The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1897-12-26
CAL Wagner AND CAB BEAL.
An INCIDENT IN WHICH THESE MEN
FIGURED YEARS AGO.
"aSner's Famous Violation OF the
civil Rights Law. and How He
Escaped From the Penaity-An
Adventurous Midnight Ride.

Cal Wagner and Cab Beal have met
again. Everybody In the North has heard
81 wagner, there are but few In the South
Mno 90 not know something about Beal.
ne was he first man 20 onfu-l a CoEfed-
crate Tag ca the nigh seas This was back
IN .ae days when John Browns body was
hFing thing II Virginia and Real was u
COY IN Alabama OF course. his flag was
not adopted by the Confederaey in after.
years. when the hgAt!Eg began. Still.
there wasn't much difference between the
TWO seal s1t tired Of the argument IN
the senate before secession. while a bare
ioot Dos. catching catfish from the mud
oE streams in the southern part of mis-
state lie didn't want any more talk Ea
wanted results. and, as he said TO a friend
IN TINS city last week, ne got them. Ha
served IN the army. and fought bravely.
"hsn ne surrendered he commenced hgh;-
ing engineers and rireIen, and he has
oe+h az IL nearly ever since. But his
weapons With these have not been shot
guns cannon and the like: JUS. written or
ueTs ana verbal commands. Fer more
thaa quarter of a century he was mas
ter mechanic of the Louisville 4 Nssa-
vile railroad In Montgomery. He looks
as youag now as most boys do when they
| arrive at that age when they can vote.
he stilI lives at Montgomery. near the
mouse occupied by jefferson Davis when
ana when Montgomery was the southern
capital
LIE meeting between Wagner and Beal
the otner day was one of warmth. They
shooh hands many times, squeezed each
other little. then would stand off few
| ieet and size each other up, smile, shake
again, ana then arm in arm they went TO
cafe. not TO leave it until late in the
night Twenty-one years ago the two
| rode on an engine over the dark noun
tains OF Alabama, when the night was
| dark and the road crooked and the
bridges deemed unsafe. The throttle was
wide open, the steam gauge was at the
danger point, and the haven of safety was
| Tar away. They scarcely spoke TO each
| other for more than two hundred miles.
| There Were nc stops except for water. The
| nre from the furnace lit up the dark for
| ests, and the shrill locomotive whistle
woke up the natives. Beal though master
mechanic OF the road. knew but little
| about the track or the country through
| which it penetrated. But he was reck-
| less and didn't care much. He was look
ing for the safety Of his only passenger.
| Tie Federal authorities were after him.
ana TO have been carsht meant harm. The
| engine made but two stops between Mont
| gomery ard the Tennessee line. Then the
| two got down from the cab. smiled salts
| factorily, went to bar and touched the
cups. Beal hasn't drunk drop of any,
| thing stronger than cider since that night
| And that was April 12. 1876.
Wagner and his MINISTRIES were in Mont
| gomery. They had paraded the streets,
| and wnen the ticket Office opened in the
| early afternoon for the sale of seats for
the evening performance there We're hum
| dreds of negroes in line. pushing and SHOW
| ing each other for the best chairs in the
opera house. The local manager was afraid
| to deny them. The civil rights bill was
| then in force and 1t wasn't his desire to
| do anything that would be in violation
| of the law. He reluctantly handed tickets
| out to every one that had the price. When
the curtain rose In the evening all the
| parquet and orchestra seats were occu-
| pied by colored people. men and women.
| Wagner stepped 10 the footlights and told
l the negroes that their places were In the
| gallery and that they must go there. else
| the play would not be produced. They sat
| still. One of the leaders arose and ad-
| vised his African friends TO remain where
| they were. They needed no invitation,
| however to do that. Five minutes elapsed.
| during which time Wagner stood alone on
| the stage Then he went behind the cur
| tain. In a minute more he was back
| again with two big horse pistols. one in
| each hand.
| II have asked you negroes to get to the
| upper floor. You seem to prefer TO stay
| where ycu are. Now will give you just
| two minutes 20 leave the house" and with
| that he cooked his pistols and leveled them
| at the audience Then he commenced 20
| count He said that he would count two
| hundred. BY the time he had got TO Atty
| there wasn't eoiored man or woman in
the house. The play then went on.
The following day Wagner was arrest
| ed He gave bail for small amount. No
sooner had he emerged from the commits
| sioner's Office than some OF the incensed
| negroes began making threats. A cheap
lawyer got among them and advised that
each go and swear out warrants. Wagner
| was appraised OF this but before other
| warrants for his arrest could be served,
| Beai had him on an engine and was haul
| ing him northward as fast as steam
! would take them. Beai had negro firc-
| man who knew Wagner by sight, and Of
ten looked at him while the engine was
| flying through space as IL he would like
| 20 throw him overheard But he didn't.
! for Wagner never released his hold on a
six-shoo,er all during the trip Meantime
| kilograms had been seat to every STA
| ton along the lire to stop Beai and Wag-
| ner. but the operators never delivered the
| messages They were safe when they got
| to Tennessee ysgner's company was
| left at Montgomery, but was wen taken
care OF by citizens there, prominent among
whom was Col. Hilary A. Herbert. ex-
| secretary OF the navy, Wagner never re-
! turned 10 Alabama until after the Sum
| ner civil rights bill had been declared un
| constitutional His first appearance at
| Montgomery after this was the occasion
| for n public rscenticn. at which the elite
| % the city wee present--Chicago Times
| Herald.