Beadle's New York Dime Library No. 389 — page 19: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

— Colonel Deubic-sdge. . a en ————— eee wey oe —s = — a, _————— This amounted to an appeal for help, and the crowd was quick to take the hint. The yells instantly rose to a roar, and a rush was made for the door of the hotel. ‘**Confound it!” exclaimed the sheriff. ‘‘ The scheme worked the wrong way.” CHAPTER XXVI. A SHEEP GUARDS A WOLF. out of this town, end that we will find a way to get even with you.” ‘* We will try to do our duty—that’s our enly lookout,” answered Burgess, as he watched the lately belligerent committee go down-stairs and out of his sight. When the disconsolate committee reached the street they were ere ted with shouts of rage and yells of derision, and the uproar began again. Jim SARTINE was hurried back to the Ran- The crowd vociferously wanted to know | gers’ room, and Sheriff Beesley ran down-stairs, where was Jim Sartine, and why he had not ,; while Joe Burgess and his comrades prepared to been brought down to them, and the committee- | meet the expected attack from below. men found it a very difficult matter in the up- No attack was made. roar to explain the position of affairs so as to As this was the opinion upon which Sandstone» had evidently settled, it was useless to make any further attempts to controvert it just then, and~ the Rangers could only wait, hoping fer a. favorable change. The mob waited, too, set in its purpose to pre- - vent the removal of Jim Sartine; but the ex- - citement gradually wore off, and it became a. cood-natured mob, inclined to be peaceable un- less provoked, Walter Brandis thought that he then saw a good chance to give effect to an idca that had 4 entered bis head. As he was well acquainted in Sandstone, be gain credit for their courage as well as for their | discretion. When the trouble was at last fairly under- stood, it was generally agreed that their re- treat was a deplorable necessity, and that they might be excused for not having sacrificed | the life of the prisoner, as well as their own lives, By this time the night was well advanced, and as a matter of course, the saloons in the neigh- borhood of the Lone Star Hotel had been abun- dantly patronized. Consequently the excitement was conti: ually rising, and was taking on a wilder and flercer tone, which was likely to lead to a riot of some kind, whether such a result should help the pris- oner or harm him. Though the men who were personally hostile to Jim Sartine were quite numerous in the mob, there were no collisions between them and his The mob, lacking in definite purpose and | proposed to go out and feel the pulse of the peo- - leadership, was easily persuaded that its riot- | ple, and particularly to enter into communica-- ous demonstration would be likely to do the | tion with the faction that was opposed to the ex-- prisoner more harm than good, and again it | marshal, in the hope of inducing them to com-- settled back to the consumption of whisky, and | bine to assist the Rangers in the discharge of the production of howls. their duty. Three things were certain—that the Rangers There was no objection to this on the part of” ' could neither be persuaded nor scared into giv- ; his comrades, as he proposed to take his own sue | ing up their prisoner; that an attempt to rescue risks, and he declared that there could be no» him violently would only result in his death, | danger in the attempt, as he was not generally and that he could not be carried away without | known to be connected with the *‘ abduction ” of * the consent of the people of Candstone, Jim Sartine. Therefore the crowd settled down to the pur- He easily passed out at u side door of the hotel, . pose of watching the hotel and preventing the | as the exit of one person was not considered by” possibility of running the man off. the mob a matter of any consequence. In tae mean time the occasion was improved He pushed his way through the throngs to» by the local orators, who were glad of the | Sam Sholes’s saloon, as that was supposed to be- chance of holding forth to a good audience, and | the head-quarters of the element in opposition tow who continued to address the crowd from the | Jim Sartine. improvised stands. It was also to be presumed that the proprietor The addresses changed in style and tone with | of the ‘‘Onward,” as Marshal of Sandstone, friends. the temper of the crowd and the views of the In one sense the honor of Sandstone was at | Speakers, who soon began to discuss political stake, and on that point Sandstonians of all | Subjects and to advocate their personal claims to grades were united, preferment. would be willing to aid the State cfficers in the- execution of their lawful orders, and Walter” Brandis naturally counted