The Deport Times (Deport, Tex.), Vol. 6, No. 52, Ed. 1 Friday, January 29, 1915 Page: 2 of 4
This newspaper is part of the collection entitled: Red River County Area Newspaper Collection and was provided to The Portal to Texas History by the Red River County Public Library.
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m
Times
lY, Poiliiiim
at tba pastoflice at Deport,
rnal Bla—mail matter
i oI thanks, resolutions of re*
bituary notices, and all politl-
irged forat the
f one cant per word. Alao all
uaiooa will be chai i
one cant per wort
>r*»j or any other announcement*, if
object la to ralae money, rauit be
d for at regular rate*. Count your
hrds and remit with manuscript.
' No ad accepted for leaa than jOc.
One Year........................$1.00
Six Month*.....,,................60
* IN ADVANCE
w? ; mrn 1 dma ■
Do not forget that the Com-
mercial club meets Friday after
I noon at 4 o’clock.
RJI.L has been introduced
in the legislature halls of New
Jersey, which, if passed, will re
quire all unmarried men over 30
years of age to pay a yearly tax
of *50.
There'll be no full moon in
February. The moon has made
a practice of getting full every
month since time began, with
very few exceptions. Who said
the temperance wave was not
growing?—Honey Grove Sig-
nal.
'V y
- At Clarksville Tuesday a
preacher was tried on .» charge
ot carrying a pistol. This puts
us to thinking. Are Red River
County sinners so tough that
preachers have to shoot the gos-
pel into them?—Honey Grove
Signal. __=__ssim;aiB_
February the 1st will bring
to a closq the open season for
hunting ducks, geese. quail,
4ovos, and plover. Italso closes
season on the payment of
11 tax and adds 10 per cent to
'your property tax if you have
not paid them?
Speaking of a young man in
Kansas City who received an un-
expected inheritance of $35,000
last week, the story in the Kan-
sas City Star concludes as fol-
lows: ‘‘His wife recently sued
him for a divorce, v Her suit was
withdrawn yesterday.” Now
what are you grinning about? „•
Y?
An Indiana editor printed the
following: “The fellow who is
courting a certain married wo-
man bad better leave town, as
the husband is onto him.” The
paper had not been out long be-
fore every man had left town ex
cept three old cripples and a
man who did not read the pa-
per. ■
In his first address to the law-
making bodies, Gov. Ferguson
asked the following question:
Can tiie average man ot today
conscientiously say to himself,
“I have spent less than I have
made; I have bought less than I
could pay for; I have been frugal
and economical; I have been free
j’om wasteful and riotous liv-
ing?”'' V _
The editor ofJ a paper in an-
other county spites that one day
he picked up a Winchester and
started down the street to de
liver it to its owner. The de-
linquent subscribers got it in-
to thei heads that he was on
the warpath and everyone insist-
ed on flaying what they owed
the editor. Oqe man wiped but
a debt, of ten years standing.
On his return to the office he
found a load of hay, two bush
els of potatoes, a load of wood
and a barrel of turnips. Will
some one please lend us a
gUn? ________ f
A few nights ago a promirient
citizen went to bed with a hot
iron to his feet. The iron was
so hot that it set the bedclothes
on fire and the blankets and bed-
spread were burned up, but he
awoke before he was burned.—
Paris News.
The above item reminds the
editor of an incident that occur-
I red several years ago. It hap-
f happened on a very cold night.
The fire in our room was out
sand we were determined to
warm the bed before brawling
in. An extension cord with an
electric light globe on one end
eras attached to the drop light
and the current turned on. We
placed the globe between the
sheets snd the oonfined heat set
the bed afire. We squared It
with the landlady by paying for
910.00 worth of quilts snd sheets
itd have taken ours cold ever
since.
«•?*
TV
bniUH
SYNOPSIS
James Montgomery, an Innocent oountry
led. la arrasted tor kllllne a bank wau-n-
tniui Hla Anger prints ar* taken by the
New York police.
His old mother pleads In vain for him
with Datectlv* Michael Kearney. Mont-
gomery la placed on trial for hla Ufa
charged with murder.
Kearney looked at hla watch, pushed
back hla chair and reached for hla hat
and coat.
“That's all I can tell you, lady,” he
eald aa he departed abruptly.
