Traveling Over Forgotten Trails

Improvement era Vol. XXVI JULY, 1923 No. 9 Traveling Over Forgotten Trails By President Anthony W. IviiJs The Old Spanish Trail One of the most interesting, and in its time most important, of the old trails, now obliterated, and well nigh forgotten, was the southern route which connected the Pacific coast with the Missouri river. The tragedy and romance of this old trail will never be told, nor written; it cannot be, because the men who made unrecorded history along its route have long since gone to travel the unknown paths of another world, leaving no writ- ten records behind them. When the movement from the east to the west, which re- sulted in the final conquest and settlement of the Pacific Slope by Anglo Saxon people began, after reaching the Rocky Moun- tains, there were three routes by which the early pioneers reached their destination. One of these trails, for in the beginning they were nothing more, passed through Idaho by way of Fort Hall and Boise to the Columbia river and down that stream to the Pacific. It was over this route that Nathaniel Wythe, who was the first white man to make the journey from the Atlantic to the Pacific coast, of whom we have any record, traveled in 1832-33, and over it Henry H. Spalding and Marcus Whit- man, with their wives, passed in 1836, the women being the first among the white people to cross the American conti- nent. This was known as the Northern Route. The Central Route passed through what is now the north- ern part of Utah, down the Humboldt river, in Nevada, and across the Sierra Nevada mountains to California. It was on this trail that the ill-fated Donner party were snow bound, and perished, near Donner Lake, in the winter of 1846. The third route, known to the early scouts and trappers as the Old Spanish Trail, bore south from Salt Lake, skirting the west base of the Wasatch mountains, through what is now Salt

A i. j*fc ^ *-4b> ' ■ ■■ i^nHMHIH ^ DESERT LAN DSC ATE On this waterless waste myriads of mocking birds, build their nests, and rear their young. The century plants and cacti furnishing protec- tion for the nests against the predatory birds and animals nhich, like predatory men, prey on the innocent and defenseless. THE MONUMENT AT MOUNTAIN MEADOW'S As it now appears on the spot uhvre the emigrants nere camped wlten attacked by Indians. John D. Lee ivas executed at this point March 23, 1877. Lake, Utah, Juab, Millard, Beaver, Iron and Washington coun- ties. At Cedar City the road forked, one trail bearing south- west, to the Mountain Meadows, Cane Springs, the Magotsu and down the Santa Clara to Camp Spring; the other was by way of Ash Creek, Grape Vine Spring, Cottonwood, (later Harrisburg) Washington and St. George, and up the Santa Clara, where it formed a junction with the former at Camp Spring. From the latter point the road continued south, through what the early trappers called the Beaver Dam mountains, to the Rio Virgen, at Bea\er Dams, down the Rio Virgen to the mouth of the Muddy and up that stream to a point near the present Moapa station, on the Salt Lake and Los Angeles Rail- road. From this point it struck across the desert, a distance of sixty-five miles to Las Vegas, (The Meadows) over a tract of country entirely without water, and with very little grass. From Las Vegas to the Mojave river the country was a desert waste, with only scanty pasturage, and almost without water; thence on, through the Cajon Pass, (Box Canyon Pass) to San Bernar- dino, cpnditions for travel were more favorable.