upon getting help- from that quarter. It was aiso a fact that the interests of the disorderly element lay in the direction of a riot, especially one of which they were not the pro- moters, as it would offer them many advantages to get the better of their private enemies and the general public. Therefore, as if by common consent, they made no effort to hinder those who wished to accomplish unlawfuily the release of Jim Sartine, After awhile the sheriff of the county appear- ed on the scene, information of the disturbance having been sent to him at his farm. The city authorities were already on the spot, but were of no earthly use except to swell the numbers of the mob and add to the noise. Some of them improved the occasion by mounting drygoods boxes and making speeches that did neither good nor harm, but were per- haps a source of pleasure to the orators, Sheriff Beesley was a bustling, self impor- tant personage, who was full of the belief, de- rived from insufficient information, that he could settle the difficulty without any trouble. He was, by the way, a strong friend and sup- porter of Jim Sartine, who had saved him a good deal of trouble while officiating as mar- shal. Perceiving the fiery temper of the mob, Sheriff Beesley recognized the fact that some- thing must be done immediately, and of course he was the man to do it. He forced his way into the hotel, and hurried up to the Rangers’ room, puffing and blowing as he reached the head of the stairs, When he came to the door of the room he found Jack Poole posted there asa sentry, but was at once admitted on announcing his name and position. Then the whole rigmarole, as Joe Burgess styled it, had to be gone over again, with the result of satisfying the sheriff that the Rangers had been fully authorized to make the arrest. ‘‘ But you didn’t need to make it in such an underhanded way,” he protested. ‘* Yes, we did,” returned Joe Burgess, “ and the mob ou’ there proves that we couldn’t have done the trick in any other way.” ‘But the mob, as you call the citizens of Sandstone, won’t let you take Jim Sartine away from here.” ‘We expect to do our duty—that’s all.” ‘“T am afraid, Mr. Burgess, that the wreck this hotel or burn it down, and if a fire should once get started there ain’t water enough to put it out.” **That’s their lookout. If they want to de- story their own propenty, it’s no fault of ours. All they’ve got to do is to let the law take its course, and the best thing you can do is to tell them so.” ‘Suppose you let ’em see Jim Sartine, to make ’em sure that he is alive and safe, It might kinder quiet ’em.” ‘*T don’t believe it will; but we are ready to do anythin’ to keep peace in the family.” Jim Sartine was led to the open window at the end of the hall, from which he could look down on the crowd in the street. explanatory of this ex ibition; but his voice was drowned by the yells that greeted the ap- pearance of the prisoner. | : Here was an opportunity for Jim Sartine to produce an effect, and he availed himself of it. Raising his manacled hands, he held them out in full view of the howling mob. | | | will | silent as a church congregation, and his meeting with Jim Sartine, whom he down to the exposure and identification of the desperado at Gonzalez, the pursuit of the incendiaries. and of the find- ing of the helpless girl whom they had mur. quiet and attention by making an appeal for justice, claiming that the desperado could be | easily identified at the scene of his atrocities, Jim Sartine.” and that 1f was the duty of all good citizens to | aid in sending him thither for trial. voice from the midst of the crowd, and the cry ; was taken up and repeated asif it exactly ex- | ceived that his chance of defending himself was: pressed the opinion of the majority. respect it,” resumed the orator. known Jim Sartine here as a faithful officer | and a good men, and it is hard for you to be- Sheriff Beesley ached wre to make a speech | lieve that hecan have been a’scoundrel elsewhere. 1 crowd again. This quieted the mob by drawing its attention In this hope he was mg seg the fact be-- from the main cause of the disturbance, and | ing that Sam Sholes found himself in such a deli-- then the comic side of the situation began to | cate position that he was not disposed to make a . make itself seen. move in any direction, Favorable symptoms such as these induced the He received the young engineer rather coldly, Rangers to hope thet the difficulty might be set- | and as soon as the subject was broached, took; tled so that they would be able to get safely away | him into a corner and requested him to speak with their prisoner. quietly. ‘‘Tf we had aman out there,” said Burgess, | ‘As a friend o’ yours, Brandis,” said he, ‘‘ and ‘‘who could talk for our side, we might