The Iola register. [volume] (Iola, Allen County, Kansas) 1875-1902, 1900-06-22


pened. One of the crowd stepped out
TO the buggy and asked If Ronald wa.
under arrest, but he received only a
non-committal grin and shrug as
Ratcliff turned his horse towards the
Jail, a modern red brick structure adj
joining the courthouse in the center
of the town. When they arrived the
jailer, a short. thickset man, with a
bald spot on his head, was playing
checkers in the yard with the ordinary
of the county. The jailer answered to
his name reluctantly, without looking
up from the board.
YOU'D better git up from thar"
called out Ratcliff, jocularly. THE
taxpayers say they are tired o. payin'
you fellers wages to draw flies Like
sleepin' niggers in the courthouse
square"
The jailer crowned a king and got
up from the grass with a lingering
backward glance at the hand of his
opponent. whats wanted?" he
asked as he drew near the buggy.
"Mr. Henderson, you remember Mr..
Fanshaw, of Honeycut Destrict," re-
minded Ratcliff. Hes the Teller that
helped me out last summer with that
lynchin' crowd over our way. We'll,
he's settled sgd Harris hash to-day
an will have to register at yore sne-
bang till Monday, reckon. want you
10 make i'm comfortable, JEFF; he's a
friend o. mine"
"I'll do the best can" promised the
TALLER; "but you know all the cells are
alike"
They followed him into the iail and
sp the stone steps to n heavy iron door
at the head of the stairs. The room
was too large to be called a cell. II
was light, having four windows, which
were heavily barred. and bed that
was faultlessly clean. As Ratcliff and
the jailer we're leaving, the sheriff asked
Ronald If he ool'I DO anything for
him.
Ronald told b % lie could think of
nothing; indeed. % could think Of moth
ing at the NONE aut sgd Hart, eyes
Sgd Harris blooD.
You'll have to have a lawyer" sug-
gested Ratclif.
"Then send Mr. Reddng to me-" said
the prisoner.
When they had left him, Ronald
threw himself on the bed and stared
up at the ceiling. Harris corpse had
way of coming before him with new
foice each time that ii made its APP
pearance. II approached him now in
solitude oftener and with more tena-
cious reality than ever. The afternoon
died slowly. 1t began to grow colder
as the sun went down, and the light
against the western sky turned from
yellow to gray. Once he fancied he
saw the body on the floor by his bed,
in the shadow, just as it was lying when
he had last beheld it. Almost with
prayer for protection he turned his
face away and stifed scream, and
yet the feeling Of actual guilt had not
come 10 him. He tried to draw Evelyn
into his thoughts, but there was cold
comfort in the memory that he had
bl;ghted her life as well as his own.
Could he have done so then, he would
have killed her affection for him that
she might have the peace of soul that
was denied him. He heard steps on the
stairs and a key ratified in the lock
of little iron door in the wall, and
through it came a woman's voice:
Here's yore supper, Mr.. Fanshaw."
1t was the iailer's wife, and he arose
and took the plate OF food and cup
of hot coffee from her hands.
"Mr, Ratcliff stopped at the door just
now" she said, in cold, methodical
tone, IAN he said tell you Mr.. Reddin'
was out in the country, but he'd left
word at his house fur i'm TO come an
see you as soon as he got back"
When she had gone, Ronald put the
plate on the bed (there was no table
In the room) and washed his hands and
face in the tin basin, but somehow the
cold water added to the general chill
that was on MN ana he quickly drieu
himself on a towel. The sight of the
food gave him a touch of nausea he
started to drink the coffee, but remem-
bered that coffee at night made him
restless, and he wanted to sleep. lie
went to the window which commanded
the widest view of the buildings round
the prison. A negro on bony horse
was lighting the gas along the avenue,
which stretched out till, on distant
hillside, it lost itself in the clouds. Two
churches were within sight, and they
were being lighted. The choirs were
going TO meet to practice for the serv-
ice on the morrow. The nearest bell
was rurg. The night fell like threat
Of coming terror
He had another vision of the dead
man. This time sgd lay covered with
uJNm@EVWmt