Idaho County free press. [volume] (Grangeville, Idaho Territory) 1886-current, 1897-11-12
GIVING HIM A CHANCE.


Quite Uncalled For.
Speaking OF the tales of chivalry,''
said government official, whose du-
ties some years ago took him to points
in the far west. II heard of one in
locality | once visited which for un-
called-for chivalry rather exceeded the
limit"
''But chivalry is not one of the things
that can be exercised to excess. is it?"
interrupted the reporter.
wait till have finished my story
and then I'll leave the question to your
own ideas of it and let you settle it to
suit yourself. 1t happened in this To-
cality | mention that there was bad
man. as there is in greater or less de-
gree in all of those western localities,
or, for that matter, in every new To-
cality at whatever point of the COM
pass it may be situated. Well, this bad
man had killed nobody knew how many
people and had run the gamut of crime
generally before he struck this neigh
borhood, and the people there, most OF
Of whom We're trying to get out of the
old way of doing things, gave him a
wide berth and did as much as they
could decently to get him to move away.
But the place seemed to suit him and
he wouldn't leave. Then it wasn't long
until he began bulldozing the inhabi-
tants by threats, turning himself loose
in the streets and shooting up the town
and now and then banging somebody
through the leg or arm and narrowly
missing the same sort of dose himself
The people didn't want to spoil theil
reputation by lynching him, for they
hadn't had a lynching for couple OF
years and didn't want to have any more
Neither did any of them want to shoot
hin, down in cold blood, because they
proposed to be law-abiding.
"Nor did they want to assassinatt
him, for that was cowardly and sneak
ing, and they would give a wolf half {
chance for his life. Still it was neces
!, sarv for the good of the commnnit.
TIT the bad man be put out of it, ant
,, finally five patriotic citizens fixed upoi
plan, 1t was carried out one da,
after the bad man had done more devil
try than usual and one or two prom
: inent citizens were laid up for repairs
and the bad man still held possession
- of saloon and was treating all conner
> TO the owners liquors. The five patr
otic citizens, armed to the teeth. Wake
y quietly into the saloon and tackled tn
J, bad man right there. They refused hi
u proffered treat, and he got ugly and bs
. gan to swear.
. ".Now,' said the spokesman, firml.
:. you let up on that. Weare here to Sc
% tie with YOU: we ought to shoot yo
g down in your tracks, but we are going
y give YOU a show; you've got two gul
and we've got ten; you may get ono
l. lis. or two, perhaps, but III the end o,
:. combination will win, and the eGmlaul
= ity will get much-needed rest; II ma
y come little hard on you, but you ca
never say we didn't give you ia
chance; get ready; one, two thre
fret -,
t. and the firing commenced. II
bad man was game, but. as had been
3 nouneed, the combination was U
TX much for him, and when the smo
a cleared away he was dead and two
E. his five assailants were in the same II
e. Two good men were gone, but the d
'g man was with them, and the commui
"a w felt better. Now" concluded the
"a fetal. "what have you to say about
VA excess of chivalry?
Id "IIe should have been lynched,' Sc
ne the reporter, with promptness.-Was
~ ington Star.