The San Francisco call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1895-1913, 1906-12-23
CHAPTER XVIII.
In the Heat OF the Day.


In the Heat of the Day.
T was a morning or the warmest
I week of mid-July. and Canaan lay
l inert and helpless beneath broiiing
sun. The few people who moved
about the streets went languidly, keep
ing close 20 the wall on the shady side;
the women in thin white fabrics: the
men. often coatless. carrying palm-Ieaf
fans, and replacing collars with hand
kerchiefs In the courthouse yard the
maple leaves. gray with blown dust and
grown to great breadth. dEooped heay-
lily, depressing the long, motionless
branches with their weight. so low that
the four or five shabby idlers, upon the
benches beneath. Row and then fiicked
them sleepiiy with Whitfield sprigs.
The dooEs and windows OF the stores
stood open. displaying limp wares OF
trade, but few tokens Of life. the clerks
hanging over dim counters as far as
possible from the glare in front. Cos
siping fra gmentartly, usually about the
Cory murder, and. anon. upon sub
1ect suggested by the sight OF an oc-
caslonal pedestrian passing perspirins
by with scrooged eyeIids and purpIing
skin. From street and sidewalk. trans
parent hot waves swan up and danced
themselves into nothing: while from
the river bank. a half mile away, came
a sound hotter than even the locust's
midsummer rasp--the drone or PLAN
ing mill. A chance boy, lying prone In
the grass OF the courthouse yard, was
annoyed by the relentless chant and
lifted his head to mock IL: Awr-eer-
awr-eerl Shut up, can't your? The eff
fort was exhausting, he relapsed and
suffered with increasing malice, but in
silence.
Abruptly there was violent out
break on the National House corner.
as when a quiet farmhouse is startled
by some ones inadvertently bringing
down all the tin from shelf In the
pantry The loafers on the benches
turned hopefully. saw what IL was, then
closed their eyes, and slumped back
into their former positions. The out
break subsidized as suddenly as II had
arisen: Colonel Flitcroft pulled Mr.. Arp
down into his chair again, and II was
all over.
Greater heat than that OF these
blazing days could not have kept one
of the sages from attending the con-
clave now For the battle was on In
Canaan, and here,s under the Ma
tinnal House corner, under the
shadow of the west wall. II waxed even
keener Perhaps we may find full
Justification for calling what was hap
pening in battle IN SO for as we re-
strict the figure to apply to this one
spot; elsewhere, in the Canaan or
the Tocsin. the conflict was too one
sided. The Tocsin had indeed tried
the case OF Happy Fear In advance.
had convicted and condemned. and
every day grew more bitter. Nor was
the urgent vigor OF its attack without
effect Sleepy as Main street seemed
In the heat. the town was incensed
and reused to a teLsity of feeling 1t
ha
when. on occasion. IL had set out to
hang half a dozen knights of the
Golden Circle" Joe had been Missed
on the street many times since the
ininIcaf clerk had whistled at him.
Probably demonstrations of that sort
would have continued had he remained
in Canaan: but for almost month
he had been absent and his Office
closed. its threshold gray with dust
There were people who believed that
he had run away again, this time never
10 return; among those who held 70
this opinion being Mrs. Louden and her
sister, Joe's stepaunt- Upon only one
point was everybody agreed-that
twelve men could not be found In the
county who could be so far persuaded
and befuddied by Louden that they
wohld dare TO allow Happy Fear 20
escape. The women OF Canaan, In
censed by the terrible circumstances
man shot down In the act OF begging
his enemy's observation-disclosures as
loudly as the men; there was only the
difference that the latter Moderated
for the hanging of Happy; their good
ladies used the word punishment"
And yet while the place rang with
condemnation OF the little man In the
fail and his attorney. there were voices.
here and there. uplifted on the other
side People existed. IL astonishingly
appeared. who liked Happy Fear
These were for the greater part OBJ
scure and even darkling In their lives
yet quite demonstrably human beings
able to smile. suffer. leap. run and to
entertain fances; even to have. ac-
cording TO their degree. a certain rudi-
mentary sense OF right and wrong IN
spite OF which they strongly favored
the prisoners acquittal. Precisely on
that account. 1t was argued. an ac-
quittal would outrage Canaan and lay
II open TO untold danger such people
needed a lesson.
The TocsinF interviewed the towns
great ones. printing their opinions OF
the Nervousness OF the crime and the
character of the defendants law
yer. The Hon. P. j. Par
rott, who so ably represented this
county in the Legislature some four
teen years ago. could scarcely restrain
himself when approached by a
reporter az TO his sentiments anent