TRAVELING OVER FORGOTTEN TRAILS 773 Because of the desert country through which the road passed, the extreme heat and scarcity of water, few people ven- tured to travel it during the summer months, but when winter came, and other routes were closed because of snow, the Old Spanish Trail was the most popular route to California. Who first traveled over this trail no one knows. Farris, in his History of Arizona, says: "Captain Jedediah S. Smith was the first white man to enter Arizona from the north. In August, 1826, he started from Salt Lake, passed south, by Utah Lake and keeping down the west side of the Wasatch and high plateaus, reached the Virgen river, in Arizona, near the south-western corner of Utah. This he called, in honor of the president of the United States, Adams river. Following it southwest, through Pai Ute country, twelve days, he came to its junction with the Colorado River." Crittenden, in his History of the American Fur Trade of the Far West, says: "On the 22nd of August, 1826, Smith left the rendezvous, near Great Salt Lake, with a party of fifteen men, for the purpose of exploring the country to the southwest, then wholly unknown to the American traders. His route lay by Utah Lake, thence across the Sevier Valley, to the Virgin river, which he descended to the Colorado river. Smith named this stream Adams river in honor of the President. I am inclined to think that its present name was given for Thomas Virgin, who was with Smith in 1827, and was severely wounded by the Indians in this locality, and after- wards killed in a fight on Umpquah river." In 1830 William Wolfskill and a party of trappers opened a route to California, going North from Santa Fe, to the head waters of the San Juan, thence crossing Green and Grand rivers, the latter in what is now known as Gunnison Valley, thence following the west base of the Wasatch range, and south through Mountain Meadows, across the Beaver Dam Mountains, and down the Rio Virgen to a point near its junction with the Colorado, where they struck across the desert to Las Vegas, and from there bore south to Los Angeles. After the arrival of the Pioneers in the Salt Lake Valley, in 1847, one of the first problems presented was to provide means by which merchandise might be obtained to supply the actual necessities of the people. They were eleven hundred miles from the Missouri river, the only base of supplies, from the east, and Los Angeles was eight hundred miles distant. The route to the Missouri was not a difficult one in summer. Grass was abundant, water plentiful, and but for danger from maraud- ing Indians, the journey across the plains was neither difficult nor hazardous. The California route, on the contrary, was only available during the winter months, and even then the journey could only be made under the most trying circumstances to both men and

774 IMPROVEMENT ERA animals. The road passed through a barren desert country, with very scanty pasturage, and little water. There was no station between Utah and California, where supplies could be ob- tained, or assistance rendered in case of accident or trouble, not a white settler lived between the lines of the two states. It was necessary, before leaving the "Mormon" settlements, in Southern Utah, to load the wagons with grain, a part of which was cached at different points along the road, to be used on the return trip, and when these caches were discovered and opened by the Indians, as was frequently the case, teams suf- fered until the settlements were reached. During the summer months professional freighters, with long trains of mule teams, and sometimes oxen, made the tire- some journey from Salt Lake to the Missouri river and return, reaching the valley in the fall laden with merchandise. Oxen were not used on the Old Spanish Trail, but during the winter months, in order that mules might not be idle, many of these freighters turned their faces westward, and made the trip to Southern California and return. Among the most adventurous and successful of these men, with whom the writer was ac- quainted, who staked so much on the chance of small returns, were the Crismon Brothers, George and Charley, and Bill Streeper, the latter the only one of the old wa- gon masters, so far as the writer is aware, who is now living. The Mountain Meadows was the last oasis, on the northern end of the road, and travelers fre- quently stopped at that point to recuperate their teams before starting across the long desert stretch which intervened between the Utah and California lines. This point is in the northern part of what is now Washington coun- ty, Utah. It is a small valley in the tops of the mountains, where springs spread over the surface and formed one of those beauty spots, found only in mountain landscapes. Since the days of BILL STREEPER An outstanding figure among the professional freighters, who for slight profit, and great sacri- fice brought merchandise to Salt Lake Valley, in the days of the Pioneers, atid the only knouit survivor of the men who freight- ed over the Old Spanish Trail

TRAVELING OVER FORGOTTEN TRAILS 775 the Pioneers heavy floods have cut a deep gully through the valley, which has drained the water from the surface, the grass has disappeared, and sage brush taken its place. The dangers and difficulties of travel over this road were greatly increased because of the character of the Indian tribes through whose country it passed. While not a strong nor war- like people, like Plains Indians, the Pah Utes, who occupied the Santa Clara and Upper Rio Virgen, the Moapas on the Muddy, and Mojaves farther to the south, were expert thieves, and did not hesitate to take life when they felt that it could be done with safety. Tragedies of the Trail — Mountain Meadows The most shocking tragedy which occurred on the Old Trail was the affair at Mountain Meadows. In the early part of September, 1857, a party of emigrants from Arkansas and Missouri, on their way to California, had gone into camp at Mountain Meadows with the intention of remaining at that point for a short time, for the purpose of resting and re- cruiting their teams and loose cattle, before starting across the desert country which intervened between them and their desti- nation. As they traveled through the settlements of Southern Utah, trouble developed between the emigrants and Indians, through whose country they passed, and there was also misun- derstanding between them and some of the white settlers. While in camp at Mountain Meadows, at break of day, on or about the 7th of September, the camp was attacked by In- dians. It is said that at the first volley se^en men were killed, and sixteen wounded, and that several Indians, among them two chiefs, were killed. The emigrants were brave men, well armed, and for several days successfully defended themselves. The Indians, in the meantime, sent out runners who succeeded in obtaining reinforcements, including a number of white men, who participated in the final attack, which resulted in the extermi- nation of the entire party, with the exception of a number of children, who were spared. Similar instances have occurred, during our pioneer move- ment toward the west, particularly along the route of the "Old Santa Fe Trail," where a number of expeditions which left the Missouri river were entirely lost, their fate never having been determined. Tobins Point On the 31st of August, Col. E. J. Steptoe, who had been appointed governor of Utah, arrived at Salt Lake with an escort of about 175 soldiers. Among them there was a dashing young

