation, returned a YER
dict of guilty.
The Judge arose from his chair
and said "Velvet, yer gone in"
there was no further assumption of
judicial dignity: it opped from him
as one drops a cloak from his shout
ders, ''ther boys hev Civ yer squar
deal, which's more'n We give Mud, n
hox TO
yer got ter say again it?"
Velvet smiled and shook his head.
''You've got the drop on me, l
reckon" he said, land can't kick"
Just at this moment there was a
struggle of some one trying to force
an entrance through the crowd at
the door, and the shr1ll tones of a
woman's voice could be heard de-
manding access to the court that was
trying the man that had killed hers
Ppm Mud's wife, she insisted in
a shrill, shaKy voice.
s'Oh, know what yer nicknamed
him. His n my names DoDbs n he
were er good nuff man most ways
n l want ter see the man what
killed him n lef' me er lone wilder
right in the prime er life"
The relict of the late Mud was at the
bar of the court by this time She
was a tall, angular woman of 40 or
so, dressed in rusty black, with an
immense calico sunbonnet that pro-
jected over her face like a section of
stovepipe and efectually concealed
her Gestures.
The court ordered chair for her
inside the bar. aud when she had
seated herself remarked to her:
1--WE never knowed eff Mud were a
mar'd man. marin: eff we had we'd
shorty hev waited this trial for We. -
'sD' yer mean to say yerve CORN IN
tried this yer man for KILN mine,
N me not here ter see2 Yer a nice
kin o. er Judge, l mus say. Wal, yer
kin jest go ter Jryin' m rite over
again, now i am yere," and the
widow settled comfortably back in
her chair and took dip of snuff
The court, counsel, jury and spec
tators were melted in a moment.
| They were Missourians. almost to a
man, and the zone touch of nature
that snuff dip aW2ke IN them made
them the widows slaves for the mo-
ment
The court, counsel. and Jury con.
| suited for a few moments, and the
1 IudUe intimatad tn the widow that