The Sauk Centre herald. (Sauk Centre, Stearns County, Minn.) 1886-current, 1907-09-05


mean about LOuden'-
he did not thunder at the jury nor
did he slyly fatter them. He did not
overdo the confidential, nor seem so
secure of understanding beforehand
what their verdict would be that they
felt an instructive desire to fool him.
He talked colloquially, but clearly,
without appeal to the pathetic and
without garnitures, not mentioning sun
sets, birds, oceans, homes, the glorious
old state or the happiness of liberty,
but he made everybody in the room
quite sure that Happy Fear had fred
the shot which killed Cory to save his
own life. And that. as Mr.. Bradbury
remarked to the colonel, was what
Joe was there for!'
ArielS escort was increased to four
that day. Mr.. Ladew sat beside her,
and there were times when Joe kept
his mind entirely to the work in hand
only by an effort, but he always sue
ceeded. The sight of the pale and
worshiping face of Happy Fear from
the corner of his eye was enough to
insure that. And people who could not
get near the doors, asking those who
could, whats he dom now?" were
answered by variations of the one
formula, "Oh, jest walkin' away with
ity'
Once the courtroom was disturbea
and set in an uproar which even the
ind "a 70 c,,,I,
due. Joe had been talking very rapidly
and having turned the point he was
making with perfect dexterity, the jury
listening eagerly, stopped for a mo
ment to take swallow Of water. A
voice rose over the low hum of the
crowd in delirious chuckle, why
don't somebody head him OFF," The
room instantly rocked with laughter
under cover Of which the identity OF
the sacrilegious chuckler was not dis.
covered, but the voice was the voice Of
Buckalew, who was incredibly sur
priSed to find that he had spoken aloud
The jury were out" after the case
had been given to them, seventeen
minutes and thirty seconds by the
watch Claudne held in her hand. The
little man, whose fate was now ON the
knees of the gods, looked pathetically
at the foreman and then at the face of
his lawyer and began to shake VIC
lently, but not with fright. He had
gone to the Jail on Joe's word, as a
good dog goes where his master bids,
trustfully, and yet Happy had not been
able to keep his mind from consider
ing the horrible chances. Don't wor-
~" Joe had said. Its all right III
see you through" And he had kept his
word.
The little man was cleared.
1t took Happy long time to get
through what he had to say to his at
tOrney in the anteroom, and even then,
of course, he did not manage to put it
in words, for he had broken down
with sheer gratitude. why, d-n me,
Joe," he sobbed, "if ever If ever you
well, by God, if you ever This
was the substance Of his lingual ac-
complishment under the circumstances.
But Claudine threw her arms around
poor JOe's neck and kissed him.
Many people were waiting to shake
hands with Joe and congratulate him.
The trio, taking advantage of seats
near the rail, had already done that
somewhat uprOariously) before he had
followed Happy, and so had Ariel and
Ladew, both, necessarily, rather hur-
riedly. But in the corridors he found,
when he came out Of the anteroom,
clients, acquaintances, friends - old
friends, new friends and friends he
had never seen before-everybody
beaming upon him and wringing his
hand, as if they had been sure of it all
from the start.
They gathered round him if he STOP
ped for an instant and crowded after
him admiringly when he went on
again, making his progress slow. When
he finally came out of the big doors
into the sunshine, there were as many
people In the yard as there had been
when he stood in the same place and
watched the mob rushing his clients
guards. But today their temper was
different, and as he paused a moment,
looking down on the upturned, laugh
ing faces, with hundred jocular and
congratulatory salutations shouted up
at him, somebody started a cheer, and
1t was taken up with thunderous good
will.
There followed the Interrogation Gus
tomary in such emergencies, and the
anxious inquirer was informed by four
or FIVE hundred people simultaneously
that Joe Louden was all right
"Head him orr beloved Mike Shee-
han, suddenly darling up the steps.
The shout increased, and with good
reason, for he stepped quickly back
within the doors an5 retreatine