The Dolores star., 1920-04-02
CHAPTER xII-Continued.


o risk at all. Yer don't even hav' ter
hreuk the law. fer as | know. It's
Just got fer ter be done on the dead
quiet an no question asked. I'll tell
ser all yer need ter know. Tain't such
Tong story. This yere Joe Kirby he's
Q frien' o. mine: I've know'd him a
long time. an he's in Il b OF q fix.
Here's how 1t all happened: Thar wus
az Oi' planter Twin down in MisSoury
at a place called Beaucaire's Landin.
His name wus Beaucaire. an he he'd a
sen named Bert, gOod-fer-nuthing
cusS. reckon. Wal. this Bert runned
away long while ago. an never cum
back but he left baby behind him
a guri haby-which n quadrOon slave
give birth to. The quadroOns name
wus Della. an the kid wus called
Repe. Git them names in yer head.
or Beaucaire he knew the gurl wus
his sons baby. so he brought her up
long with his own daughter, who wus
naned Eloise. They wuS both bout
tiEr same age. an nobody seemed ter
know tibet Rene wus niger. Fer
sum reason oil Beaucaire never set
her free. ner the Quadroon neither.
Wat. Kirby he heard tell o. all this
sunwhar down the river Yer see he
an Bert Beaucaire run tergether fer
O while. till iiert got killed in a row
In New Orleans. | reckon he tol' him
part O. the story. an the rest he picked
up in Saint Louee. Enyh0w. 1t looked
like d good thing ter Kirby, who
amt passin' up many bets. or Beau
caire wus rich. an considerable ov a
sport: people who he'd seed the gurls
sed they wuS both ov 'em beauties an
EiuiSs-the white one-hed an indie
pendent fortune left her through her
mother. So Kirby. he an a feIler
named Carver-a tiu-horn-planned ii
out betwiNt EN- ter copper Of Beau
caire's coin. an pick up them gurIS
along with it,
But how cud they do thetf'
Luck mostly. reckon. an kIrby's
brains. The plan wus te- git Beau
caire inter poker game. ease him
long a bit. an then break him. land
niggers. an all They didn't figure
this wud be hard. fer he ulIS dead
game gambler, an played fer big
stakes. Ii was tuck though. what Civ
'em their chance. Bcaucaire he'd sum
mtnin' claims up on the Fevre, an hcf
ter go up thar. It's long IoncsOm
trip. | reckon, an so the other two
they went long. They got the ol'
chap goin' and comm. an finally cod
died him long tili ne put up his big
bet on sure hand. When he found
cut whuf he'd happened the OF gent got
:" excited he flung a fit. an died
leaving Kirby ownn' nil the prop
erty?'
Every picaylne, niggers an all. 1t
wus sum sweep. an he he'd signed
bills o. sale. Want nobody cud git II
away frum him. Wal Joe he didn't
want fer ter make no fuss, ner scare
the gurl none. so he went down ter
Saint Louee an made proof O. owner
ship afore a tedge he knowd Then
with the papers all straight he. an
the sheriff. with Tim yere. the deputy.
run up the river at night ter serve 'em
quietly on the daughter-the white
one, Eioise. Kirby he didn't aim ter
be seen at all. but just went long so
thar wudn't be no mistake. Yer see
them papers had ter be served afore
they cud take away the niggers. Kir-
by wus gOn' ter sell them down river,
an not bother bout the land fer
awhile. till after he'd he'd chance ter
shine up ter this yere gurl ElOise. He'd
never seen her-but. enyhOw, he got
thet notion in his he'd"
''She wus the daughter; the white
one2'
SURE: he he'd the other by law.
Wal. when they all got thar, nobod $.
WIS home. 'cept one O. the gurls. who
claimed fer ter be Rene-the one
who wus a niger. thet Kirby owned
Nobody know'd which WIS which, an
so they he'd ter take her word for it.
They cudn't do nuthin' legal till they
found the other one. an they wus
sittin' round waitin' fer her ter turn
up when the Niger gurI they wus
watchin' got away"
How'd she do thet?''
Don't noboddy seem ter know
Damn funny story. Way they tell It,
sumbotiy must'r knocked Kirby down
an run off with her. Whoever did it.
stole the boat in which Kirby an the
sheriff cum up the river. an just natur,
ally skipped out-the sheriff's niger
an all. 1t wus a slick job"
"Of course they chased them?"
"Best they cud, not KNOWN which
way they'd gone. They reckoned the
Who'll bunch must'r got away tergether,
40 he sheriff he started fer Saint
Louee. an the others got onto a troop
boat what happened ter cum long and
turted north. Long bout the mouth
ov the Illinoy they caught up with a
DiGger-stealer named Shrunk. They
he'd q fight in an about his cabin. an
sum KILN. Two ov the womin got
away. but Kirby an Tim got hold o.
this gurl what he'd claimed ter be
Rene. an a mulatto cook who wus
a-WOFkin fer Shrunk 7 rool,on ,,,o ~ -