The Arizona copper camp., 1919-04-05

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A Big, Rough Dressed, Bearded Man
Stood in the Middle OF the Road
With Gun on His Shoulder.
dressed, bearded man stood in the mid
Gle of the road with. a gun on his
shoulder
'Where We goin'?'
up to the Van Heusen place"
"Where do ye hail from?"
'Cobleskil.'
"On business for Judge WestbrookT'
eyes,"
"Writs to serve?"
eyes" 1 answered with no thought
of my imprudence
"Say, young man, by hokey nettie!
l advise you to turn right around and
go back"
"Why?"
"Cause if ye try to serve any writs
yell git into trouble
"That's interesting" I answered. 81
am not seeking quarrel, but / do
want to see how the people feel about
the payment of their rents"
"Say mister, look down into that val
ley there" the stranger began. "See
all them houses-they're the little
houses O. the poor. See how smooth
the land is? Who built them houses?
Who cleaned that land? Was it Mr..
Livingston? By hokey nettie I guess
not The men who live there built the
houses an cleaned the land. We amt
got nothin' else-not dollar! It's all
gone to the landlord. I am for the
men who made every rod O. that land
an who own not single rod OF it.
Years an years ago q king gave it to
a man who never cut one tree or laid
one stone on another. The deeds say
that we must pay rent o. so many
bushels,o' wheat year but the land is
nc good for wheat, an ain't been for
hundred years. Why, ye see, mis-
ter, good many things have happened
in three hundred years. The land was
willin' to give wheat then an good
many folks was willin' to be slaves. BY
hokey nettie! they had got used to it.
Kings an magistrates an slavery
didn't look so bad to 'em as they do
now. Our brains have changed-tha
what's the matter-same as the soil
has changed. We want to be free like
other folks in this country. America
has growed up around us but here we
are livin' back in cid Holland three
hundred years ago. 1t don't set good.
We see lots O. people that don't have
TO be slaves. They own their land an
they amt worked any harder than we
have or been any more sayin'. That's
why I say we can't pay the rents no
more an ye mustn't try to make us.
BY hokey nettie! You'll have trouble
if ye do"
The truth had flashed upon me out
/ Of the words of this simple man. Un-
til then had heard only one side of
the case. If 1 were to be the servant
Of justice, as Mr.. Wright had advised,
what was I to do? These tenants had
been Grimshawed and were being
Grimshawed out of the just fruits of
their toll by the feudal chief whose
remote ancestor had been a kings fa-
vorite. For half a moment watched
the wavering needle of my compass
and then:
eff what you say is true think you
are right" l said.
IT don't agree with you," said young
Latour. '"The PATRONS have a clear
title to this land. If the tenants don't
want to pay the rents they ought to
get out and make way for Others"
'Look here, young man, my name is
Josiah Curtis" said the stranger. "I
live in the first house on the right
hand side O. the road. You may tell
the judge that won't pay rent no
more-not as long as I live-and
won't git out, either"
"ATr. Latour, you and Purvis may go
on slowly-rn overtake you soon," I
said.
They went on and left me alone with
Curtis. He was getting excited and I
wished to allay his fears.
"Don't let him try to serve no writs
or there1l be hell to pay in this val.
ley" said Curtis.
"In that case shall not try to serve
the writs. I don't want to stir up the
neighborhood, but want to know the
facts. I shall try to see other tenants
and report what they say. 1t may lead
to q settlement"
We went on together to the top of
the hill near which we had been stand
ing. Far ahead saw cloud of duss
but no signs ef Latour and Purvia.
They must have spurred their horses
into run. The fear came to me that
Latour would try to serve the writs in
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