Mrs. Montgomery called after him In
a tbln, frightened voice, but if he beard
be did not reply.
She started up from her chair and
sank back, sobbing bitterly.
Kearney’s mother brought her a cup
of tea and aolaced her as best she
could, the teara flowing from her own
eyea.
»••••••
.Eugene Garrett, n lawyer of Insignlfi-
cant attainment at the bar. but with
a certain degree of political influence
In hla assembly district, wua the man
chosen by the court to defend Mont-
gomery. The fee he would receive
from the public treasury was a part
of lila reward fordiis. political industry
in and out of season. ,
Garrett welcomed tbc arrival of the
mother of his client and with the voice
of a dove assured the frightened little
countrywouinn that he would move
heaven and earth to free herhou. He
Inquired very gently aa to her proba-
bility of securing funds for taking tbe
case to tbe higher courts on appeal,
should a verdict against him be reach-
ed by tbe Jury.
Aside from tbe prospect of getting a
fee from ber aa well aa from the court,
the lawyer took a genuine professional
interest In the mother of the defend-
ant. He would .use her to work ou the
sympathies of the Jury. s4c brought
to the criminal courts building three
men and a woman, old friends from
tbe country about tbe town of Nyaek.
411 would be willing character witness-
es for the accused.
They entered the courtroom with the
young narflstnnt district nttomey. bis
witnesses and a flock of men drawn as
veniremen. They were hardly aeated
when tbe door of the chambers of the
presiding justice won opened by a
court attendant and a heavy, drowsy
man In a black silk gown strode across
tbc room and made bis way laborious-
ly and with much panting to tbe dais
before a mural painting of Justice,
flanked by another of the three Fates.
A Jury was quickly secured from the
panel, and twelve rneq who had de-
clared that they were not opposed to
capital punishment, tlint they had not
read the newspapers, that they bad no
opinions whatever and were perfectly
competent to give Montgomery a fair
trial and order bis life snuffed out,
took their seats in the jury box.
The annals of New York’s courts are
packed with cases where hysterical
edltorlnls. articles of "human interest"
by special men and women writers
forcing sympathy for murderers and
murderesses, have brought about ac-
quittals. Blit In the case of tbe peo-
ple or tbe police against James Mont-
gomery there wns no outcry for mer-
cy. Tboro was not enough of sordid-
ness In the crime t.o give the public a
real thrill, lie was not of tbe real
murderer’s type—the kind that slays
for aelflshuess or hate. He was not a
minister of the gospel nor was be the
dissolute son of a Pittsburgh million-
aire.
Tbe watchman of the bank In the
west sldc^^d beeh cracked over the
head wlttffllii iron instrument His
end wns as prosaic as had been bis
birth and life.
There wns no crowd in the court-
room as Garrett rose and announced
that the defense was ready for trial.
The policeman who had caught tbe
prisoner running away from the scene
of tbe murder with a kit of tools sat
on the left ot the prosecuting attorney.
Three other witnesses sat near them.
They were to testify thafpon tbe night
of the murder they had seen the pris-
onr lurking lu the Hell's Kitchen sec-
tion of the city on the North river
front. One of these wns a stool pigeon
of long service to the detective bureau,
a man hired to betray fellow criminals
and one whose own crimes were over-
looked because of Ills usefulness.
There wns1 one other witness, n mnn
who combined a knowledge of bacteri-
ology and chemistry with n knowledge
af the science developed by Bertlllon—
inthropometry. Garrett looked at him
rurlbualy and wondered what part he
would play In the case. The police
had not produced this witness until
the trial was begun. It Wns on old po-
lice trick.
The Intllctment charging murder wns
rend, and tbe prisoner pleaded not
guilty.
CHAPTER III.
“Murder in the second dograa."
MM THERE It required three montbi
lA/ to brjjtg about a mistrial for
*1 a murderous young million-
aire In this same vilely kept
building, with IU horde of Idling polit-
ical appointee#. It required only three
hour* to dispose of tbe case of this
pale country boy facing a hurried aud
Imp*dept Judge and a sleepy Jury.
In those three hour* Kearney, the
■an from headquarter*, bad hla wit-
neaaea preaent the case for tbe atate.
