The Laurens advertiser. (Laurens, S.C.) 1885-1973, 1903-03-04

The league was new In It's spirit and In
its methods. The impression made up
on tho camp by Billy Breen's death
was very remarkable, and I have new
er been quite able to account for 1t.
The mood of the community at the
time was peculiarly susceptible. Billy
was II Of the oldest of the old TIM
ers. His decline and fall had been q
long process, and his struggle for life
and manhood was striking enough to
arrest the attention and awaken the
sympathy Of the whole camp. We an
s~tinctively side with a man In his
struggle for freedom, for we feel that
freedom is native to him anu 20 us.
The sudden collapse of the struggle
stirred the men with a deep pity for
the beaten man and a deep contempt
for those who had trlcked him to his
doom; but, though the pity and the
contempt remained, the gloom was re.
lieyed and the sense Of defeat removed
from the mems minds by the trans
forming glory Of Billy's last hour. Mr..
Craig, reading of the tragedy of Billy's
death, TRANSPORTED defeat into victory,
and this was gradually accepted by the
men as the true reading, though to
them 1t was full Of mystery. But they
could all understand and appreciate at
full value the spirit that breathed
through the words of the dying man:
Don't be ard on 'em. They didn't
mean no arm" And this was the new
spirit of the league.
1t was this spirit that surprised Sla-
vim into sudden tears at the graves
side. He had come braced for curses
INT vengeance, for all knew it was he
who had doctorcd Billy's lemonade,
and instead of vengeance the message
from the dead that echoed through the
voice of the living was n Of pity and
forgiveness.
But the days of the leagues mega
tive, defensive warfare were over. The
fight was to the death, and now the
war was to be carried into the ene-
my's country. The league men pro.
posed n thoroughly equipped and well
conducted coffee room, reading room
and hall to parallel the enemy's lines
of operation and defeat them with
their w weapons upon their own
ground. The main outlines Of the
scheme We're clearly defined and were
easily seen, but the perfecting Of the
details called for all Craig's tact and
good sense. When, for instance, Yer
non Winton, who had charge Of the
entertainment department, cdme for
Craig's opinion as to q minstrel troupe
and private theatricals, Craig was
prompt with his answer:
Anything clean goes"
IA niger show?" asked Winton.
depends upon the niggers." replied
Craig, with n gravely comic look,
shrewdly adding, "Ask Mrs. Mavor."
And SO the League Minstrel and Dra-
matte company became an established
fact and proved, MS Craig afterward
told me, u great means Of grace to the
camp.
Shaw had charge of the social de-
partment, whose special care It was to
see that the men were made welcome
to the cozy, cheerful reading room,
where they might chat, smoke, read,
write or play games, according to
fancy.
But Craig felt that the success br
failure Of the scheme would largely
depend upon the character of the resi-
dent manager, who, while caring for
reading room and hall, would control
and operate the important department
represented by the coffee room.
"At this point the whole business
may come to grief" he said to Mrs.
Mavor, without whose counsel nothing
was done.
"Why come to griefT" she asked
brightly.
Because If we don't get the right
man that's what will happen" he re.
piled In a tone that spoke Of anxious
worry.
"But we shall get the right man, new
er fear" Her serene courage never
fa!tered. Gle will come to us.n
Craig turned and gazed at her In
frank admiration and said:
"If I only had your couragep'
"Couragep' she answered quickly.
ut Is not for you to say that" And at
his answering look the red came into
her cheek and the depths in her ayes
glowed, and I marveled and wondered,
looking at Craig's cool face, whether
his blood were running evenly through
his yeins But his voice was Quiet-a
shade too quiet, I thought-as he grave
ly replied:
II would often be a coward but for
the shame of It."
And 80 the league waited for the man
to come who was to be resident mana
ger and make the new enterprise q
success. And come he did, but the
manner OF his coming was 30 e4traor-
binary that 1 have believed in the doc
trine of a special providence eyer since,
for, as Craig said, 'If he had come
straight from heaven, I could not have
been more surprised"
While the league was thus waiting,
Its interest conferred upon Slavin, chief
~ a he represented more than
any other the forces of the enemy, and,
though Billy Breen stood between him
and the vengeance Of the angry men
who would have made short work Of
him n his saloon, nothing could save
him from himself, and after the fu-
neral Slayin went to his bar and drank
whisky as he had never drunk before.
But the more he drank the fiercer and
gloomier he became, and when the msti
drinking with him chaffed him he
swore deeply and with such threats
that they left him alone.
1t did not help Slayin either to have
Nixon stride in through the crowd
drinking at his bar and give him words
Of warming.
1T is not your fault, Slavin," he said
4 a slow, cool voice, that you and