The Bryan daily eagle. (Bryan, Tex.) 1895-1898, 1897-02-28
TO KEEP HIS WORD.
An Oregon Emberrler Rlsked Ills life
20 Surrender 90 Justice.

An Oregon Embcssler Rlsked Hls life
20 Surrender 90 Justice.
you need not send an officer for
me- will come when am wanted"
Vincent Sutton. postmaster at Ore
town. Tillamook county. was wanted
for embezzlement by the United States
authorities. says a Portland lOre) cor
respondent Of the San Francisco Ex-
aminer. A plain tale. truly, and one
which smaoks Of the vulgar common
place. but mark the difference.
This Sutton Is t.nan OF simple mind
and to him Il seen y harm would be
done n he eked olH'the pittanoe Of his
once Of postmaster by adding the sums
paid In for purchase Of money orders.
a matter OF some 1855 when all was
counted. lie would make II good In
his own time and In truth he thought
II no wrong. But the United States
does not do business that way and IN
due time there came an indictment
found by the Oregon grand jury. SUIT
ton heard. He realized that he had
done wrong. He was ready 20 meet
his punishment. Nay be was ready 10
go 20 meet Il at the peril Of HIS life.
Nothing prevented n he chose TO leave
the state. None could find him In this
bitter weather did he prefer TO hide IN
the businesses OF his own traokless
mountains. but Il came home TO him
what he had not realized when he took
the money. that he had done wrong
and he alone must bear the burden.
Now, this was not a matter Of walk
ing downtown 10 give yourself az TO
the police or the marshal. II was not
even a matter Of boarding a comfort
able railroad coach 10 be hauled into
Portland. Oretown IL a lonely camp
buried deep In the oregon wilds.
round forty miles and more from a
railroad station. with raging rivers to
be crossed between. and no road on
which a horse may travel IN this teem-
ing winter season. when the whole
countryside Is soaked and sodden like
a full sponge, deep with treacherous.
unfathomed seas OF holding mud
Forty-three miles on foot. swimming
and swirling. wild. unbridled rivers
staggering along through cllnging mud.
unable 10 Ne down and sleep IN bis
drenohed clothes lest he perish OF the
cold. deprived OF hEe and light. be-
cause the matches he carried were
soaked. snatching a hungry bite by the
way al the little store Of food he had
in his pockets. all sodden and smeared
with mud-this was the task that Vim
cent sutton set himself because Jus
tioe must be done and he must bear his
part. though his life be forfeit IN the
doing So u came that the simple
minded man OF primitive mold sat down
and wrote a letter TO Marshal Gray. In
Portland. that he would come himself
TO the nearest station on the railroad.
sheridan. and there surrender 10 an
ofiicer Of the law-no need 10 send a
man 10 bring him In from his distant
home. Let the officer come TO Sheridan
by a certain day and he would be there.
He kept his word. albeit more than
once Il nearly cos, him his life. SUIT.
ton has a wife. He kissed her good-by
and stuffed his pockets with the food
which she. poor woman, had put up for
him with loving care. enough 70 las,
him two days. Il might be. on the way
10 sheridan. The Three rivers. triple
thunderer In sooih. was booming with
sullen. hungry roar. turbid with swirl
Ing mud. carrying on he angry breast
sweeping logs and jagged roots. torn
from their sockets by the searching
food. Five times Il had to be crossed
by sutton on his way. swimming OF
wading. or CHANGING his life on a
trcacherous log. Once he was nearly
smothered In a bottomless pit OF mud
as dangerous as the quiet, remorselesl
suck Of a QuickEand that never gives
up its dead. Il was bitter cold and he
must keep aioot or perish. Bu, there
IL iron In this mans blood. He had
pledged his word and he got there
Now. when this strange tale was told
70 Judge Bellinger. sitting In Portland
as the representative Of federal law
he. being a man. was troubled IN mind
for here was one who had set his ne
Al the value Of a pin Zee that the lEv
might have he way. and YET justlc,
must be done and punishment motot
AZ Is set down IN the books. Never
theless there are degrees and Judg,
Bellinger resolved that this was
case where Il would no, strain N,
quality Of justice were Il softened viii
mercy. Therefore he imposed the low
est penalty. which ls imprisonment io
six months and a nne equal TO the sun
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