The Lakeland evening telegram. (Lakeland, Fla.) 1911-1922, 1914-09-08
EQUALITY OF Mercy
BY HAZEL w. NELSON.
(Copyr4ght.)

(Copyr4ght)
1t was holland very still-in the
court room. From without came dis
tant rumble of life. faint changing Of
trolley-car bells, or the roll of heavy
trucks over the cobbles Of the thor
oughfare blocks away; but this was
quiet side street. In the intense heat
Of mid-afternoon in July the rows Of
wooden houses, pretentious enough in
the early part Of the century, were now
little used and falling to decay; the
overgrown yards, the wide street with
its few old trees, stretched sunny and
deserted. Now and then footstep
might be heard far up the street, pass,
and then grow fainter In the distance.
But for the most part people pre-
ferred to doze behind closed blinds till
the cool of evening brought some re-
lief.
Inside the court room there was also
q stiffness, not OF desolation, but OF
high tension. The lawyer for the de-
tense was pleading. In the beginning
of his speech he had stopped often to
wipe his perspiring brow with q large
red-bordered handkerchief, or to pour
himself a glass of ice-water from the
pitcher on the table. But now he had
become SO interested that he talked
on and on, regardless Of the heat.
The jury, one by one, had tucked
their handkerchiefs inside their wilt.
ed collars. then had stripped OF their
coats, and now sat. a study in blue
red, plaid shirtslee~es, all inwardly
cursing the fate that called them to
jury duty in such intolerahle weather
A cool, fair-minded jury, indeed!
But there was one person in the
court room that cared neither for the
heavy silence nor the oppressive heat
The defendant was young man, I'M
der thirty; the wilderness Of his clean
cut face was intensified by dark lines
Of dissipation under his eyes. He held
his head high. scorning to feel the die
grace Of his position or to ask any
mercy. Even the crankiset member o!
the jury felt vaguely that he was moi
Just like the other timorous. or sui
len, wretches who had come before
them during that term Of court.
He himself could hardly account 70,
the strange exhiarafion. the wonder
full hope. that possessed him. Ever
the witnesses against him. who in turr
had come to the stand and testified
as one man concerning his evident
guilt. smiled at him as they stepped
down. That bad affair with the inn
keeper at Paterson had been painted
pretty dark: but, although thing
looked rather black for him from tina
point Of view. his high hopes were
not daunted for q moment. His law
yer was 80 encouraging, and the cast
seemed SO plainly merely one Of hart
luck on his part.
His eye lighted In contempt on tn
faded little clerk bending over hi
writing; how old and weary and dried
up and humdrum he looked. And h,
himself was SO overlooking with life
with the splendid Joy Of living ant
with the thoughts Of that new and
higher life now being unfolded to him
The old life was dead and gone.
"Jove!" he told himself. there arr
so many big things a fellow can do
such satisfaction working day ant
night toward some one end"
To be sure he hadn't worked yer.
much yet, but he had always meant Il
always dreamed Of great things b.
would do for the world some time. *
far his life had been something of {
failure, it's true; these last four years
anyway, he had gone a pretty fas
gait. But had he had half a chance?
| His face grew dark as one memor!
after another crowded upon him; on'
Of mere lad eagerly pleading for
thoughtless prank, but the stern frig
idity of the old gentleman did not soft
on; Of young man, with face grown
harder and more sullen, suspended
from college without q fair hearin,
because he would not peach" on hi
chum-and a thousand others. Tn,
lines of bitterness around his moutl
deepened; then came his lawyer
words
How we'll we remember our owl
young days. when perhaps we, toe
sowed pretty good sized crop o
wild oats. Gentlemen of the jury
what Is this so-called crime but boy
ish trick, carried, perhaps, too far
And always"
The defendants face cleared, and b,
smiled. 1t seemed as If the harum
scarum lad, that young daredevil, wer,
another person entirely; he himsel
was 20 changed now. OF course, pee
pie would make allowances for tn
wildness Of q young man; they wer
always ready to forgive the scrapes o
mischievous boys, especially the good
looking ones.
And then like fash came a pictur
Of day long ago, when he was a bo
off in the country; picture of the old
weatherbeaten court house at Pleasan
Mountain, overgrown with woodbine
and great weeping willow almost Il