Tbe three men from Bed’s Kitchen
told of esoiog the pftgfcr lurking In
tbat neigh xirtitiod^^^HHus in tbe
eompeey of two.^^^^^^J^poffce
■ten wbe
190. by UHk Brown • Comoon,
tempted escape arter the vault or toe
bank was blown with nitroglycerin.
Garrett then learned why tbe expert
was brought Into the case. The ex-
pert qualified as such in a brief direct
examination. He Identified a heavy
Iron wrench handed him by the pros-
ecutor as one of the t'ools found lu the
kit taken from the prisoner.
•‘Yon made a careful examination of
this Implement, did you not?" asked
the assistant district attorney.
“I did."
“Tell the Jury what you found there.*
“I found a 8pot about two Inches long
by a half Inch wide aud by laboratory
tests found It to be a spot of human
blood."
‘ What else did you find?”
1 “I dusted the wrench with a white
powder and found the prints of a
thumb and two fingers.*
The prosecutlug attorney placed the
wreucb lu evidence as Exhibit A and
then ofTered as Exhibit B an enlarged
photograph of the prints found upon it.
"I offer you for Identification this
document, which is the Bertlllon rec-
ord of the accused taken at police
headquarters following his arrest,"
said the prosecutor.
The expert examined It
"What do you And in this record
that bears upon tbe case before us?”
"The thumb print and tbo prints of
tbe index and middle lingers of the
right hand iu this record are tbe same
prints sbown upon tbe wrench with
the spot of blood.”
"That is all,” said the prosecutor,
with a smile nod nn air of triumph.
He was youug and eager for a record
of convictions. He looked significantly
toward the Jurors'ns if to say, “It is
now up to you, gentlemen, to send the
prisoner to the chair."
This trump card of tbe police brought
to Janies Montgomery a realization of
the utter hopelessness of Ills plight, and
his face became a chalky white. Death
in the electric chair wns before him.
Ho was but a boy, and his patient, old
mother was sitting beside him, her
hand clasping his.
Fortunately sne couiu noi compre-
hend whnt was going on. She had
never heard of the Bertlllon system.
Montgomery choked hack the sobs of
despair that kept rising in his throat
and returned the pressure of his moth-
er's band.
The witnesses for the defense were
put on in quick order. They told In
homely language what they knew of
the accused. He had been n faithful
son and the support of his mother. lie
wns working as an apprentice machin-
ist In n factory In Nyaek when hard
times caused the factory to close.
Work was scarce and he had left
borne to seek employment in the city.
The mother took the stand. 81»e
turned in the chair and looked to the
Judge appealiugly, ns a wounded bird
would look up to the bough from which
it laid fullen.
"Just tell the Jury about your boy,"
said Gnrrett standing and twirling a
heavy gold watch charm.
"My sou was born iu tbe cottage In
which I now lire near Nyaek”— she
began.
"You must spenji louder,’’ tbe Judge
Instructed.
She finally raised her voice and told
her story. The mother love sang tn
every word she uttered: It glistened
with the soft light or holy candles In
her faded eyes, and it fairly trembled
forth from her fragile body ns she told
of the life of her only child and of
their mutual struggle
“It Is not In the nature of my son to
harm any one.” she started to say. as
her story drew to a close. The young
prosecutor (topped from his chair as if
n powerful spring had been released
beneath him:
”1 object!” he cried wrathfully. “1
ask tile court to have that remark
stricken out as Irrelevant, incompetent
and Immaterial. It Is not evidence.”
"Gentlemen of the Jury.” said the
court, niter rapping with bis gavel,
"you are lnstructed"to pay no attention
to the remarks Just made by the wit-
ness. They are not in the nature of
evidence, and theV are ordered stricken
from the records.”
Being only the mother of the pris-
oner. ber frail hotly having brought
him Into tlie world. Mrs. Montgomery’s
•pinion of him had no value in court.
There was no place In the trial for an
account of maternal trust and love.
Garrett took her from the stand, the
prosecuting attorney declining, with nn
air of scorn, to cross exnmtue her.
The prisoner was then sworn. He
had spent nearly a month In the Tomhs-
wnlttng trial, and the prison pallor, the
ghastly yellow tinge that would make
n snlnt look like a convict, was upon
him. The spectacle of his little mother
on tbe stflnd had ahaken his n-'i’v*. and
his hand trembled ns he took the Bible
snd made his oath. His story was sim-
ple enongli despite the hnvoe wrought
with It by the district attorney.