776 IMPROVEMENT ERA sergeant whose name was John Tobin. After remaining at Salt Lake for some time, Tobin started for California, over the south- ern trail. He had reached the Magotsu, about twenty miles south from the Mountain Meadows, and camped on that stream, where he was attacked, while asleep, by unknown parties and seriously wounded, but escaped in the darkness, and finally reached California. Camp Spring At Camp Spring, a view of which is here shown, Magets, a noted Indian of the pioneer days, said that while concealed in the rocks shown in the illustration, he saw two miners, who were returning from the gold fields of California, kill and bury a third member of their party, after taking from his person a quantity of gold which he carried. It was later discovered that TOBIN'S POINT ON MAGOTSU At this point Sergeant John Tobin was attacked by unknown parties and badly wounded, but escaped and reached California. He was Ser- geant in Sleptoe's command. this same Indian had killed a lone prospector at Camp Spring, from whom he took ten twenty dollar gold pieces. The Rio Virgen One of the greatest difficulties which confronted the early freighters, and it was not only a difficulty, but a real danger, was the Rio Virgen. The old road, after leaving the Beaver Dams, followed down the river bottom, and crossed the stream

TRAVELING OVER FORGOTTEN TRAILS 777 as many as thirty-five times before it reached the mouth of the Muddy. The river bed consists of constantly moving quicksands, which continually change the current, so that one can never tell where the treacherous sands may be encountered, dangerous alike to both animals and wagons. The only safety is in moving CAMP SPRING It was a popular camping place for travelers over the Old Spanish Trail, and a spot where some of the tragedies of the lonely road were enacted. as rapidly as possible, until the dangerous places are passed; to stop for only a few moments would often prove serious, if not fatal. Many loose animals are caught and perish in these quick- sands, and on one occasion a wagon loaded with heavy mining machinery, which was being freighted from the coast to Utah, was caught in the sand, at a point just below the present site of Bunkerville, which, despite the efforts put forth to save the valuable freight, sank until it entirely disappeared. Jack Longstreet and Old Man Dry Soon after the close of the civil war a man came into the Muddy valley, and settled there. He called himself Jack Long- street, and claimed to be a relative of General Longstreet, of the Confederate army. He was a man of prepossessing ap- pearance, with dark hair which fell in curls to his shoulders. Soon after another man, known as Old Man Dry, brought a band of horses into the valley, and declared his intention to

778 IMPROVEMENT ERA establish a ranch. Bad blood developed between the two men, and one day they met. Just what happened no one knows. Long- street reported that Dry drew his gun and threatened to kill him, and that he fired first with fatal effect. An Indian woman, who claimed to have witnessed the affair declared that Longstreet fired from ambush, and killed Dry. Soon after Longstreet left the valley, and went to the mining camps of California. Leonard S. Conger Leonard S. Conger was the first man to carry the United States mail from Salt Lake to San Bernardino, over the Old Spanish Trail. Dur- ing the years 1851-52 he rode the difficult and dangerous route, often entirely alone. The writer has often listened with rapt attention while this man related the thrilling ex- periences which he passed through while riding over the desolate stretches which the road crossed. He knew the water holes and scattering patches of grass, and would often stay over, during the day, in some open space, where he could watch for Indians, while his animals grazed and rested, and when darkness came, press on through the more lonely and LEONARD S. CONGER He carried the United States Mail dangerous places. over the Old Spanish Trail in 1851-2, Upon one occasion, after when danger threatened on every i • T it i c i mile of the desert road. leaving Los Vegas, he was fol- lowed by Indians, frequently exchanging shots with them, and did not remove the packs from his animals until he reached Gunlock, in Utah, a distance of 150 miles. He related that upon one occasion he met a company of emigrants at the Vegas who had engaged in a fight with Indians, in which a white woman had been killed. She was buried and the train moved on. On his return trip Conger found the remains of the woman, which had been disinterred by the Indians, propped up against a cottonwood tree. He re- buried the body, but as he passed the point again, found it in

