Barton County democrat. [volume] (Great Bend, Kan.) 1885-1915, 1897-05-06

angry cries rose with them. The
troopers struck about them, giving
back slowly as they did SO. But their
efforts were in vain. With scream of
triumph wild torrent of people broke
through between them, leaving them
stranded; and rushed in a headlong
cataract towards the steps. Beers was
close to us at the time. ''S'death ?" he
cried, swearing oaths which even his
sovereign could scarce have equalled-
''They will snatch him from me yet, the
hellhoundsi"
He whirled his horse round and
spurred him in dozen bounds to the
stairs at our end of the gallery. Then
he Ieaped from him, dropping the
bride recklessly; anc bounding up
three steps at a time, he ran along the
gallery. Half dozen of the troopers
about US stayed only to fling their reins
TO one of their number, and then fol-
lowed. their great boots gathering on
the planks.
My breath came fast and short, for
! felt it was a crisis. It was race be-
tween the two parties. or rather be-
tween the vidame and the leaders of
the mob. The latter had the shorter
way to go. But on the narrow steps
they were carried off their feet by the
press behind them, and fell over and
hampcred one another and lost time.
The vidame. free from this drawback,
was some way along the gallery be-
fore they had set foot on it.
How 1 prayed-amid scene of the
widest uproar and excitement-that
the mob might be first! Let there be
only short conflict between Beers
men and the people, and in the confu-
sion Pavannes might yet escape. Hope
awoke in the turmoil. Above the yclls
of the crowd q score of deep voices
about me Numbered, "a Wolf! Wolff
And l too. lost my head, and drew my
sword, and screamed at the top of my
voice, "a Caylus! a Caylus!" with the
maddest.
Thousands of eyes besides mine were
strained on the foremost figures on
either side. They met, it CHANGED,
precisely at the door of the house. The
mob leader was slender man, saw:
priest, apparently, though now he
was girt with unpriestly weapons, his
skirts were tucked up and his head
was bare. So much my first glance
showed me. It was at the second look
it was when I saw the blood forsake
his pale, lowering face and leave it
whittier than ever, when horror sprang
along with recognition to his eyes,
| when borne along by the crowd behind
he saw his position and who was before
hint was only then when his mean
figure shrank and he quailed and would
have turned but could not, that 1
recognized the coadjutor.
L was silent now. my mouth agape.
There are seconds which are minutes;
aye, and many minutes. A man may
| die, a man may come into life in such
| second. In one of these, it seemed
| to me, those two men paused, face to
| face; though, in fact, pause was for
| one of them impossible. He was be-
| tween-and ] think he knew 1.-THE
devil and the deep sea. Yet he seemed
| to pause, while all, even that yelling
| crowd below, held their breath. The
! next moment, glazing askance at one
| another like two dogs unevenly coupled.
| he and Beers shot shoulder to Shout
| der into the doorway, and in another
| jot of time would have been out of
| sight. But then, in that instant, I saw
something happen. The vidame's hand
| flashed up above the priests head and
| the cross-hilt of his sheathed sword
| crashed down with awful force, and
still more awful passion, on the others
tonsure! The wretch went down like n
| log. without word, without a cry!
| Amid roar of rage from thousand
| threats, a roar that might have shaken
| the Stoutest heart and blanched the
| SwarthieSt cheek, Beers disappeared
| within.
| 1t was then that I saw the power of
discipline and custom. Few as were
| the troopers who had followed nina
mere handful-they fell without hest
| tation on the foremost of the crowd,
| who were already in confusion, STUN
| bling and falling over their leaders
! body, and hurled them. back pel!-
NELL along the gallery. The throng be-
low had no firearms and could give no
| aid at the moment; the stage was mar
row; in two minutes the yidame's peo-
| pie had swept it clear of the crowd and
| were in possession of it. A tall fellow
took up the priests body, dead or alive.
| I do not know which, and flung it as
| if il had been sack of corn over the
rail. 1t fell with heavy thud on the
| ground. | heard a piercing scream that
rose above that babel-one shrill
scream!-and the mob closed round
and hid the thing.
IF the rascals had had the vii to make
at once for the right-hand stairs, where
| we stood with two or three of Beers
men who had kept their saddles, l think
they might costly have disposed of US,
| incumbered as we were by the horses
and then they could have attacked the
handful on the gallery on both TANKS.
But the mob had no leaders. and no
plan OF operations. They seized. in
deed. two or three of the scattered
troopers, and tearing them from their
horses. wreaked their passion upon