The Raymer enterprise., 1920-02-05

McAdoo, down ter Saint Louee. who's
Just COM down from the lead mines
toP him thet Joe Kirby got all this
yere property In q game O kyards on
the boat. an thet II want no square
game either. didn't git It all straight.
reckon, but accordin' ter the deal
handed me thar wus two dead men
mixed up In the affair-Beaucalre, an
a young army officer. Seems ter me
his name was Knox"
u didn't hear that"
swell. enyhow. that's the way Bill
told 1t. Beaucaire he naturally fell
dead-heart. ers somethln'-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 a passel O. thieves ter take
these nIggers down ter Saint Louee.
What do yer make ov II, Jake?"
"Wal," said the other slowly. his
mouth evidently loaded with tobacco.
II amt never asked no questions since
l wus made sheriff. I'm doin' whut
the court says. Kirby's got the law
on his side-no doubt bout that-but
l reckon as how he knows It wus a
durn mean trick, and 30 he's sorter
skeered as ter how them fellers Twin
down ter the Landln' 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 fght-seeT
"Sure." disgustedly. II reckon !
know all that; I 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 Loueef"
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 a year or two. an BY that time
nobody'll care a whoop how he got 1t.
But he's got ter GIT rid o them mig
gers right away"
swell. who the h-s goin' ter pre-
venti They're his'n. amt theyi Thar
aInt no Black Abolitionists round
yere, l reckon"
Seems sorter queer ter me-" admit
ted the sheriff. "but / did get q little
outer that feller Carver comm up.
Carver Is SOM sorter partner with
Klrby-a capper. / reckon. Tain't the
nlggers thet are maxim the trouble
leastways not the black 'uns. No
body's likely ter row over them. It
seems that BeaucaIre kept a Quadroon
housekeeper, q slave. O. course. an q
while back she Civ birth ter Z child,
the father o. the infant beln' Judge
BeaucaIre's son. Then the son skipped
out, an amt never bin heard frum
slnce-dead most likely. fer all this
WIS twenty years ago. Course the
child. which wus q girl, Is as white as
l am-maybe more 80. aln't never
set eyes on her. but Carver he says
she's good lookin'. Enyhow, the
ledge he brought her up like his own
daughter. sent her ter school In Saint
Louee, an nobody round yere even
suspected she wus niger. I reckon
she didn't know It herself"
"Yer mean the girls a slavef"
"Yer bet! That's the law, ain't itf'
"And Kirby knew about thlsl"
II reckon he did. 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 It's
her he wants ter git away frum yere
on the dead Quiet. afore Haines er
any O. them others down at the Landln'
kin catch on"
"They couldn't do nuthin'; IL thar
aln't 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' eny risk? A smart lawyer
like Halnes could make devil ov lot
o trouble just the same, II he took a
notion. That's Kirby's ldee-ter cum
up yere In a boat. unbeknownst to eny-
body, tie up down thar at Saunders,
an run the whole bunch O. nlggers OF
in the night. Then It's done an over
with afore the Landln' even wakes up.
! reckon the jedge told him that wus
the best way"
There was a moment Of silence, the
first man evidently turning the situa-
ton over In his mind. The sheriff bent
across the rail-. and spat into the dark.
ness below.
The joke Of It al is," he continued
with short laugh. q be 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 git
away
"Is that the one back In the houser'
Il reckon 90; leastways she tol'
Kirky her name was Rene Beaucaire,
an that's how It reads In the papers.
But thar amt no trace ov her mother,
nsr ov the 1edge's daughter. They