TRAVELING OVER FORGOTTEN TRAILS 779 the same position as on his previous trip. Three times he buried the remains of that unfortunate woman, before they were permitted to rest in peace. It was on this Old Trail, on the Mojave river, south of the Vegas, that Franklin B. Woolley was killed, in March, 1869, by Mojaie Indians; and over the lonesome and dangerous road his younger brother brought the remains to St. George, for in- terment, an example of devotion and courage rarely equalled. (See Era, May, 1916.) Romances of the Old Trail — The Peg Leg Mine Many of the trails traveled by the early trappers and pros- pectors have their lost mines. Somewhere along the trail of the Mormon Battalion, in the extreme eastern part of Cali- fornia, or western Arizona, the Peg Leg mine awaits the for- tunate man who may discover and unearth its hidden treasure. Men have perished on the desert as they searched for it, other men have fought and died for possession of the precious water holes, near where it is said to be, but none have seen it since the death of Peg Leg Smith, who came to San Bernardino with a large quantity of gold which he had brought in from the des- ert, and in a drunken orgy, in celebration of his discovery, died without divulging its location. The Lost Cabin Mine Near the Pioneer Trail, in Wyoming, the Lost Cabin Mine, of fabulous richness, has defied all efforts to relocate since the original discoverers were obliged to abandon it, as they thought, for a brief period only. The Spanish Trail Has Fortune For You. — The Lost Lead When word reached the East that gold had been discovered on the American and Feather rivers, in California, a great rush set in for the new Eldorado. Among the venturesome men, who staked their all on uncertainty, there was lone party which traveled over the Old Spanish Trail, and had among its members a boy of seventeen years, whose name was Jim Houdon. From Cedar City the party traveled, via Iron and Antelope Springs, to Camp Spring, and from that point on to Beaver Dams. Many years after, when he was a man past middle age, Jim Houdon appeared at St. George, in southern Utah, and this is the story which he told : At some point, after leaving Cedar City, the company after watering their horses at a spring, drove on, and that night made a dry camp. Near the camp ground there was a high hill, and Jim Houdon climbed to the top of it and looked

780 IMPROVEMENT ERA off in the direction of the promised land toward which he was journeying. On the top of this hill he observed some black looking boulders and, upon picking one of them up, discovered that it was very heavy. He carried a piece of the rock to camp where it was broken and examined, and putting a piece in his pack carried it to California. He remembered that the camp was at a place where pinion pine trees grew, because they gathered and roasted pine nuts in the camp fire, and the next day drove down to a stream where the Indians were farming, and bought roasting ears from them. Upon his arrival in California Houdon had the sample of ore analysed and it proved to be high grade silver. While working in the gold mines of California, the rush to Australia began, where exceedingly rich gold fields had been discovered, and Jim Houdon went with others, hoping that a fortune awaited him, on the other side of the globe. He car- ried the piece of Utah ore with him, and again had it tested, with the same result, the assayer declared it to be very high grade silver. Then Jim Houdon returned to St. George, in southern Utah, which had been established since he went to California, believing that he could find the place where he had picked up the rich ore many years before. Carefully he searched the coun- try between Iron Springs and Beaver Dams, but all in vain. So many years had elapsed, the country had so changed, and new roads had so far obliterated the Old Trail, that identification of either the spring where the teams were watered, or the dry camp ground was impossible, and he finally left, to seek his fortune in other fields, a broken and disappointed man. Tradition located the Lost Lead, as it came to be known, on to Magotsu, between Cane Spring and the Santa Clara. Who will be the fortunate discoverer of this lost load, or, did it exist only in the imagination of Jim Houdon? He believed im- plicitly in it, otherwise he would not have come from the Anti- podes to search for it. The Breyfogle Mine In the early fifties an emigrant train took the southern route from Salt Lake to California. The story is told that while crossing the desert country, not far from Death Val- ley, a member of the party, whose name was Breyfogle, took his gun and went out to hunt. Some distance from camp he found a vein of decomposed quartz, heavily impregnated with coarse gold. Breaking off some samples, he hurried back to camp and endeavored to persuade the captain of the company to stop and investigate his discovery, but the captain, more

