The Idaho Republican. [volume] (Blackfoot, Idaho) 1904-1932, 1915-08-06

ton at the Southern Illinois academy
at Enfield. The next year he went &
Kansas, where he had sister. There
part of the time he taught in the pub
lie schools, and part of the time he
attended the state university at Law
renee. He did chores and janitor
work around the university to pay
his expenses. William Allen White
of Kansas was one of his classmates.
When Borah had finished his
course at the Lawrence university he
was admitted to the bar and started
for the West. His objective point
was Seattle, then the Mecca of so
many fortune builders; but when he
got to Salt Lake City he counted his
cash and found he didn't have enough
to reach Seattle. He compared his
purse with the railroad folder and
found it would take him to Boise,
Idaho. When he got there he had
$15.75, with which he opened law
office. The world has no terrors for
a man like that. Such pluck will
make victor Of cripple in an
Olympic game.
On the train from Salt Lake City
to Boise, young Borah met one of
those professional gamblers, now an
extinct race of men, whose calling
was legalized in many western states
by legislative enactment. Of them
little good has been said or written,
but they were men of heart if their
crimes We're licensed by law. Was
1t not a minister of the Gospel who,
being spurned in his need by all the
Pharisees, borrowed $40 of gambler
and received good will and gamb-
ler's blessing with it?
Without knowing his cloth, Borah
unfolded to this follower of the black
art his ambitions and his limitations.
A seeker of fortune in a strange
country, he was glad to unlimber to
anyone. II live at Nampa" GO miles
from Boise), said the gambler land
! will get you some business We
will see that you don't starve." OIL
friendly spirit of the west!
"Of course | passed it out of my
mind" said Borah in telling the story
years after. II thought it was the
last time | should ever see him. But
a short slime after | located in Boise
OCT telephone message from him.
1t said: Come over to Nampa at
once-I have case for you"
The telegraph operator at Nampa
had killed Chinaman. The China
nan was the cook at the hosiery,
md the telegraph operator had been
N the habit of mouching in the kit
chen and helping himself to the
choicest bits of cookery. A feuJ en-
sued. One night the Chinaman start
I'd after the operator with butcher
1nife and chased him through the
swinging doors; then he went back
% his skillet securing. Not so the
operator. He looked up a revolver,
'eturned to the kitchen, and shot the
Jhinaman in the back.
1t wasn't very good case for a
leolawyer. But some justices of the
'eace are ex-officio friends of all
nalefactors. Once in Montana Gull
'rit was charged with stealing a fir
lin of butter. The justice of the
'eace held that butter was grease,
md that Greece was foreign
ountry; therefore the court had no
and the culprit was dis s
harged.
When the prosecuting attorney
cad the complaint against the tele- 81
raph operator the magistrate raised s
lis eyes in utter establishment. Read ,
hat again." he said The statute |
made no specific reference to the kill {
ng of Chinaman, and he wanted to '
e sure that his ears didn't deceive =,
i'm. The prosecutor read it again.
DO | understand" said the now
rate justice, speaking in high nasal t
alsetto, and spacing his words, do {
understand that you charge this r
ian with murder in the first degree a
Or killings Chinaman?" t
Eyes, your honor; have no other i
lternative. He, was human being, 7
nd I don't know of any element of C
elf-defense that would reduce it to I
or murder in the sec a
nd degree"
But" roared the Judge, "you E
ant charge man with anything but !;
lanslaughter for killing China d
IAN" Borah, seeing that he had a C
lend at court, was discreetly silent. F
he justice finally decided to with s
old his judgment until he had heard t
lie evidence. b
To Borah's amazement, he dis e
1arged the prisoner. Then, on c
orah's advice, the telegraph opera o