The daily Gate City. [volume] (Keokuk, Iowa) 1855-1916, 1911-06-19

Initiated me enough? You charge me
with takin' a bribe. You Try rae ta-
hind my back, in the Grand .;:usy room,
and you find nae guilty ws1acGt Sdvin'
me q chance" (The crowd did not
know Tank had been before the Grand
Jury. True, they would know in an
hour. But Tank wanted that crowd.
now And then you come on. here
and arrest me In the presence OF uy
fellow-citizens, the men grew mp from
boy with, right here on the Court
House steps where been talkin' to my
friends and neighbors; the men have
helped. and the men at have helped
me. But that amt enough. You send
a man to arrest me who Is the worst
enemy got In the whole organization
this man Big" Campbell. Every
body knows how 1t is between him and
me, and you send him to arrest me.
You didn't need to arrest me at all.
amt goin' to run away. You know
that. got friends here. I got prop
erty interests here. / love this old
town. I'm Twin here and I'm goin' to
die here. They charge me with takin'
q bride. But that amt enough. They
indict me. And then they arrest me
here-not privately in my own Office.
They could found me easy enough.
God knows / never hid from Twin
han or woman. But that wouldn't do
'em. That don't satisfy the personal
spite of these outs that wants to get
In. So they not only want to get me
out, but they want to blacken my name
and disgrace me and disgrace my fam
ily" (Tank's family was, so far as
his audience knew, negligible guam
tity, but the appeal was good with this
unthinking mass.)
And now want to tell you my last
word" and here his voice rose to q
hoarse scream. don't know what
you all think of this" He was jan
Cling the handouts and shaking his
clenched fists menacingly. IL don't
know what you think, but l think it's,
Q damned outrage"
A sullen roar OF approval burst from
half the crowd.
mo mans liberty" he continued.
chasin' things down" Gle nodded to
Dunne.) 1t was only yesterday this
man was in my Office takin' advice
from me, and givin me some, and to-
day he's spyin' on me, and arrestin'
me, and handcufiin' me, and want to
tell him" Tank seemed working at
his handouts. His face grew red with
the exertion. His huge shoulders were
bent over. His face was half hidden
from the crowd, and his voice sounded
smothered, as he grunted out in great,
sobbing syllables. the measure OF his
final burst Of wrath" want to tell
him-here before you that though
he's trapped me fanother mighty
tug)-that he can't cage mel"
AS he roared out the words Tanks
mighty shoulders were Strengthened,
his flaming face was lifted high; the
chain that bound the handouts to-
gether had parted. He was shaking
his clenched hands above his head.
whirling them wildly, with the jan
Cling bits of broken chain an eloquent
testimonial to the mans almost super
human strength.
"They don't make 'em strong enough
to hold me-" he was shrieking. "I'll
break EN-! I'll break 'em! And
with leap at Big" Campbell" III
break the man that tries to break me-
| He seized Campbell with one hand
| at his throat and the other at the back
| Of his neck. In the paroxysm OF his
rage he lifted him clear and shook him
| like mannikin, then hurled him clear
| off the steps over the heads into the
crowd, which had become seething
mass of cheering, yelling men that
milled round and round like restless
band of cattle.
As big" Campbell fell, Tank stood
! breathing quickly, looking over the
crowd. For few seconds Of dramatic
intensity, he was still, and the crowd
instantly hushed to hear what he
would say. His voice sounded like the
low mutterings OF distant thunder
4 after the storm had passed.
"Mr. Dunno" he said, has ap
pealed to the law. l, too. invoke tbs
law. / stand here a prisoner OF thu
law. / appeal to that law to do MI
Justice, to set me free, to give me bacl
to my friends and to my good name
stand by the law and by the courts
and by the officers of the courts. | al
ways have Go to your homes. What
ever you do, don't knock your Owl
town. Leave that to them that like
to. / don't, and won't. Remem
Der" his voice was solemn, almost re
fined, in the stiffness" the law ha
made me prisoner. The law must sc
me free"
1t was the last, supreme play o
demagoguery A full half OF the crow
cheered heartily, but there were ais
jeers and Kisses.
The throng was swirling. shifting
disintegrating mass. with half-doze
men trying to address 1t from variou
points of vantage and with hundre
arguing knots of men sown here an
J there throughout it. Soon it crumb,e
at the edges, then broke in two. and r.
J divided into smaller gatherings an
these into groups that jostled ont
street cars, drifted into nearby saloon
or moved chattering down the street
to buy for penny the story Of tn
, drama which had just been enacted b.
! fore their eyes.
Soon the Court House yard we
empty
: BY and by Tank came out from jude
Murphy's chambers. No broken chair
were on his wrists. His bail had bee
arranged. He was free, now, free
take up the fight for liberty. TIL
morning he was lord of the jungl
! This afternoon he was beast at ba
Richard Dunno, Reformer, had e
, trapped Daniel Tank, Boss. The er
of the boss was here.