TRAVELING OVER FORGOTTEN TRAILS 781 anxious to get his people safely across the desert than to hunt for gold, refused and moved on. After reaching California Brey- fogle returned with others, but failed to identify the place where the gold had been found. The Lost Gunsight Mine Another party of emigrants are said to have abandoned their wagons, at a point near Death Valley, and pressed on, some on foot, and others riding the animals. One member of the party, upon arrival at Los Angeles, took his rifle to a gun Top: The Oldest Fort in Nevada, located at Stewart Raich, Las Vegas, Nevada. Bottom: S. L. R. R. Depot and Eating House, Las Vegas, Nevada.

782 IMPROVEMENT ERA smith to have it resighted, and asked that a piece of metal, which he had found on the desert, be used for the purpose. The gunsmith identified the metal as native silver, and an expedi- tion was sent back with the emigrant, but the latter could not locate the place where he had found the silver. Thus we have the Lost Gunsight Mine. The Lead Mines of Las Vegas It is a well known fact that in the late fifties the Utah Pioneers mined lead ore near Las Vegas, erected smelters at the latter point where it was smelted and concerted into pig lead, which was hauled over the Old Trail to Salt Lake and moulded into bullets, silver bullets, for the lead carried good values in silver, which there was no means of extracting at that time. Allen G. Campbell, well-known Utah mining man, later locatel these mines, and they are probably in operation at this time. A Real Romance of the Desert Among the men who traveled over the Old Trail there was not one who knew it better than Francis M. Lyman. While not a professional freighter, he crossed the desert, from Utah to California, sixteen times, no other man, so far as we are aware, having an equal record, unless it might be Leonard S. Conger, the mail carrier. From President Lyman's journal I quote, as fol- lows : "I reached the beach at San Pedro about the 22nd of August, 1856. While loading up my wagon I saw a bewitching girl, in a lawn dress, pass across the camp ground, and I thought I never saw anything half so fine. We reached San Bernardino with our loads, about the 26th of August, and I made bold to get sight of so remarkable a creature and in a moment recognized in Rhoda Taylor, the same charming girl who had flitted across the camp ground before me at the beach. Now I confess the truth I was captivated, I was frantically in . I could not help it. I was never taken just that way before, and I did not know how to re- sist it, and I have always been thankful, since, that I did not." It is only necessary to add that the introduction and court- ship which followed resulted in marriage, and that the honey- moon of this couple, later so prominently identified with the deAelopment of Utah and the West, was spent as they jour- neyed over the Old Spanish Trail, from San Bernardino to Utah. The Inexpressible Desert There is something inexpressible connected with the des- ert. Its vastness, it broad expanse, its e\ er changing panorama of hills and buttes, its silence and solitude, the beauty of its sunset,

TRAVELING OVER FORGOTTEN TRAILS 783 the glory of its moon and brilliancy of its stars, are to be found in no other place, among all the works of the Creator. One who has gazed upon the marvel of a desert mirage, where lakes and rivers, towns and castles, forest and plains beckon the thirsty wayfarer on, only to vanish into barren plains as he approaches, once seen can never be forgotten. The variety and indniduality of the desert shrubs and plants, with the beauty and fragrance of their blossoms, once you are under the influence of this des- FRANCIS M. LYMAN He irns not a professional freighter, but crossed the. thscit sixteen times, and spent his honeymoon traveling over the Old Spanish Trail. ert holds you with a power which is well nigh irresistible, even though you know that its call may be the last you shall ever hear. The desert landscape shown in the illustration was taken at a point where mocking birds in great numbers had built their nests and were rearing their young, singing their inimitable songs as the kodak clicked. Why does the mocking bird choose

