The Black Hills union. [volume] (Rapid City, Pennington County, Dakota [S.D.]) 1889-1904, 1903-02-06
Ole Double Clash of Duty
~%%%%%%%~~%%%%~~
BY Louie Honis.


This is your chance, Will, and IL you
ferret out the crime and fasten the
laws punishment upon him your flu
lure is assured" Old Judge Jackson
rubbed his hands IN anticipation of the
glory his son-in-law would reap from
che conviction Of a set Of men to whom
banks vaults were Of no value until
the dark Of night came and locks were
Set.
II shall do my best" replied the dis
trict attorney. Passing from the IL
brary to- the drawing room he took
leave OF his wife, whom he tenderly en-
braced, and then went Out into the
night air, the chill of which stimulated
him into a fast walk to his office. For
the first time in his life he was face to
face with a problem his ordinarily ac-
tive mind could not solve, and the more
thought he expended on the case the
deeper he was in the mire.
When he arrived at his office he
found Z cheerful fire suffusing q
warmth throughout the entire suite Of
rooms, and his assistant buried in the
papers Of the case. Not only was the
district attorney convinced that the
right men were caught, but every scrap
of information from the different police
departments of the country corroborat-
ed his belief that a famous gar Of OPP
orators were at last put behind the
bars.
Mr.. Denham," called out the assist
ant, "everything is in shape and you
can present the evidence at once a
conviction is sure to follow. I think 1
shall quit for the night"
The door slammed and Denham was
left alone. What am l to do?" he said
In a semi-tone. 81 can't tell Grace that
1t is her brother who has headed this
notorious gang of bank robbers. She
thinks him dead; so does the judge. At
ter his disappearance ten years ago
WorG came that he died in a drunken
brawl in New Orleans. If l acquaint
the judge with the facts he will go to
pieces, but at the same time tell me
there is but one. thing to do, and that
Is my duty"
A faint knocking at the outer door
arrested the trend Of Denham's
thoughts. The knocking grew percept-
IDLY louder with each rap and contin-
ued, and when Denham finally opened
the outer portal it sounded to his tense
nerves as if a pile driver were working
close to his ears.
II beg your pardon said the visitor,
as the door was swung open for his
entrance, but is the district attorney
IMP" =
IT am he" said Denham. Come
In"
The visitor and Denham were locked
In secret conversation for more than
an hour-an hour that brought to light
much Of Frank Jackson's criminal life,
from New York to California and back
again. Formulating the situation on
cold lines, the district attorney reached
the conclusion that the arch criminal
must confess his crime and stand pun
ishment, his identity undiscovered, and
that he himself must compound his
own honor by bribing this diabolic wit
ness to maintain the secrecy of Frank
Jackson's origin.
There was no fear from a discovery
by recognition. Frank Jackson had
left New York when quite a boy, and
his face, scared and lined as it was,
precluded the possibility of his identity
being disclosed by those who knew
him In his schoolboy days.
Denham bribed the witness, first with
a thousand dollars, then with a like
amount, using all the ready money at
his call. The trial was set for a close
date, n all there was to do was to
wait for the time when the prisoner
Should be brought before the tribunal
Of justice with his fellow accomplices.
Judge Jackson, as the stabs Of fortune
sometimes manifest themselves, was
confined to his room with a severe at
tack of govt, and Grace, a necessary
adjunct to him when he was in pain,
remained at his side. Denham thanked
God there was such a thing in the
world as govt, and blessed this oppor-
tune visitation upon the old judge.
h first day of the trial, filled with
SO much agony to Denham, passed