When the factory closed he left Ny
aek and came to New York, bringing
his kit of tools with him. He had nev-~
er heard of the Hell’s Kitchen section
and was asking work along Tenth nnd
Eleventh avenues because factories
were located there. He met a man
who seemed to take an Interest tn him-
This man Introduced him to another,
and they bought him hla supper at •
restaurant near the river. They tnld
him tbat tw could get him work,
he would Kva to work at night
looked ovwr bit kit of tools, and one
them adndred a steel drill and said h
waa a She one.
the Jury. “I went with the men a num-
ber of blocks east One ef them took
my tools and bade me welt at a corner.
1 waa begtunlng to suspect tbat some-
thing was wrong when I heard a dull
explosion aa If In a cellar. A minute
after one of the men passed in*, run-
ning. He dropped tbe kit of tool* and
tbe wrench. My tools were ail that
stood between me aud starvation If
they were lost I could not hope to get
work at my trade. 1 grabbed up the
wreucb. threw It Into tbe bag and
started to run away when I waa ar-
rested.”
Tbe cross examination furnished the
young prosecutor with excellent prac-
tice In those sophistries supposed to be
necessary In the practice of law. Tbe
boy waa aa wax In tbe hands of the
questioner before him. After ah bour
of misery and bewilderment be was
excused from tbe stand.
The court and counsel conferred In
whispers. Tbe arguments followed.
They were brief. While tbe rule* of
evidence would not permit the mother
of tbe prisoner to beg for bis life and
proclaim ber belief iu hla Innocence,
they allowed tbe proaecntor tn hla ad-
dress to the Jury to paint him as a des-
perate young thief, crouching In the
dark with a heavy Iron wrench uplift-
ed and quick to do murder for the sake
of loot,
Garrett’s address was short and
weak. His vocabulary was that of
tbe money hungry lawyer who alts in
a hole In the great city shuffling bonds
and mortgages through bis fingers nnd
always nibbling uway at the little
hoardings of Ignorant clients. Hts
sense of humanity and bis apprecia-
tion of the pity and horror of the
whole drama in which be was par-
ticipating were nil.
The Judge's Instructions to the Jury
were a string of empty words, mouthed
hurriedly and tonelessly.
The case wns entirely circumstan-
tial. There was one way for the Jury
to avoid the risk of sending an inno-
cent man-40 bis death In the electric
chair. They’took 11 The clerk order-
ed the prisoner to stand nnd face the
Jury and tbe jury to look upon the
prisoner.
“Gentlemen, have yon reached a ver-
dict?” asked the clerk. •
“We have.” replied the foreman.
'We find the defendant guilty of mur-
der In the second degree.”
The country people who had Jour-
neyed to the metropolis to do what
little they could for the widow’s sou
took Mrs. Montgomery back with
them. What little brightness of hope
bad been within her during the trinl
of her boy vanished with his convic-
tion.
She had tried the day nfter the trial
to rench the Judge and appeal to him
for mercy'and a light sentence, but
the Importuning! of widows, wives and
children nre avoided by the Judiciary
ns much as possible. The legal repre-
sentative of n great bnnking Institu-
tion or some mighty estate or corpora-
tion lias the open sesame to the cham-
bers of the men wearing the ermine,
but there is not such a great number
of these and the poor are a mighty
multitude.
At every turn the mother of James
Montgomery met with an obstacle.
Bhs had no "Big Mike” This or “Little
“Ufa Imprisonment" ' >
Montgomery staggered end the offl
cor released hla grip and Aught him
under the arma, thinking that b* woumI
faint
There was a sob. hard and blttar.
and then the youug man cried aa a
f sd4 ! naan's seatence Bo mignt have envied
him. for ho waa to ear re only fifteen
years His offense waa burglary.
They boarded a train for Ossining tr
the Grand Central station.
At Tarrytown. where tbe electric
.one ended, the train was delayed
white au engine was coupled to tbe
toacben Here the tracks run on the
child would cry wbe* an ugly temper-' Ivery edge of the Hudson, the river
splashing tbe ties'during high wtada
from the west
Across tbe river Montgomery could
gee a pretty cluster of bouses half hid-
den In the trees. It waa the village of
Nyaek. Just over the skyline and be-
yond the last peaked roof was a cot-
tage sta tiding back from the broad au-
tomobile rued which leads to Tuxedo.