784 IMPROVEMENT ERA the desert for his home, while rearing his young? Because the century plants, the cacti, and other thorny desert shrubs, give protection to his nest, from predatory birds and animals which, like predatory men, prey upon the innocent and defenseless. It was in such an environment, under the light of desert skies, where the mocking bird trills his happy lay, that Francis M. Lyman and Rhoda Taylor spent their honeymoon. His Need ot Me— The Answer In a dream of night, 'twas a wintry night, My Lord came near unto me, And stood in the light of a room all white, And spoke these words unto me: "Oh, why do you shirk, why not do the work, That your Lord would have you do?" In this dream of night I answered outright. "Why, Lord, hast thou need of me? In my lowly state, and the season late, Oh, what can I do for thee? Wherein do I shirk, and where is the work That my Lord would have me do? "My purse is so poor, I've nothing in store, I stand in my lowly place; So here in the night, in this room all white By light of thy radiant face. Reveal unto me whv thou needest me. And what thou would'st have me do." The Answer "Don't think that you need the wealth piled by greed. Nor a place of pride and power; You need but the will and the wish to fill Men's souls in their earthly hour With the living truth, the arousing truth, That your Lord would have you speak. "All the gold men lure from toils of the poor. Is but the limit of sin ; And the statelv piles that they build the whiles, I never can dwell therein ; From the world's dim birth to the end of earth. I win by the power of truth. "If the truth be told, all the wrongs of old Will lift from the paths of men ; So this is the work you must never shirk, To publish the truth to men. And to pave the way for the coming day When Brotherhood rules the earth." C. N. Lund

Jearts andjfolfyhocks <JJ Stor$) of Love, Struggle and Society J^uthMoenchBeJJ Chapter XI (Concluded) Judith saw Phil leave the room and her heart sank. She had vaguely hoped that he might seek Edna with comforting words. A misgiving now smote her that he was so thoroughly incensed against her that he would lea^ e her forever. She should have consulted him, she could a|ee that. She had been obsessed by the idea that this old-fashioned merrymaking might not only please Edna, but recall happy times to Phil; and win him back to her, or at least make it easier for her to come to him. The plan was ill-advised. The presence of the other men must have been torture to Edna, knowing that John could not be there. It would help Edna a little to have her friends cordial with her. That much, at least, the party had accomplished. But if it cost the last shred of Phil's regard, the price would be fear- ful for so little. Entirely oblivious of the fact that the party had failed of its object, in cheering Edna Shirley; equally oblivious of the fact that it might make a permanent breech between Judith and Phil, the guests were having a glorious time. Judith slipped out unobsen ed, into the reception hall. She knew that Edna would not leave without seeking her. And if Phil were seriously displeased it would be better to meet him apart from the others and explain if he would listen. Phil had found solitude more trying than he had supposed it could be and was just coming in as Judith stepped into the hall. He attempted to pass her. Judith reached out her hand to detain him: "Please, Phil," she pleaded. "The women were planning to snub Edna after all she had gone through. I couldn't bear it, dear, we were little girls together, life-long friends. This is her home town. I couldn't see her treated so." "And so you entertained in her honor?" "Not in her honor, dear, I invited, I even begged her dear- est friends to come and make her feel our love and sympathy." "A fine way to pet criminals, I should think." He turned on his heel again. "There isn't one of us fit to touch her hand, Phil. For nearly two years she has starved with him. She has slaved for

786 IMPROVEMENT ERA three dollars a week to help him in their support. She didn't have to go to him. She didn't have to sacrifice her life that way." "No, and he didn't have to steal the money for her. He just did it, that's all. I should think that was the least she could do to make amends. He made himself a criminal for her. Noth- ing else on earth would have made him do as* he did." "He did it so she could follow the pace we set." "The pace we set? Hadn't we a right?" "Oh, we were right enough, I suppose, but was it righteous? Don't sneer, Phil. I don't pretend that I didn't enjoy spending the money. I was proud of you because you could acquire it. My vanity was pleased at the distinction of being social leader. It seemed clever of you to get control of commodities that people could not do without and then charge what you pleased for them." "I don't in the least see what you are driving at." "I'm trying to say that it seemed right and as clever as could be. I ne\ er felt differently till I saw Edna's face. Even if we had gotten it all fairly there were so many fine things we might have done with it intsead of urging it to awaken envy in the hearts of others. I must go and find Edna, now. You will for- give me, won't you, Phil?" They were interrupted by the ringing of the door bell. "I'll go to Edna. You answer the door, Phil." And Judith slipped out. Phil opened the door to Sheriff Heron. "I've just taken Edna down to see John," he explained. "She wanted me to come in and tell Judith. I met her on the way down and walked with her to see if I couldn't get some concessions. They had John in with a drunken negro and a half crazed Italian who fancied himself Caruso and was regaling everyone with grand opera." "Surely they could have done better than that for him," Phil declared. "The jail was crowded and they thought they had done their best. The warden has given him a couch in his office, now. It was against orders for Edna to be admitted at such an hour, but we fixed that up, too. I told the warden it was the last thing he could do for me there." "Last thing? What do you mean?" "I'm resigning. I made up my mind when I brought John in, that would be the last job of that kind for me. It is only by the grace of God that we are not all there behind the bars." "To hear you and my wife tell it, I'm the real criminal," Phil scoffed.