be able (as a man who wents to see you keep out 0°” to make a p’int.” trouble, I'll tell you jest how I’m fixed, though ‘*Suppose I go and chin them a little,” sug- | it seems to me that you ought to see it without - gested Jep Jones. ‘I ought to be atle to make | bein’ told. myself heard, as I’ve been a blower for a side- ‘* Bein’ an officer of the law, I suppose it’s mn y~ show in my time, and in the profession I am | duty to enforce the law and stand up to the counted as a good ca*kler.” | other officers; but you know that this is a State» It was agreed that the circus man should pro- | matter, and | hein’t got nothin’ to do with any-- ceed to “‘cackle:” but it was thought best that | thin’ outeide o’ local matters. he should not go down among the mob for that “That’s a pint that you ought to ketch onto.. purpose, as there might be a disposition to mis- ** Another p'int is that Jim Sartine’s friends: use him. claim that I was elected marshal by the roughs So he went to the window at the end of the | and the rustlers, and I can’t deny that I had hall, gained the attention of the crowd, and in a | that sort o’ help, loud and clear voice began his task. **So, you see, if I should turn in and help to- He made a vigorous and effective speech, so | run Jim off, they’d say ’twas the roughs whu- plain and forcible that he was attentively | were turnin’ ag’inst him, and then thar'd be a listened to, in spite of occasional hostile demon- | row, and I should hurt you fellers more’n I'd’. s‘rations by the more violent partisans of Jim | help you. Satine. ‘To give it to you streight, I and my crowd He told of the lawless deeds of the desperado | are willin’ enough that Sandstone should git rid who was known in Arizona as Devil Dick, and | of Jim Sartine, and we believe that the Rangers : whom he had seen there more than once. have law and justice to back ’em; but we've got. Then he described the killing of the two | to play our keerds keerfully. sheep-herders which he had witnessed from his ‘Whichever way this game works, Jim Sar-- concealinent, and told from hearsay of the sub- | tine will be run out oc’ Sandstone, and I guess T sequent murder of Tom Throop by the same , know how the cat’ll jump. So it ain’t none o** man, my mix, and all lve got to do is to sit back and . He went on to tell of his visit to Sandstone | pass. How does that strike you, pard?” “Tt strikes me that pox have no notion of” had recognized at once as Devil Dick of Arizona. doing your duty and enforcing the law,” indig- - Then he related the subsequent occurrence in | nantly answered Walter. ‘It strikes me that. 5 ee ee that Territory of which he had ‘ne knowl- | yon are playing a small and cowardly game, It- elge, beginning svith the stage-ro bery in Chiapa | strik | me that the people here have chosen a . Pass, and bringing that portion of his narrative | shee guard a gang of wolves,” kept his temper admirably. Finally he gave a vivid and thrilling account ; of the burning of the Throop house at night, of been a friend o’ yourn, Walter Brendis sence you | struck this town, and I’m willin’ to take it off o*” You, bein’s you’re excited about this business, | ello! what does that mean?” A throng of men came rushing in at the open door of the saloon, and their cries as they entered The speaker proceeded to utilize this period of | were full of menace to the young engineer. ‘* That’s one of them!” dered. When he reached this point the crowd was as “Go fur him, boys. If they don’t turn Jim: | loose we'll string this °un up.” His appeal provoked no tumult, and yet there They evidently meant what they said, and’. was a sturdy opposition to his demand. were fully prepared to carry out their declared: ‘You've got the wrong man!” shouted a loud | purpose or something more. | ‘* Brandis backed up against the wall, but per-. very slight. As the mob made a rush for him, Sam Sholes. “You have | cohen his burly form between them and his~ riend, ‘* None o’ that!” he shouted. ‘‘This man is a- friend of mine, and if you want to down hin) ‘*T understand your feeling in this matter, and It seems impossible to you that he should have | you'll first have to get me down.” led the double life that he is charged with lead- | Ing. But it is possible truth can be proved to the satisfaction of any | who come bere to run off Jim 2 ‘*Get away from there, Sam Sholes!” ordered because it is true, and its . the ringleader.. ‘* That chap is one of the gang’ Sartine, we mean to settle with him.” | “Settle with me. then, I know Walter Branuis, and some of you know him. He is. unprejudiced man.” ‘You've got the wrong man!” roared the Sam Sholes’s red face grew redder; but he» — That's rayther rough,” said he; “but Dve-— ‘** That’s one of the sneaks who want to run off” micboo cs ORCS NCR Eo —_——