The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1900-04-21
Incarceration of Aunt Charette,

I vi NIt0i 2,
They had raided Aunt Charette. In an
Swer to repeated complaints from the
respectable element in Fort Kent the Of
f1cers had come up there and had swoop-
ed on the LIQUOR dealers And chief
among the liquor dealers was Aunt Cha
rette. In fact, she was the local whole
sale. She was thrifty, was Aunt Cha
rette- sac had credit. She could roll il
$500 worth of ''morson," or white rum,
at one time
And she always knew whether to give
or refuse credit. All sorts of queer &C.
counts had she-scattered all over the
COUNTRYSIDE
Uncle Charette was a silent partner In
the firm. He used to tell the priest that
| he had tried and tried TO induce Aunt
Charette to give up the business of sell
Ing liquor Still, Uncle Charette had dis
] covered years before that he would not
have to go into the woods winters any
| more; that there was always spare
change for him to buy his tobacco; that
he was never asked to earn any money
| for the groceries. Twice a year Aunt
Charette purchased new wool trousers
| OF Canadian gray. AS for his long-tailed
! coat, Uncle Charette seemed unable TO
wear that out for the reason that most
of the time he went about in his shirt
sleeves.
When the officers came riding up to
the door on big sled drawn by two
horses and ran in without knocking,
Aunt Charette chung to the arms of her
chair.
lie bon Dieul wat ees eet?" she
cried.
Aunt Charette, you've been complain
ed against" said the local deputy sheriff.
land we've got to take what stuff you've
got on the premises. I suppose it's all
In the lean-to, as usual"
When the discovery is made IN prohi-
bition Maine that there is liquor selling
in community the local deputy is usual
ly we'll acquainted with the locat ton OF
all the liquor deposits.
W.T. screamed Aunt Charette, but
in sorrow, not in anger wat! TAX
ma leetle stock? Why, m'sieu. yo' can't
do nottains lax dat. I geet ma pairmeet
from dat man-w'at yo' call heem, de
comfy attornee. Here-here-here it be-"
and with trembling hand she poked IN
der the deputy's nose the receipt showing
that she had paid o fine at the last term
of court. She insisted that it was
permit to sell liquor. Aunt Charette be-
ieved that it was.
Il hain't got nothing to do with that"
said the deputy. I've got a search war
rant, and I'm ordered to search and
seize"
He ducked past and started for the
Iean-to. And Aunt Charette, her keys
jangling, her hands appraised. her tongue
flying like a shuttle, followed on his
heels. Uncle Charette sat wholly silent
in corner. The only sign Of emotion
he displayed was to blink every thirty
seconds. So absolutely impassive was
he that 1. unseen, took his photograph
in a twenty-seconds' exposure, and there
wasn't smooch on the negative.
Aunt Charette protested against open
ing the door The deputy, with one
blow of his boot, shattered the lock.
Then he and his men rolled out the bar
rels and the kegs and the demi1ohns.
Aunt Charette, as they laid their hands
on each article, screamed: "Ah, mon
Dieu! Non! Noni You've taken enough!
Leeve dat wan!-leeve dat want
But the officers were memorable. They
rolled everything out They had to send
for another sled. There were loads for
two heavy teams. The last man to go
out was the deputy with a Jug the last
he could find. He had dug out the re-
hottest corner.
Aunt Charette stood at the door until
the teams disappeared in the dusk far
down the street.
A rough inventory at the storehouse
that evening indicated that Aunt Charette
had 500 worth of liquor in stock
The officers left word that Aunt Cha
rette must be at the office of the local
trial justice the next forenoon at 8.
At s O'Clock Uncle Charette eased her
down out of the old-fashioned chaise on
to the platform before the Justices Of
flee. 1t was a slow and tedious job, for
Aunt Charette's avoirdupois is disposed
in most unwieldy fashion She was ar
rayed in her best black dress. Uncle
being a state occasion
had on his lOng-tailed black coat. The
faces of both were perfectly expression
less. Evi.artly Aunt Charette had ex-
hausted all her emotion the afternoon be-
fore. *
They sat side by side in the Justices
office, mute, never moving, never even
turning their heads while all the other
cases of seizure were disposed Of.
1t had been a wholesale raid through
the village. All the men and women who
had been raided owed money to Aunt
Charette. AL gave bonds to appear at
the higher court, All went away
"Well, Mrs. Charette," said the justice,
you are charged with single sale, with
and keeping a tipping shop.
Have you any lawyer here or any defense
to put in?"
To +ba c,,rnrIeA ~ oil Jynoia Nbora++o