HEARTS AND HOLLYHOCKS 787 "Oh, you're all right, I suppose, Phil. But the fellows that have got off free are the ones that should be behind the bars, the fake promoters, who know they are promoting nothing but their own interests. They are the ones, preying on the credulity of the ignorant and breaking down the integrity of men in weak moments." "You're right there, Heron. We'll go after them and see what can be done. Order has to be maintained, you know, and justice enforced." "I know, Phil, I'm not blaming you. It's the law and right enough. I've brought them in by the score and it never troubled me before. It's just becauc«e John and I went swimming together and played marbles znd all the rest of it, and I know he was straight as a die then. It kind of got on my nerves. I'm not a religious man, you know; but every clack of the car wheels seemed to say 'vengeance is mine, vengeance, vengeance is mine,' fjaith the Lord. And then I'd look at John's face and it cer- tainly looked as if someone had got their ^engeance in already and I couldn't see any reason why I should follow it up." "Judith takes it all on herself," Phil said thoughtfully, "^he wants me to get him off. I don't know that I could do that." "Your wealth and influence would go a long way towards freeing him." Judith, entering at that moment, heard the sheriff's remark and knew its import. Without waiting for explanations she flung her arms about her husband's neck and kissed him raptur- ously. "You darling," she cried in relief. "I knew you'd do it. And if you don't mind, I want to give Edna back her old home next to ours. You gave it to me, you know." "Go as far it ycu like," Phil laughed good-naturedly. "This thing's been troubling me more than I cared to admit. If you don't care, Heron, we'll go down to the jail together and tell John that we'll try to fix things up for him. He'll rest better the remainder of the night. They'll let me in, if I come with you, I suppose." "You better believe they will," Sheriff Heron laughed. "If we have to wake the governor to get a permit we'll get in and put his mind and Edna's at rest." "Is Edna with him?" Judith asked. 'Yes, she sent this note of apology to you. She didn't mean to run off like that. I could see she had been crying and couldn't stand to meet anyone." "Tell her about the house," Judith laughed happily. "I must go in and look after my guests." The first impression of the sheriff's and Phil's, as they were admitted into the warden's office where sat Edna and John,

788 IMPROVEMENT ERA was that a flood of light filled the room. Later they realized that the light was wholly spiritual and shone from the eyes of Edna and John. They seemed to have climbed the heights and conversed with spiritual beings. John got to his feet at sight of Phil. "Sorry old man," Phil held out his hand and grasped John's heartily. "I think we can get you out of here. I'm going to do my best. I came down to assure you of that." "And Phil's best will go a long ways," Sheriff Heron broke in and he, too, grasped John by the hand. It seemed to take fully a minute for the import of what they said to reach John. Edna was the first to get it. Nobody remembered afterward whether she had flung her arms about Phil's neck as Judith had done. She appeared to laugh and cry at the same time in sheer gratitude, and yet not with any sug- gestion of weakness. "You've been so good to us," she cried gratefully. "And Judith sends you word that you are to have your old home back again. I gave it to her, you know. Now you can live across the lawn from each other as you used to do." Then the first cloud shaded the light. Edna looked at John and he looked at her. Edna was the first to speak. "It's so good of Judith and you, and I hate to have to re- fuse. But John and I have been talking things over together. There's a Intle family of children that were orphaned a few days ago, a boy of twelve, a girl of fourteen, and two little ones. I knew their father and mother well and found the children quite forlorn today. They seemed to take to me and I promised to adopt them. We are all going out to the little place where John and I spent our honeymoon. We are to have a little tea room and garden for automobilists or passers by. The boy is used to milking and taking care of a garden. The daughter ?eems delighted at the thought of helping me. Together we can make enough, perhaps, to live on till John can come to us. I'll have some one to love and work for out there, so it won't be lonely while we are waiting. I want to go back to the peace and comfort of grandfather's slow-ticking clock. No hurry, no worry! Apples and vegetables in the cellar, the good, old cellar! A cow in the barn! Chickens to feed and children to feed them. The clean, beautiful litter of doll parasols! Long, lovely even- ings to read and sing and dream! We are going to fill each moment so full that the time will speed till John cornea. Then we'll be happy together and forget everything that is past." "We'll get him back to you as soon as we can," Phil assured her. Here John interposed, "I hope you won't think me an un-

