The Marion daily mirror. (Marion, Ohio) 1892-1912, 1908-04-15
THE MAN WITH
THE RED BEARD.

torlginai.l

dropped the kOlle WIFI plolOl JAIL
covering the hand with blood
In moment the street was full OF
grcasers. They seemed TO pop up from
every corner. They surrounded the
man with the red beard, Knocked him
down and had the life nearly kicked
out Of him when the sheriff came along
and took him TO Jail. There he was in
the hands of grsasers, who put him in
irons and tortured him in every possi-
BILE way for three weeks, then, getting
tired of him, turned him loose.
The red bearded man wandered
northward-legs arms and head in
bandages-till he met a circus. To the
manager he said:
Coin southp .,T
"Reckon."
"Stop at G."
Eyes. G.'s on the date book"
"Want a handp
1--WE need one or two more men to
put up and take down the tents"
"Tm with you"
The red bearded man worked WELL
Notwithstanding his bruises. The cir
Gus men called him Redbeard. They
found it necessary to stand together
while in that region, and the shout
"Hey. Rubev" was frequently given.
When some one of their number was
attacked by greasers he would give the
| cry, and every circus man would at
once lay about him, breaking as many
bones of male citizens as possible.
There were an afternoon and an even
! ing performance at G.. The evening
show was crowded with greasers,
about every person in the town being
on hand. During the day Redbeard
! had collected lot of stakes and poles
of various kinds and piled them out
side of the main tent He was not
observed saying much Of anything TO
his comrades, nor did they say much
to each other or any one else. There
was that dogged look on their faces
that portended a storm. Among the
audience was the greaser who had
tried TO knife the red bearded man
and several men who had tortured him
while he was in Jail. He spotted them.
The show was over, and the audience
was leaving the tent when Redbeard,
his beard looking redder than ever in
the big light that illuminated 1t and
his steely eye darting fire. eaped upon
the pile of improvised weapons he had
collected and filling his lungs with
air, gave one long wild shout:
"Hey, Ruber
Every man connected with the cir
Gus made n dash for the pile. There
were tentmen in ordinary apparel.
there were ostlers in high boots, there
were negro minstrels in burnt cork
and there were riders in spangled
tights. Every man of them seized his
cuGgel, swung It in the air and brought
It down on the nearest greaSer. The
womens and children scurried away
like hens and chickens to coop through
storm Of wind and hail and light.
ming Some of the greasers had their
knives and pistols with them, but they
had no opportunity TO get together to
make a united fight. Wherever they
. attempted to strike they We're beaten
, down by n shower of oalSen stakes.
Redbeard seemed to be saving him
| self for special objects. The first of
his old enemies he espied lodging
about in the melee was the sheriff who
! had arrested him. Redbcard made n
, dive for him, swung his club high in
, the air and brought II down on the
mans skull He sank like a steer in a
, slaughter house. Then came the turn
I Of the greascr who had attempted the
, knitting. Redbeard found him on the
, ground where he had just fallen
r trlpped In the melee, and jumped upon
: him with a pair of boots alone heavy
| enough TO stun him. In another mo
t ment the greaser's head was n jelly
{ Lastly. Redbeard attended to his Jail
crs. One he held on Il flaming torcl
: used TO light peanut stand. Another
he poked with an iron pointed stake
His thirst for revenge was unsatisfet
D till he had settled his account will
every one of them.
3 When the afnray was over there were
= n score of bodies on the ground, all o
them grcasers, either dead or badly
Q wounded. There were others who hat
either been carried away or had beer
able to drag themselves Off the field
Y The remainder had fed ignominiously
n The manager realizing that the affai
/" was an unusual one, acted accordingly
4 He did not fear n rally that night, bu
he dared not 20 farther south to re
" turn through G.. To return by an!
other route was impracticable, so h,
concluded to go directly northward.
Before dawn everything was packed
in the wagons and the show turnet
away from the scene of Redbeard'i
n vengeance. The men of the compan!
o formed a rear guard under the direc
o tion of Redbcard, who as n fightn,
man had won their entire confidence
r They were followed for short dis
e lance by a few greasers, but so few
g that, realizing the futllity Of interfer
Ing with the retreat they soon gave
h up and returned to G..
Il AS to Redbeard, rs soon as there wa
a no longer use for his military servic
e he left the company to go no one kney
d where. Since the fight circuses hay
d kept away from that region unles
a well fixed for defense. Nothing so in
e censes the greaser of these parts n