The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1896-11-30
IN A FRONTIER COURT.
Ills HONOR TOOK FRIGHT AND
FLED FOR HIS LIFE.

The Jury Resolved 10 Make "a Clean
Sweepstakes Too Thick 40 Suit
the COurt-The Usual Practices
Abandoned.
From the Chicago Record.
Strange and unaccountable reasons get
men together in concerted movement.
There was once a grand jury up In Halves
county. in one of the Missouri river terri
tories whch-but perhaps you would bet
ter hear the whole story and then you will
understand how easy 1t is under any cir
cumstances in the world to mass men into
combination for some definite object. In
those old territorial and steamboat days
the population of Halves county, though
limited in quantity, was swift in motion
and morality A man who dismounted from
the lower Missouri steamboat at the levee
was obliged to wear a saddle blanket over
his head as he walked up town to keep his
vivid bushes from signalling the down
boat to stop. This was especially true in
the case of Hensford, the county seat, and
it got worse as you progressed into the
other settlements. The county seat was sat
down in by sort of general riff-raff Of
bull-whackers, steamboat rousters. and
horse thieves OF all northwest nationallties.
There were also others whom it were a
matter of pain to mention. The conglomer-
alton made the night an orgy with sides
and end gates painted red and the voice of
virtue was as the voice OF a deaf mute.
Into this county seat one day came
Tn 1frn Aplf ian fada Ina
that same Dakota country-to hold a
small amount of court, and to sentence
some three dozen representatives OF the
offscourings of the earth to be hanged.
The sheriff had the Jail packed with Grim
mails of all vicious sorts, and there was
a general clamor for debut of the dis
trict court so that the population outside
the jail might have a decent chance to
get inside, where 1t belonged. Judge Ar
lington therefore travelled up the Missouri
river, and, being met at the landing by a
band Of distinguished villains, was es-
corted up town to the hotel, which was
saloon as well. and In a room In the Sec
ond story of which it had been designed
that court should be held. A sort Of
platform was put up at one end Of tn
room, the supports thereof being beer kegs
and the work of impaneling a grand Jury
was entered upon. The grand Jury ex-
hausted large share of the population Of
the town, and the sheriff was Obliged to
nberate two distinguished desDeradoes
from the jail to complete the panel; but as
these two were held for merely incidental
murder instead OF horse stealing. this
was considered all right. The remainder
OF the jury was built up OF half-breeds
Dull-Whackers, rousters, freighters and
dance-hall Keepers, and when It lined up
before Judge Arlington for instructions
before going down stairs to the room IN.
the rear of the saloon for elaboration on
prospective indictments It was the hard
est looking throng that ever got together
in the holy name Of justice.
do not know exactly what occurred In
the rear room behind the saloon before the
firing began. 1t Is certain that seven
ROUNDS OF liquor were served to the grand
Jurors In the first hour. and when Enoch
Weatherwax was triumphantly Indicted
on siXty-two counts for horse and cattle
stealing, the barkeeper threw omen the
intervening door and asked the Jurors 20
kindly take possession of the stock, the oc-
casion being considered by him as one OF
the great moments IN the history Of me
town 1t was shortly after this that the
first bullet tipped up through the floor and
past the left ear Of the judge. A few mo-
ments later another and half dozen 9th
ers followed, and 70 the Judge Il seemed
that an Inverted rain storm Of bullets had
struck that region and his place was else
where. He did not know just what the
men were fighting about, but guessed Il
to be the third count in the Middleton in
dictment. As a matter Of fact they were
not fighting az all. but were merely cele-
brating the event Of the court sitting, and
although the bullet which went through
the fleshy part Of Judge Arlington's left
leg was productive Of some pain, still It
was meant solely as a witness Of the es-
TEEN In which he was held The Judge
didn't know that. and looking out OF the
window he saw the Rosebud coming down
the river. Without a word TO anybody
he made a running jump and cleared that
window like a sort Of forensic antelope
Twenty minutes later he was on the Rose
bud and had crawled as far up on the
bow as possible so as TO get out OF town
the quicker
lie had not waited to direct the sheriff