The Black range. (Robinson, Socorro County, N.M.) 1882-1897, 1897-05-28

/ SITTING in q. row along enc side OF tl8o
irstroom, which WIS evidently a wait.
/ ,ng-room, ami Harry mctiolcd him to
take seat at the.lowe- end OF the row.
Presently a door connecting the tive
rooms opened and a couple Of men
came out. One Of the men was plainly.
the friend" while the other John
knew TO be farmer, and he rightly
I judged that he had been getting an
accommodation. The farmer denart.
/ ed. and TIE friend signed the EEa It
the head of the row to come to the next
/ room.
The friends" name was Mills. and It
was by 10 means an inappropriate
aane either, for he was grinder, -
ana resc@U.1a the mills OF thc gods.
insomuch that he ground the grist that.
came 10 him exceedingly f2e. The,
reader, however, viii learn mere Of this
by and by. II is our businessot present
to follow john Green.
Doing business with Erastus Mills.
the money-iender, was like doing busi-
ness with the Touring miils-each Gus
toner had TO await lis turn; 50 John,
from his position at the foot of the row,
position which he did not hold long,
however, since other anxious borrow
,ers rapidly filed in, had plenty Of
time to watch the proceedings
and observe the workings of
the place. Looking along up the
line of waiting men, John Thought he
had never seen sadder lot Of faces in
all his life than these men presented.
Somehow they impressed him with the
thought that they were victims awaiting
a terrible doom, and he was unable
after the lapse of few minutes to dis
associate them in his thoughts from
string Of condemned culprits who W
awaiting their turns to be led out ana
guillptined 10y Mills, the executioner.
John saw that the men were chiefly
farmers like himself, and he knew that
like him they had come there as the last
resort to raise money to buy bread for
their families, and even in his own
deep distress he pitied them. They
were a sight well calculated to touch
the heart and claim the sympathy
Af any human being. Their sun
.ronzed features, swarthy and deep
lined, told only too plainly the
st.ry of their sufferings, while
tie restless rowing of their eyes and
the uneasy moving of their limbs be-
traycd all too well the anxiety of their
minds. They were thinking of their
loved ones at home-of the wives and
eh..ren clothed in rags and pinched
with hunger, and of the wolf that
hovercd about their thresholds, and
the picture was forbidding enough to
make their hearts quake. They real-
lied how dearly they would be required
to pay for Mills accommodation,
but even this dearly-bought favor
this longed for and prayed for robbery
was by no means assured them. Mills
was particular about his security, and
even at the exorbitant rates of interest
he charged a man must put up choice
chattels to secure ever SO small an cad
vance," and these men, knowing that,
tremblcd with anxious fear lest they
should be turned away empty handed.
After the lapse of near an hour, dur
ing which time Green had studied The
faces of his companions, and drew pie
lures Of this ones and that ones cond.
ton, he made bold to break the death
like silence and engage the man next
him in conversation.
my friend he began, "our business
here is evidently the sa me. | came to
try to get some money on my farm chat
tells, and Judge that is the object OF
all these men.
81 guess it is" replied the man John
had addressed. THAT is my object, at
least"
"Do you know" asked John, "any-
thing of this man and his methods OF
doing business?"
''No, only from report"
( what does report say Of him.
"It don't say anything good, my.
friend, nor anything calculated to tickle
us poor devils who have to come to him
for favors, as he calls them. 1t says
he has no mercy ON his customers,
charges them outrageouslv for little
money, loans only for thirty or sixty
days, and If payments are not met
promptly to the day your property goes
at any sort Of sacrifice to pay the debt.
'Its shame and an outrage, said
John.
yes" replied the other, cts worse
taan that It's legalized robbery. Our
laws permit this man to come here like
vulture to feed of our misfortunes
There is nothing to restrain his aycrice.
nor law to hold him in check, and his
charges are governed by our necessities
He knows that we are compelled to bor-
row, and that in our present straits we
are glad to jump at any kind Of terms
and make any sacrifice, and he is not
slow to avail himself Of that advantage
and the terms he makes us are such as
Sh7loc!1 made with the Jew, 1t is g,
shame end an outrage indeed, my
friend. but it is useless for US to tight
,,;,,rt Il rrbarn Is no law to protect