Within that cottage waa the little
mother with the faded eyes and the
heart that bad turned to lead In the
rimlnal courts building In New York,
la eyes peered hungrily through the
cb window. He bad written to her
m tbe Tombs. It waa a brave letter
>f determination to some day prove to
f mid
k. Jut
tw
titfafl." Montgomery tn>d
<«*>.» -VO
•Guilty of murder in th* second da-
gree.”
Mlko” That, with political power
enough to make n Judge tremble, back
of her. Shu had no money with which
to allay the Itching of the palhis of
petty grnfter* who would sell the right-
eous for silver and the poor for a pnlr
of shoes, sa they have been doing alaca
Isnluh's time. ...
At last she turned away aud suf-
fered herself to be taken back to the
little cottage out in the country. A
month before she had bee'ja sprightly
old lady, qplck of step, delighted with
every household task, nnd always find-
ing her reward in the pride that n
mother takes lu a good son. But in
the city site had found the waters of
Mnrnli and the city’s system had faffed
her down, dov.-n, down to drink of
them.
Her little, old limbs became heavy,
her tiny fai e whiter thnn the untoueb
ed scroll of judgment before sin aud
sorrow bnj ever come uhder lion von
and ber beart— ber good, gcuy*>, tender,
compassionate heart—weg turned to
lead. /
A week after her departure her son
was taken from his ceil In the Tombs
and ov«r the Bridge of Sighs to the
criminal court* building to be sen-
tenced.,
Thq' boy stood up when the clerk
bin. lie heard the question usk-
Viether there was any reason why
penalty of the law should nbt be
exacted from him. He could think of
nothing to say aare, ”1 am Innocent.”
The formula of sentence was mum
bled by tbe Judge and an officer took
him by tbe .arm and led him away.
As they reached the bridge over
rranklin street, connecting tbe Tombs
and court, building. and the sunlight
from the square windows struck upon
thorn for a moment, Montgomery nak-
ed hla keeper: (
‘How many years did ha Bay? I
could not bear him."
ed servant took from the nursery floor
lu toys newly given.
Tbe sentence of the court bad swept
from him the toys of young manhood
and had cast them as grass Into the
furnace. He would never hear the
sound of a woman’s voles, nor the
sound of laughter by man or child. He
would never again see the magic line
wberq sky and sea or woodlands meet
Even tbe seasons of the year were
taken from him. Tbe beauties of ns.
tore familiar to the eyea of a whole-
some country boy. tbe spread of smiling
fields, tassvled corn waving in tbe
wind, bendlug roads, glimpses of the
suulit river through foliage, quiet lit-
tle gardens In front of quiet little
bouses, were all takeu from him us if
the lull of a comet iouded with cyano-
gen bad swept tbe earth aud hud wiped
out all tbe loveliness tbat God bad
fashioned for bis children.
As tbe sentenced prisoners were be-
ing taken from the Tombe for the Jour-
neys to the state's various prisons De-
tective Lieutenant Michael Kearney
sat In tbe office of bis Inspector and
received the congratulations for hla ex-
cellent work in the Montgomery case.
Inspector Unuscouihe looked over hla
list of aaalgnineuU for tbe day aud
found nothing worth tbe time aud skill
of his favorite man hunter.
“You huve u day off. Mike,” he told
the detective.
Kearney rose, saluted and left head-
quarters. A man absolutely unappre-
ciative of the ordinary pleasures of
life, he found himself at a loss wbat
to do There was only one thing worth
while on a day off—his little flat In
Oliver street, lie made his way home.
He rang the bell In the vestibule. The
lock clicked nnd be entered.
Keuruey mounted tbfe stairs and |
opened his mother's kitchen door with- I
out knocking.
•Well. Mike." exclaimed Mrs. Kear
ney In surprise, “what brtng^ you
home at this time of day?”
"1 gottn day off,” he told her. “Ye're
scrubbing the kltcheu flure again
When'll you be done?"
