Fort Worth gazette. [volume] (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1891-1898, 1894-03-25

his person until his guilt or innoccncs
should have been established, and they
would, If necessary, turn their Win
cheaters upon any disturbsrs who
might seek to pull down the majesty
OF mining camp law The speech was
earnest, rudely eloquent, and deter
mined, aud it put an end, for the time
being, to all disorder. The Dcadwood
crowd was mainly a sltulking lot, sniff
ing eagerly The scent Of human blood
where there was a helpless victim,
but growing very wary indeed at the
thought OF danger itself. II always
struck me as strange that the man IN
trial that morning did not receive
more sympathy among those fellows
he was SO like the majority OF them.
The prisoner was guarded In
small. plain shanty -Four men with
cooked rifles sat in the room with him.
He occupied a chair in the middle OF
the apartment. Heavy steel handouts
held his wrists together. He was
long, lean, angular Missourian, with
a yellow skin, a black moustache, and
tiiin, straggllng chin whlskers reaching
nearly half way TO his waist He wore
u black sombrero, a solled wooden
shirt, black trousers, ana tall boots.
His hands. which were large and bony,
lay upon his knees, as ho leaned back
smoking incessuntly moist. Oozlng
cigar He had one little glass eye.
which remained stationary while the
other ruumed furtiVely about like the
bcady optic Of Il cornered rat seeking
an opening for escape. Now and then,
IN hoarse but mistaken voice-for he
was making q great effort TO steady
hlmself-he asked for a drink Of
whisky or fresh cigar. At all other
times he maintained absolute silence.
His forehead was scanned with the
lines OF desperate anxiety, He had
awakened to the fun knowledge TINT
there was not one chance In a thou
sand of his living TIL sunset. He knew
he had committed cowardly and re-
Voting crime, but he was steeling
himself to one of those strange exam
pies Of contrast we sometimes find In
the contradictory institution vaguely
called human nature. He was going to
show how gamely n coward could die
The trial occurred about ii o'clock
1t was short and sharp. The prisoner
made a feeble defense, He said he had
been attacked and fought for his life.
But he could not explain how II was
/ that he had happened to ruin away
with his antagonists pouch Of gold
[ dust. lie was found guilty without a
| dissenting voice among tho Jurors, and
! was sentenced To be hanged In an
/ hour. when he was taken back to
1 the guard room he was to all appear
I ance as calm as any man ever was.
Z He sat down silently and smoked
I rapidly for n moment, and said, In a
1 general way. as " talking into space;
IT you - ~ - viii let me
have my Winchester and thirty
seconds' start, l will give You the
damncdest game you ever heard Of"
AZ this failed to evoke a response.
! he relapsad into silence, from which he
did not ngain emerge excepting TO call
for whisky and cigars, and to d-n
the eyes OF a guard who asked him II
he didn't want clergyman.
When the preparations wore curl-
plcte the prisoners hands were mana
cled behind him, and he was led out
side The crowd choered and then
houted as they saw him, The yellow OF
his skin had changed TO an ashen hue,
aud his one active little eye swept the
hollzou with venomous glitter But
hc did not Vince, Ho clutched his hai-
smoked weed oonvulsIvely with his
teeth, pulled himself together, and
stood firmly on his feet, with his chin
elevated denently, He was lifted 20
the back OF the horse, and sitting there.
bolt upright, was led away across the
.nleh % where a long rope dangisl
from r limb M a rOunt dead tree. In
one end Of this rope there was n run
ming roose The other end after pass
ing over the limb, was held by sevcrul
men further up the side OF the gulcl3,
The horse was led under the tree. two
hNtNAA Us WIN AAAANa AANANF WANING On
either side, The crowd which surged
onward like nm angry river, panied
With excitement that broke out In
curses ana vile EXPLANATIONS.
3 The moose was adjusted. the horse
wns led out from under he murderer's
form, and at the Same moment the men
holding tho opposite end Of the rom,
ran up the hill with IL for few PAGES.
The body OF the tail Missourian. writli
INK horribly In agony, flew upward A
dogen shots frnm pistols and rifles rang
sharply out Tho mnlefactor's ungalniy
feet. which had been drawn up in the
first contortion OF suffering, Ten back.
The bony hands which had clutched
desperately at tho back OF his shirt
relaxed and hung down, Nimp and
pulaeless. The teeth. which had been
clenched Ia the final and supreme effort
Of self-contrdl, parted. and the remnant
Of his last black cigar came floating I,
the gr6und. The artificial eye. now o.
moro sightless than It's furtive cont
pNnlCn t.Nat cold. sinister stare on
over tho throng below, throng hushet
with the spending OF its fury. Tn,
body, twisting with the strain upon III
rope. swayed to and fro IN the fresh
tnlnE hrHere. 1--WE nonp'e rr'N re~
sobered and reflective. turned siowi,
away anu Disappeared. ls4a u.st .glll
edy u Dsadwood Gulch was avenged