The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1902-08-23
CHAPTER Nv.
WHEN JUSTICE is BLIND.

county on the first Monday I'm the month.
and the trials began the next day. This
one was a particularly interesting term on
account Of the Rutherford murder trial,
and the attendance was greater than for
years.
The quarrel had eliminated at RaccOon
Church. and its termination had begun ex-
actly as a hundred fights had started but
IL had ended differently from the other
ninety-nine.
There was a protraeted meeting which
had begun at Watch Night and continued
through the month of January, with it's
end indefinite. The congregations were
made up OF the elderly and middle-aged
church members. and. across a sharp d.
viding line, the young folks for whom the
protracted meeting replaced the theater of
their city cousins as a place Of amuse-
ment The girls went in a few groups, and
the boys arrived singly and by twOs and
threes on horseback. The girls by turns
giggled and looked down demurely at hymn
books; and the boys did their best TO fur
nish something for the girls to giggle
about, unless some genius invented plan
the carrying out of which made a sensation
and practically demoralized the meeting
After the benediction the boys arranged
themselves in two rows leading from the
door far out toward the road, and through
this lane the girls, and everybody else,
walked The girls always looked straight
at the ground thirty PAGES to the front, as
a well-drilled soldier tries 10 do, and
walked rapidly, as If running a gauntlet;
but that was only the characteristic CO.
quetry OF womankind. for each knew very
well that she would be captured by a gall
liant long before she reached the end of the
line next the road, where the younger boys
stood The girls left the door in groups.
each of which formed a phalanx. with arms
interlocked. and now one never sees a mass
play on the gridiron without thinking Of
those girls.
Tom Rutherford had not stopped to talk
long with the young fellows lOafing out
side. and had gone into the church soon
after the preacher began his sermon. He
sat down not far from the door by the
middle aisle and kept quiet His intention
was not to disturb the meeting for he had
a more important play to make; things
had come to the pass that it a neces-
sity for him to take the particular girl in
the case home that night in spite of Sam
Bronson. And that took all of his atten-
ton.
The night before he had lost the inning,
and he was furious. As the girls had come
out of the church one boy after another
had stepped from the opened ranks. and.
walking close by the side Of his particular
girl. had said in her ear, May 1 see you
homer The formula never varied for
twenty years and two thousand occasions.
The particular girl had acquiesced by drop
ping out OF the feminine football phalanx
and slipping her arm through that of the
young fellow whose attentions she was en-
couraging
Young Rutherford was close to the door,
having unanswered to get a position sew
eraI PAGES the good OF Sam Bronson,
who was sc0wling in the middle Of the line
on the other side. When the girl for whom
they were rivals came out of the door she
was in the middle of an interlocked group
of three. and walked more rapidly than
usual. with her eyes straight ahead. Tom
Rutherford hurried after her and said over
her right shoulder. MAY 1 see you home p
The girl hardly seemed to hear except for
little contemptuously coquettish
toss OF the head. and kept on
under guard of her two friends.
Almost instantly she was opposite Sam
Bronson, who stepped in front of her, COM
PEELED her to stop for an instant, said the
same words in a low but clear tone, and the
next moment was walking with her toward
the road. while her two guards closed in
TO the center. locked arms again, and with
in the next ten feet were themselves borne
apart by the whirlpool of society repre-
scented by two rather young boys.
Tom Rutherford grew crimson. stepped
back of the line on his side. muttered a
few words, and then went TO his horse
which was tied to the hitching rack a little
down the road once mounted. ne gave
a series OF whoops, that were followed by
whOops from the others who were not
walking in the road with their girls-one' 6
girl might be his sweetheart. his friend
or only the feminine creature he saw most
of. Tom pulled his horse around and
started the party OF young fellows in the
direction taken by Sam Bronson and the
girl who was at the bottom Of all the
trouble. The pair were overtaken within
two hundred yards. and the boys on horses
tore past at a numbering run. yelling like
savages and forcing the couple to walk
close to the side of the road. Tom kept up
the shouting for half mile-this was the
recognized code expression of defiance
carelessness. injured pride and readiness
for the next round in the social combat
He turned of toward home at the first
cross-road and by the time his horse was
stabbed he had planned the campaign for
the next night. which was now at hand
Tom sat so quietly in church that the
members OF the quarterly conference fell
real hopes that he might be reached
The sermon was on resistance to evil. and
the preacher was using his artillery against
the forces OF sin in the audience. He was
a man of medium size. with long whiskers
and a strong voice rising and falling in
unison with his gyrating arms Ton
Rutherford was listening a little for wan
OF something else to do. when young mar
with peculiar chin came in and slid into
the seat just behind him. AS soon as III,
preacher had faced the other side of TN,
church this newcomer leaned forward anc
said in RutherfOrd's ear:
sam Bronson's outside, and says he'll
lick ye If ye take MOllie home SAYS he'll
take her away from We il We git her fust'
Tom did not reply, and the other fellow
soon walked out again. Three people tool
special notice OF the incident-the preacher
who thought Tom was really too earnestl,
considering his eternal salvation to maxi
the usual disturbance talking to a chum
Mollie. the girl. whose intuition was no
far wrong; and one OF Bronson's friend