"Pretty soon. Mike. You go In the
pnrlor aud make yourself comfortable,
nnd I'll bring the beer and your pl|te.”j
He did as she bade him, aud she fol-
lowed. clearing off u center table and
placing his beer. pi|te and tobacco on lt|
He tried several chnlrs. They were
all stiffly tufted—bought for "compa-1
ny.” He could ndjust himself to nbne
of them comfortably. He returned to
the kitchen.
“Could ye sprend down some bagging
so I can stay in here?" he asked.
“Sure, lad," she replied from herj
knees. "I'm finished now.”
She made him comfortable In his old
chair by the window. He was engag-
ed In balancing himself at his fnvorl
angle when ho noticed something black
>»n the end of the kitchen table.
••What's that, old lady?" he asked
curiously.
The mother's face pnled.
He reached over and picked It op
It was a filmy nnd torn veil. Beneath
It was a little black fan.
"She forgot them—Mrs. Montgom-
ery,” explained the mother, taking tho
two nrtlcles from tbe hand of her son.
“The poor little womnn. the poor little
womn n!”
She hurried with them to her bed
room, which opened on the kitchen
When she returned and began stinking,
down the ashes In the store she sighed
’•It’s terrible. Mike." she said. "The
poor old mtllier Is left out tn tba world
to starve or die of a broken heart.
Blessed Mother In Heaven, look after
her.”
Some of the cOzinoss of the room
seemed to leave It. Was there chill lb
the air, or did he Just Imagine It? He
closed the window back of him.
"The evidence was all one way.” he
grunted. “I didn't try him. I wasn’t
the judge or the Jury. I didn't decide
whether he was guilty or Innocent
That ain’t m.v Job. My Job Is to get
1 be evidence for the proaecutlon.”
He tried to think of * mottling to
say that would turn the conversation
to some more agreeable subject, but he
was a one Idea man. and there was no
fancy in him.
From the open door of his mother's
bedroom came n soft, ruffling sound.
It startled him. ' f
“What’s that?" be- demanded.
“It's that dirt! of a kitten. Mlck«y,"
she told him.
At If In answer for himself, Mrs.
Kearney's mnuser rolled Into the kltcti
en. slapping amt playing with a black
object, the mourning fan of Mfa. Mont-
gomery.
Kenrtiey left hla chair and went to a
Closet, 'piking down d rusty felt hat
■ nd a raincoat.
“I think I'll walk around to th' Oak
street stntloiy f’r a bit of gossip.'' he
said.
“But I’ll be gettln' lunch fr y« pret-
ty soort, Mike,” she protested.
“Naw; I guess I’ll eat out fr a
change." With a grunt of goodby he
left tbe flat.
^i)i$
Of <
the world that he was Innocent of the
crime of which be bad been convicted.
iHe advised her to cast about for a
boarder ao that abe could keep the
taxes paid on tbe home. Hla father
bad been a Mason In good standing,
and the Masons bad helped her befora
They would help their dead brotber'a
widow again, be told heK .
Tbe boy pressed his forehead against
the window pane and feasted hla eyes
for the last time on the heavily wood-
ed farther sbdre.
One of the atrongest swimmers among
tbe sturdy country boys about Nyaek,
be bad swum tbe river, a good three
and a half miles, more than once, and
this scene In all Its simple loveliness
was old, and sweetly old. to bis young
eyes.
The train pansed at Scarborough and
was off aggln In less than a minute.
Suddenly the eyes of the boy at tbe
window encountered total darkness
and to his ears came tbe din of a rail-
road tunnel. The short tunnel was di-
rectly under the entrance to Sing Sing
prison. In a few seconds the train
cleared the tunnel and stopped at Da
alning station.
A covered tumbril was ready to take
them up the steep road from the sta-
tion to the highway running south nnd
to the prison. Tbe team of horses
struggled upward, straining and pant-
ing. and, reaching the highway, stop-
ped to blow. The convicted men hud
a few more precious moments in
which they could fenst their eyes with
glimpses of sky, river and bills
through tbe opeu front and rear of Die
vehicle.
At the end of the road loomed a bar-
rack-like building of gray stone, fast
blackening, with the years. It was tbe
first of the prison structures, nnd
about it ran a high and wide wall. At
regular Intervnls upou this wall Were
little octagonal seutry houses and in
each of these stood a man with a rifle.
