The Coolidge examiner., 1931-10-23

Idle WITH lIlc pdPcl yet. nave we d.
"Out on time every Thursday for
five years." Sabra said, almost de-
family.
Suddenly, sharp and clear, Yam
cey's voice calling her from the of
flee porch, from the front office,
from the printshop doorway, ur-
gent, perturbed. "Sabra! Sabra
Sabra ~
He strobe into the back shop.
She faced him. Instinctively she
knew. whats this about Dixie
LeeT' His news trained eye leaped
to the form. He read the. set-up
head, upside down, eXpertly. Tell
me, when does this case come up?''
"NOw."
who's defending her?
Nobody in town would touch
the case. They say she got a law
yer from Denver. He didn't show
up. He knew better than to take
her money"
"Prosecuting?"
pat Leary."
Without a word he turned. She
caught him at the door, gripped
his arm. Where are you gOing?"
Court"
What for? What for?" But she
knew. She actually interposed her
body between him and the street
door then, as though physically to
prevent him from going. Her face
was white. Her eyes stared, enOr-
nous.
You can't take the case of that
woman"
"Why not?"
Because you can't. Because I've
been fighting her. Because the
Wigwam has come out against all
that she stands for"
why, Sabra, honey, where are
you thinking of sending herr"
Away. Away from Usage"
But whereT'
Il don't know. | don't care.
Things have changed since you
went away. Went away and left
me-"
"Nothing's changed. It's all the
same. DiXie's been stoned in the
market place for two thousand
years and more. Driving her out
is not going TO do it. You've got to
drive the devil out Of"
"Yancey Cravat, are you preach
ing to me? You who left your
wife and children to starve, for all
you cared And now you come
back and you take this creatures
part against every respectable
woman in 0sage-against met"
II know it. / can't help it. Sa-
bra"
I'll tell you what / think, cried
Sabra-the Sabra Cravat who had
been evolved in the past five years.
Il think you're crazy! They've all
saed so. And now | know they are
right"
Maybe So"
IF you care TO think of disgrac-
ing me by defending her. And your
children. I've fought her for
months in the paper. A miserable
creature like that! Your own wife
"a laughing stockton IA"
THE territory's rotten. But, b,
Cd, every citizens still got the
legal right to fight for existencel"
He put her gently aside.
She went mad. She became a
wildcat. She tried to hold him.
She beat herself against him. 1t
was like an infuriated sparrow
hurting itself upon a mastodon.
IF you dare! Why did you come
back? | hate you. What's she to
you? | say you won't. I'd rather
see you dead. I'd kill you first.
That scum! That filth! That har-
lot !"
Her dignity was gone. He lifted
her, scratching, kicking, clawing,
set her gently down in the chair
in front of her desk. The screen
slammed. His quick, light step
across the porch, down the stairs.
Crumpled, tear-stained, wild as she
was, and with her hat on one side
she reached automatically for her
pencil, pad of copy paper, and
wrote new head vice Again
Triumphs Over Justice" Then,
with what composure she could
summon, she sped down the dusty
road to where the combination Jail
and cOurthouse-a crude wooden
building-sat broiling in the sun.
Because Of the notoriety of the
defendant the inadequate little
courtroom would have been crowd
ed enough in any case. But the
news of Yancey's abrupt departure
from the Sunny Southwest saloon
and the reason for it-had spread
from house to house through the
little town with the rapidity of a
forest fire leaping from tree to
tree. Mad Yancey Cravat's latest
freak. Men left their offices, their
stores; women their cooking, their
cleaning. The jury so hastily as
sembled, Pat Leary in a solemn
suit of black, Dixie Lee with her
girls, even Judge Sipes himself
seemed in momentary danger of be-
ing trampled by the milling mob.
1t was a travesty of a courtroom.
The jury was hard-faced lot
for the most part. Plucked from
the plains or the hills; halting of
speech, slow of mind, quick on the
trigger. slow, rhythmic motion
of the jaw was evidence that a gen.
erous preliminary bite of plug
served as a precaution to soothe
the nerves and steady the judg-
ment.
This legal farce had already be-
rl1n hafnra Yancau madn his cnna