The Columbia herald. [volume] (Columbia, Tenn.) 18??-1935, 1908-03-06


lOoting our country under color of law
and figures on cutting all the mines
before we can throw him or. That's
his game He'll work them as hard
and as long as he can. and heaven
only knows what Will become of tho
money. He must have big men behind
him In order TO tx a United States
Judge this way Maybe he has the
Frisco courts corrupted, too"
IF he has. I'm goin' to kill him, =
said Dextry. i've worked like =
dog all my life, and now that I've
struck pay | don't aim to lose it. y
Bill Wheaton can't win out accordin
10 law, I'm goin' to proceed accordin'
10 Justice"
During the past two days the part
ners had haunted the courtroom wherc
their lawyer, together with the counse
for the Scandinavians, had argued and
pleaded, trying every possible profee
sAonal and unprofessional artifice il
search of relief from the arbitrary ri.
ings of the court, while hourly thes
had become more strongly suspicion
Of some sinister plot, some hidden.
powerful understanding back Of the
fudge and the entire mechanism Of jus
dee. They had fought with the fur
Of men who battle for life and has
grown to hate the lines of Shllman's
VacilIating face, the buster of the dis
trict attorney and the Sinking conf
dence Of the clerks, for 1t seemed thai
they all worked mechanically, like
toys. at the dictates of Alec McNa-
mara. At last when they had ceased
beaten and exhausted, they were too
confused with technical phrases to
grasp anything except the fact that
relief was denied them, that their
claims were to be worked by the re
ceiver and, as a GROWING defeat, they
learned that the judge would move his
court to St MichaeTs and hear no
cases until he returned, month later
Meanwhile, Mcnamara hired every
Idle man he could lay hand upon and
ripped the placers open with double
shifts. Every day stream OF yellow
dust poured into the bank and was
locked in his vaults, while those mine
owners who attempted to witness the
cleanups were elected from their
claims. The politician had worked
with incredible swiftness and system,
and fortnight after landing he had
made good his boast to Strive and
was in charge Of every good claim in
the district, the owners were ousted
their appeals argued and denied and
the court gone for thirty days, leav-
ing him a clear field for his operations
He felt contempt for most of his vic
TINS, who were slow wftted Swedes,
graspfng neither the purport nor the
magnitude Of his operation, and to
those litigants who were discerning
enough to see it's enormity he trusted
to his organization to thwart them.
The two partners had come to feel
that they were beating against a wall
and had also come squarely to face the
proposition that they were without |
funds wherewith to continue their bat
tie. 1t was maddening for them to
think Of the daily robbery that they |
suffered, for the Midas turned out |
many ounces Of gold at every shift, |
and more maddenlng to realize the re-
ceiver's shrewdness in crippling them |
by his theft of the gold in their safe.
That had been his GROWING stroke.
Eve must get money quick" said
Glenister do you think we can Dor
rowT
Borrow shifted Dextry. Folks
don't lend money In Alaska
They relapsed into moody silence.
81 met Teller this mornin' that's
workn' on the Midas" the old man
HE came in town fer q
pair Of gum boots, an he says they've
run into awful rich Rround-so rich
mat mey nave TO clean up every morn
m when the night shift goes OF cause
he rifles clog with gold"
Think of itp' Glenister growled. "If
We had even a part Of one of those
we could send Wheaton out
side"
In the midst of his bitterness
bought struck him. He made as
hough to speak, then closed his mouth.
But his partners eyes We're on him,
illed with a suppressed but growing
Ire. Dextry lowered his voice eau
iously:
.-Thars'll be $4,000 In them sluices
DAight ut midnight"
Glenister stared back, while his pulse
bounded at something that lay in the
,ther's words.
at belongs to u.s. the ycung man
aid. There wouldn't b anything
wrong abont Il, would thereT
Dextry sneered "wronsi Right!
Them . fne an soundin' titles In
ness like this. What do they mean?
tell you at midnight tonight Alec
Mcnamara will have $4,000 Of our
money
God What would happen II they
aught usr whispered tho younger,
oilowing out his thought They'd
lsver let MS get on the claim alive. He
'ouldn't fnd a better excuse 30 shoot
n down and get rid of us. n We came
a...l o., 1