The building, rising high above the
wall, bad narrow slits in its sheer
stone sides, nnd these slits were criss-
crossed with steel fears.
Within this structure a cell nwnlted
Montgomery. It would be his resting
place at night after the day’s work iu
the shops of the walled city of silence,
sorrow, sweat and celibacy. Of the out-
side world he would see only a patch
of sky squared by the steel bars. He
would be as the police thought a yegg
mnn should be—buried alive.
James Montgomery was stripped of
hts clothes and finally stripped of bis
name. Both were thrown away. lie
became No. (50,108.
He stood uaked under the examina-
tion of the prison physician and was
then placed under n shower bnth and
washed dean. Garments mudfe by con-
victs were given him, ill fitting under-
wear. heavy shoes and n dull gray suit
o?, buggy trousers and almost shape-
less Jacket He was reported to the
foreuiUD of .the machine sloop as avail
Hble material for his force.
Montgomery was struck by the quiet
of the prison. There was no sound of
voices. Convicts enme and went or
busied themselves In groups over pris-
on tasks, hut they did not converse.
He was Informed that the rule of si
leuce was strictly enforced and that
he might talk only nt the close of work
and when he was in his cell. He was
of a taciturn nature, bnt when ‘ he
thought that the rule of silence would
obtain through his whole lifetime the
thing became appalling. He had the
privilege of a cell by himself or with
a cellmate. For the sake of the hu-
man voice he would hear in the morn-
ing before work, and at night nfter
work be asked to be allowed to abnre
a ceil.
The fifteen year man made the same
request, and the old burglar nnd tbe
country boy became cell companions.
They separated for the time being.
No. 00.108 was sent to the machine
shops nnd turned over to the convict
foreman, who questioned him and test-
ed. him as to the value and use of
many tools and who found him worthy
and well qualified for a place on his
staff. Tbe burglar needed no examina-
tion of that sort He had been through
It all before. He wns given the work-
ing tools of his craft and began cut-
ting garments with other prisoners,
who gave him looks of recognition nnd
signaled greetings with their fingers in
indulge In. -
“You got the white disk on yonr
coat.” bo began finally. *li yon keep
It they'll lot you bavo newspapers and
eats and tobacco. It’s tbo flat term
dtak Mine’s red. Tbls la my third
trip. Second term men woa^ a blue
disk. As soon as any one ot us vio-
lates a regulation, off goeo tho dink,
kid, and you’ll never win It back. Got
tbatr v
Montgomery nodded.
Bill eapUilued tbat after a'year of
perfect conduct be would be given n
white chevron to add to tbe disk, and
It would entitle him to write a tetter
once every two weeks aud tbat once
every month he might purchase little
articles for bis comfort
"But you can't slip 'em aloug to sny
of ■your friends.” be said. "If you do
and they catch you It is good night for
tbo white disk aud the chevron nnd all
tbd good marks-that would count for a
commutation man.” .
After four years of perfect conduct
marked by the disk and four white
chevrons. Bill explained, be would be
allowed to receive visits from friends
once a month, could write u letter once
a week, could receive a box of cooked
food every three months from home—
If be bad a home—and could take a
ucwspu|ier und keep It for two days
ou a stretch.
For these instructions the boy thank-
ed bia cellmate simply.
“Don’t call me Mr. Huwklns.” pro-
tested Bill. "Call me Bill. Tlila ain’t
any place for thO mister business.”
(Continued next week.)
Public Weigher Harvey re-
ports that to Thursday nootj,
302 bales of cotton had been
stored on the cotton yard, J5.958
bales soid. The prices ranged
from to 8c.
Just before the war came on
last summer, we were almost-
assured of electricity for^ the
city. The Texas Power. Co. had
under consideration, a line from
the T. &. P. railroad, south to
Deport. Tiie war disturbed the
finances of the country and all
proposed new lines not under
construction at the tilne, were
abandoned. A committee from
the Commercial Club is again at
work on the proposition, and it
is hoped that we will secure
electricity for the town.
While in Minter Wednesday
we met L. L. Payne. Nothing
out of the ordinary iri'the above
sentence, for we met menv
more of our Minter friends. Hut
Mr. Payne- has something that
is out of the ordinary. In fact,
if we so possessed, we would
quit the newspaper bu^inessand
join a show. Mr, Payne has
five good fingers and a thumb
on his left hand. The fingers on
the hand taper, down from the
long or middle finger and the
fifth or smallest finger is not
much smaller than the average
size little linger. He lias per-
fect use of it.