HEARTS AND HOLLYHOCKS 789 grateful wretch, Phil," he said humbly. "I've been a weak, sniveling schoolboy long enough. I ought to have faced this thing long ago. To shield Edna — no, I'll not say that. A man should be captain of his soul. It is the set of the soul that sets the sail! I've fallen, Phil, and I must rise and get up, too, with- out help. I must pay the price. I've 'been baffled to fight better.' " "John, surely you are not refusing — " Edna cut in tremu- lously. "I must, dear, every accountant in the country might ex- cuse himself because of me. Every man unjustly imprisoned would be embittered because I had been unjustly freed. Help cut the sentence down a little if you wish. But the law must be upheld as long as it is the law. Some there are who belong here, unfortunately. Some need a physician. Others should have a helping hand; and there are those whose need is for right education and vocational training. Judges are only human, sometimes hurried and sometimes preoccupied.If all were judged with the 'minds of ten men and the heart of one woman,' many might not be here at all. 'Am I my brother's keeper?' must mean something to humanity some day. Call this our mission. I wouldn't have chosen my part, perhaps. But if you two will work on the outside, we ought to be able to help some less for- tunate than I." The sheriff and Phil grasped John's hand in silent apprecia- tion of the sacrifice his new found manhood was ready to make. Edna, smiling through her tears, signified her approval, even though it deprived her of his presence for a few years. "I understand how you feel, John," Phil said as he turned to go. "But just the same, if I can, we'll cut the sentence down. I need you. The business needs you. You must help me carry out those plans you made for the workmen years ago. You have something that I only began groping toward this evening." "Perhaps it's humanity, Phil. I suppose one of the objects of living is to teach us that; and suffering seems the only way. There must be a purpose back of all this. I've got to seek it out and fulfil it to the uttermost." "You can count on us both," the sheriff assured John. "Maybe I'd better stay in the harness, if they still want me. 1 had resigned, you know. But you've set me thinking. Maybe bringing men in, is the least of my duties. I believe I always felt a little superior to the men I brought in until I had to get you. But you always did pity the under dog." "I may have pitied them, but I never understood them be- fore, and really sympathized. To be honest, I think there was always a shade of contempt in my pity, till those two years

790 IMPROVEMENT ERA as an underdog among the underdogs of New York, when I felt their fine humanity. And then here ! It was really here I found my soul. I've been thinking tonight, after Edna made her plan and so left me free to pay my price, perhaps there is some- thing unplumbed still in that wonderful saying of the greatest of all humanitarians, 'He who loseth his life shall find it.' " John's voice choked on the last words, and the sheriff and Phil went considerably outside and waited for Edna. "I'm proud of you, dear," she said as she kissed him good- bye. "We'll both have to be brave — and 'fight better'." (The End) An Old, Black Crow Belleisle, Can. An old black crow On our bleak fence row Sang "Caw, caw, caw;" And the wintry wind was raw; The sleety snow with the wind did blow, But "Caw, caw, caw,'' Though the winter wind did gnaw, Sang that queer old crow on our fence row. And his voice was hoarse For his song, of course, Was crude, and harsh, and slow, And one lone tune he seemed to know. That same old crow, On the same fence row, Sings, "Caw, caw, caw," Now the Spring's soft breezes thaw, His tune's unchanged, His feathers arranged As when the north wind blew, And he seems the same all through. Now, say, are you The same all through, As seasons come and go, As does the summer and the snow? I hear a, "No." Then my old crow Is wiser far than we, In that he'll change not easily. Alan C. Reidpath