Sioux County pioneer., 1919-11-20


3E3 3E32{sS{sl{3l3{s1,
sumed. "some feller by the name ov
McAdo0, down ter Saint Louee, who's
just COM down from the lead mines,
tol him thet Joe Kirby got all this
yere property In game o. kyards on
the boat, an thet 1t want no square
game either. didn't git 1t all straight,
I reckon, but accordin' ter the deal
handed me thar, wus two dead men
mixed up In the affair-Beaucaire, an
young army officer. Seems ter me
his name was Knox"
II didn't hear that"
''Well. enyhow, that's the way Bill
told It. Beaucaire he naturally fell
dead-heart, er .somethin'-an' the
other feller, this yere army man, he
went out on deck fer ter see Kirby, an
he never cum back. McAdoo sorter
reckoned as how likely he was slugged,
an throwed overheard. An then, on
top all that, we're sent up yere in the
night like passel o. thieves ter take
these niggers down ter Saint Louee.
What do yer make ov 1t, Jake7'
"Wal," said the other slowly, his
mouth evidently loaded with tobacco.
II amt never asked no questions since
wus made sheriff. I'm doin' whut
the court says. Kirby's got the law
on his side-no doubt bout that-but
reckon as how he knows 1t wus q
durn mean trick, and so he's sorter
skeered as ter how them fellers livin'
down ter the Landin' might act. Thet's
why we tied up ter the shore below
town, in the mouth o. thet crick, an
then he'd ter hoof it up yere in the
dark. OF course we got the law with
us. but we wanter pull this job OF an
not stir up no fight-see7"
''Sure," disgustedly. II reckon
know all that; heerd the jedge tell
yer how we must do the job. But
why's Kirby in such sweat ter git all
these niggers down ter Saint Loyee2'
"Ter sell 'em, an git the cash. Onct
they're outer the way there won't be
no row. He'll let the land yere lie
idle fer year or, two. an by that time
nobody'll care whoop how he got 1t.
But he's got ter git rid O them mig
gers right away"
"Well. who the his goin' ter pre-
vent? They're his'n, amt they? Thar
amt no Black Abolitionists round
yere, reckon"
\ Seems sorter queer ter me-" admit
ted the sheriff, "but did get little
outer that feller Carver comm up.
Carver is SOM -sorter partner. with
Kirby-a capper, reckon. 'Tain't the
nfggers thet are maxim the trouble
leastways not the black 'uns. No
body's likely ter row over them. 1t
seems that Beaucaire kept a quadroon
housekeeper, slave. o. course, an a
while back she Civ birth ter child,
the father o. the infant bein' Judge
Beaucaire's son. Then the son skipped
out, an amt never bin heard frum
since-dead most likely, fer all this
wus twenty years ago.. Course the
child. which wus girl, is as white as
am-fnaybe more SO. I amt never
set eyes on her, but Carver he says
she's good lookin'. Enyhow, the
jedge he brought her up like his own
daughter. sent her ter school in Saint
Louee, an nobody round yere even
suspected she wus a niger. I reckon
she didn't know 1t herself"
"Yer mean the girls a ,slave?"
"Yer bet! That's the law, amt it?"
"And Kirby knew, about this2"
II reckon he did. I sorter Judge,
Tim. frum whut Carver sed, that he
wus more anxious fer ter git thet girl
than all the rest O. the stuff; an IFS
her he wants ter git away frum yerc
on the dead quiet, afore Haines er
any o. them others down at the Landin'
kin catch on.''
'sThey couldn't do nuthin'; If thar
amt no papers, then she's his, ac-
cordin' ter law. I've seen that tried
afore now.''
"Of course; but what's the use O.
runnin' epy risk7 A smart lawyer
like Haines could make a devil ov q lot
o. trouble just the same, IL he took a
notion. That's Kirby's idee-ter cum
up yere In boat. unbeknownst to eny-
body, tie up down thar at Saunders,
an run the whole bunch o. niggers of
in the night. Then it's done an over
with afore the Landin' even wakes up.
reckon the jedge told him that wus
the best way"
There was moment Of silence, the
first man evidently turning the sltua-
ton over In his mind. The sheriff bent
across the rail. and spat into the dark
ness below.
'The joke Of 1t all is,'' he continued
with a short laugh, as he Strengthened
up. this didn't exactly work out
'cordin' ter schedule. When we
dropped in yere we rounded up the
niggers all right an we got the girl
whar there's no chance fer her ter Rit
away"
"Is that the one back in the house7"
II reckon so; leastways she tol'