For Sale
0
CHAPTER P
* No. 60,108.
the deaf nnd dumb code or cUckptf out
^^^^ptegntphlc messages W»
Their s(
lorse with
F the men sentenced with James
Montgomery six were sent .to
Sing Sing, while tbe others
went to Cllntou and Auburn
The six Slug Slug men were inauueled
In couples, but ns Montgomery wns a
“lifer” additional precaution agulnst
attempted escape was tuken by band
cuffing him to a guard us well as to
his prison mate. There were three
links in tbe chain of- humanity and
a tool.
Montgomery found tbat tbe priaoner
locked to bis right wrist was a heavy,
long armed man with tbe prognathous
Jaw who bad sworn heartily and bit-
terly the morning of tb« lineup at po-
lice. headquarters.
Tbe all men und their gtiarda piled
into an automobile van In front of tbe
Tombe 00 Center street. Abeve the
clanging of tbe gong ef tbe machine
and tbe heavy roar of vehicular traffic
aa they wera taken toward tba Grand
Central station Montgomary could bear
tbe man beside him keeping dp a low
growl, ak of a beast dreamiJfc of bat-
tle. Had be known tbo length of this
pfeic messages lu ihe
elr scissors.
The midday tneal In the mess hnll
was choked down by Montgomery with
a mighty effort His Interest In ma-
chinery kept him from breaking down
during the afternoon. After the even
Ing meal he was marched to his prison
tier with a battalion of convicts, nnd a
guard showed him his cell. He found
the fifteen year man already there.
Every cell on the tier Vas a busy
phonograph by this rime, for the rule
of silence wns now suspended, and the
men could talk all they pleased In the
cells or from cell to cell. When the
chatter became a babel of sound, a
guard warned those talking loudest
and tbe roar would die down.
“Well, wbat yon In for and for bow
long?”
Tbe country boy turned to tbe ques-
tioning burglar. *1 waa convicted of
murder. 1 am In for life."
Tbe burglar grunted and scanned tbe
face of bis cell mate closely.
“My name’s Bill-Bill Hawkins," be
■aid. "I'm In for burglary. You're
green. I’ll put you belt to tblngn.”
Bill wan anger to talk and paused
for a moment as If coimMerliig .be line
-A. J ■: i :'i ’ * ’ I A. ■
DR. S. H. GRANT
General Practice
Office in Post Office Building
Phone—Office 41.—Residence 201
DEPORT, - TEXAS
DR. B. S. GRANT
Physician and Surgeon
Calls Answered Dav or Night
Office Thompson's Drug Store
DEPORT, - Texas
. V
J
p
is
Or trade a-good four-year old
sorrell .stallion. Also a good
h ree-year old Jack. Will take
a good horse as part payment.
Mack Read.
A. MOORE, D. V. M.
Veterinary Surgeon
Office, l-tickey Wagon Yatd
| Citizens’ 5lS -s'* '
Phones } Southwestern .174
__Paris,/Texas.___
E. H. B. STEELE
Physician and Surgeon
Residence, Commercial Hotel
Res. ’Phone 105 Office phone; 146
Office at City Drug Store
DEPORT, TEXAS
Dr. M. C. Andrews
DENTIST
Office in Phones in
Postoftice Bldg. ,• Office and Res.
Deport, Texas
5
A. P. Park L. L. Hardison
W. F. Moore
Park, Moore & Hardison
LAWYERS
South Side Lamar Ave., Paris, Tex.
WELLS & CALVIN
Lawyers
Lynch Bulding
PARI8, TEXA8
Chas. W. Elliott L. V. L
M. H. Baughn
Elliott, Larsen ft Baughn
/ LAWYERS
Offiee in Lynch Bld’g. Paris,
a#ujmj
tn io
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The Deport Times (Deport, Tex.), Vol. 6, No. 52, Ed. 1 Friday, January 29, 1915, newspaper, January 29, 1915; Deport, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth1158705/m1/2/?rotate=90: accessed July 18, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu.; crediting Red River County Public Library.