The semi-weekly messenger. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1897-1908, 1906-06-01

knignt, with cleaning mail and fash
Ing sworu: but wherever God has
placed him Hugh Mccall did his
best"
Speaking OF the Cruatans. abou,
whom | wrote TO the Messenger some
tine ago. n OF them. ! few years
back, came to FayerzeviRe, roaming
u OF the wild and into the pale
OF civilization by the regular tram
way from the Pee Dee country. He
found the enicements OF this supe-
Nor metropolitan civilization TOO
much for his balance, and they cs.s-
him his life. as he fell. full Of bread
and wine" stricken by viosent death
IN the dust OF Market Square.
He "tanked UP" on dtspensary liqlor
or on some blind tiger" abomination.
anul they had put the DEVILS flush on
his tagny cheek. the fire OF hell in
his deep-sunk eye. and through his
SQUEEZING gait came the 1.-THE swing
Of the tiger, about TO spring. He
walked into the Fayetteville .lTug
store corner of Market Square and
Gillespie street, and demanded coda
water 'spliced with whiskey." Mr.. G.
W. Stancil, then manager, informed
him that he could not be served With
liquor, and at this the Croatan be-
came SO insolent and dangerous hat
a boy was hurriedly sent TO SUMMON
Chef of Police Flowers.
The chief, who is a powerful man,
made short work Of ejecting the Of
fenSlve customer from the store, by
the heavy hand of the law, and then
started TO return TO the market house.
A uiclk, sudden CRY from a bystander:
Look out, chief" caused him to face
about, and see the Croatan creeping
after him as stealthily as a beast of
the jungle, a long, gleming knife in
his appraised right hand. Finding this
terrible antagonist deaf to every stern
command to halt, Capt Flowers drew
his revolyer-and then a TRANCE
thing happened, which the police off,
Ger has never been able TO explain
to this day. When or how his weap-
on had been tempered with will per-
hapS never be known. but he fired
shot after shot full at the breast OF
this savage, running amuck;" there
q a flash of powder, but every hall
fell harmlessly only a foot or two
from the muZzle of the pistol. Then
Officer Briton, seeing that it was a
matter of the death of the chief of
police or Of the Indian, took deliberate
aim and fired, the Croatan falling and
dying almost instantly.
A jury Of inquest was held in the
city hall an hour later, when the po-
hceman was exOnerated over the body
of his victim. whose dark. stern face
~~1-1 ,~ - Ill., ~+ 49, -
of death, which had sOOthed away
the passion from the cruel mouth and
the ~unseeing eyes-this man Who
died in his boots because he was
| raging with a lust to kill!
Some time ago | came across a
stout farm cart. drawn by a lazy,
well-fed pillow horse, drawn UP along
side the pavement on Person street,
n in it was seated a cOmely wOman
about As years old, whom | have
known personally for several years,
and whose plain but hearty hospital
ity and that of her husband | lave
frequently enjoyed at their homestead
IA or Is miles from town
Greetings passed between us, and
then, in answer to my question, she
replied: mo; not a thing to sell
| now; we did bring in some chickens
and eggs, but they went off like hot
cakes. l am waiting now for Bill to
come on and go home"
And where is Bill?" | asked.
over in the court room,' she re-
piled, with a smile on her wholesome
face, Embarrassing and there fore
ing to keep the price of cotton up"
Then she wen ON. with more serious
ness in her manner But if all this
| pens, ink and paper and the 'resolu-
tionizing' Of committees result in high
cotton, I'm willing to val patiently
until Bill does his part of the work.
You town people know in a gen.
eral way what r the good effects Of
II or II cents for the crop, but. you
cannot realize what high cotton means
in a country home. I have bought
more goods in Fayetteville in the last
twelve notwithstanding, furniture
for the house, and kitchenware. than
| was able to buy in all the ten years
before. With cotton al 6. Z Or s cents
we didn't have money enough To buy
a new rope for the well. OF put a new
plank in the broken door steps. Our
daughter Sallie had to wait two years
to get married. before Bill and I could
get her enough clothes to make a de-
cent showing when she stood up be-
fore the parson-"
And is cotton going TO keep up at
a high price,"
BILL says that he can't see why it
should not; that If the farmers vii.
stick together it will not go any low
ct, and may go a good deal higher"
And if it should go away down,
can vol not make money out Of some
thing else?"
NO; its corn and cotton with US;
eggs and chickens, and as many hogs
| as the cholera will allow us to raise.
You see. We live too far from TO wn
and the railroad to make trucking on