The Anaconda standard. [volume] (Anaconda, Mont.) 1889-1970, 1899-09-05

the most Enthusiastically Western
spot in the whole town. II was there
that King Faro reigned and around his
tables the crowd stood six deep, betting
over each others shoulders. There were
cowpunchers, broncho busters, sheep
herders, miners, adventures of all de-
scriptions in that crowd, and a few
words and a few minutes sufficed to
gather them in one place, and only a
few more words to set on foot any
thing which promised fun or excite
ment.
The result of that meeting was an
order to the heather Chop to git and
it was there the peculiar, unwritten
law of Great Falls was formulated. 1t
has abided through a dozen years. Chop
did not comprehend the temper of the
crowd which good-naturedly bade him
begone and protected him and mis-
property from violence at the same
time He was there the next morning
and apparently intended to remain IN
definitely. About noon a picturesque
procession, with Major Pat Hughes at
the head mounted on white horse and
fitted with as many emblems of his au-
thority as the boys could gather, wound
through the streets, increasing in num-
bers until it finally halted in front of
the obnoxious wash house. An express
wagon was brought and amid the best
of order the effects pf Chop were load
ed upon it and Chop himself placed on
top of the load. Then the procession
moved on. 1t crossed the Missouri riV-
er bridge and reached the Sun river
road. There it deposited Chop and MS
stuff with an impressive warning that
should he dare return to the city he ana
all of his belongings would be tied to
a raft, placed in the river and, unless
his goggle-eyed gods saved him, allowed
to float over the falls. He never came
back. .
Not until the autumn of 1889 did 1t
become necessary to enforce the law
thus inaugurated. Julius Horst opened
the Park hotel at that time with two
! or three Cinnamon presiding over the
| laundry. 1t is probable that he broug II
| the heather down from Helena without
! any knowledge of the local prejudice.
! Certain it is that they ran the laundry
| for about a week before anything hap
| pened. Then one afternoon about b
| o'clock an ugly crowd gathered on Cen
| trail avenue. Many in it had suspicious
! looking Jumps on their hips and all
moved toward the hotel. filling the Of
flee and the barroom. Had there been
| any courageous leader there can be no
| doubt that a riot of bloody results
would have taken place. Horst locked
and barred the doors into the kitchen
and dining room and stood in front of
the doors He said nothing to the
crowd and nothing was said to him,
but his quiet courage won the day
| against the mob, for after about an
| hour of lowering looks and much whis-
pering in the corners the crowd slowly
melted away. In the meantime the
| heather had been armed with cleavers
and butcher knives and had the mob
burst through the barriers, as it might
easily have done, they would have put
up the fight which rats, driven into a
| corner make for their lives. But the
| mob lacked a head and perhaps il
lacked courage; at any rate, it was de-
void of results. The Cinnamon left in
a few days concluding that they did
not care to remain in a town where
they had to fight for their lives. They
did not come back.