Petaluma High School - Trojans Yearbook (Petaluma, CA)

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■if tripLp t-t (Senior Prize Story) IM HICKS had the reputation of being the meanest man in Mon¬ tana. Probably his title of “Crooked Jim” was well earned for J almost all the dealings in which he was involved were more or less shady. Yet along with his dishonesty he bore a reputation of getting out of his scrapes with uncanny ease. He was the possessor of several hundred acres of excellent cattle land and perhaps a hundred well kept cattle, though there were rumors that he had acquired his stock in a way not exactly legitimate. Whether or not this was true, no one dared say, for Crooked Jim was the fastest man on the draw in the cattle country and that fact coupled with his unerring aim, made quite a convincing argument against anyone who might be tempted to bring the law to bear upon him. Even if he had not obtained his cattle in a shady way, it was certain that he disposed of them by unscrupulous methods. In fact, he rather prided himself on his ability to get the better of his bar¬ gains. It was this pride that ultimately led to his destruction. But to return to the story. A wealthy merchant from Chicago had arrived in the small town near Jim’s ranch and was favorably impressed with the land owned by Jim. The bargain was almost com¬ pleted, when Mr. Benton, the merchant, desiring to buy the cattle along with land, wished to count the number of animals Jim pos¬ sessed. At this Jim resorted to what he considered a smart trick. Knowing their small number, he hired several cowboys to drive his stock down a lane while Mr. Benton counted the animals as they ran by. In this way he kept the buyer in one spot while he drove his herd up a gully, out between some low knolls and again past Mr. Benton. This circle was kept up as long as Crooked Jim considered it safe to drive the same cattle past the merchant. With this simple trick he swindled unsuspecting Mr. Benton out of approximately five times what the land and cattle were really worth. He then dropped from sight, leaving no address or trace of his whereabouts. Mr. Benton attempted to have him apprehended, but as Crooked Jim could not be found, the attempt was in vain. —22—

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NTEPPPIH Into Wall Lee’s eyes flashed a frightened look, but after the fashion of her people she said nothing and without a word of protest she took her few belongings and followed Lee Chong. They made tlieii waj to Russian Hill and to an old brick house where she was shown a tiny basement room; it was to be hers. Then her duties in the household were assigned. Many months passed and Wah Lee saw Lee Chong only at the end of each week, when he would call for the money she had earned. Little by little Wah Lee grew accustomed to her surroundings and became devoted to the artist’s household in which she w r as em¬ ployed. She began to learn American ways and observed incidentally that American husbands were not like Lee Chong; that they did not force their wives to work while they did nothing; so when her wages were increased for faithful service she said nothing to Lee Chong, but hid the extra money in a little box she had brought from China. A hatred for Lee Chong formed in her heart and grew day by day. Two years passed and Wah Lee resolved to see what that great and awesome thing “The Law” could do to free her from her hus¬ band. One day she put on the clothes she had worn from China and went to see the man they called “The lawyer.” She learned from him that it was her right to do as the Americans did. The queer, little, fat lawyer explained in a kindly way that she should return again in one month for what he called “a hearing” and that he wonld send word immediately to Lee Chong to be pres¬ ent also. On her way home Wah Lee went through Chinatown, the part of Chinatown which, during the day, is reeking with a combined odor of fish, vegetables and ducks or other fowl being cooked in the oil prep¬ aration of the Chinese; the very busy part of that busy city by the Golden Gate where carts and trucks go rattling up and down over the cobblestoned hills and people of many races are hastening along the grey, cracked walks. Now, however, as Wah Lee lingered in the gathering dusk to look at tawdry shop windows, everything was much, much, quieter. She heard occasionally the soft pad of slippered feet slinking thru the shadows. Chinatown, after dark, is ever ominous, but fascinating —danger lurks in every shadow. Wah Lee shivered and hurried on. As the cold, gray mist from San Francisco Bay began to lift, and the east became lighter, the hollow rattle of early morning vehicles moving over the eternal cobblestones, broke the vast stillness of the sleeping city. In a dark, mist dampened alley near Sing Fat’s Emporium, lay a silent, huddled figure. Was she sleeping! She might have been had not the hilt of a short Chinese dagger shown itself from the folds of her mandarin coat. —21— HENRY SEISS, ’22.

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iJQlG Several years later as Mr. Benton, now a large landowner, was visiting one of liis newly acquired Texas ranges, lie chanced up on one of liis cowboys, a mile or so from the ranch house. The cow¬ boy was watching the herd and generally taking things easy until Mr. Benton rode up. As his employer pulled up beside him, the cowboy raised his head and Mr. Benton recognized in him the long missing Crooked Jim. The recognition seemed mutual for Jim’s hand flashed to his hip; there was a puff of smoke, a sharp report; and Mr. Ben¬ ton fell heavily to the ground. Jim whirled liis horse and was off to the north with a greater crime than the first resting upon his shoul¬ ders. To avoid suspicion, he had gone to work under an assumed name for the man he had defrauded. Now he had murdered his employer and must seek some safe retreat or perish by the swift hand of western vengeance. So he fled northward, traveling by night and hiding by day. At length he reached his destination, the rugged hills and valleys of Eastern Oregon. Here he lay in hiding in the mountains living as best he could until the time would come when he could once more venture back to civilization. Finally, after months of lonely life, he descended to a little Oregon settlement. There he obtained, with his rather limited means, a few horses and several head of cattle with which he returned to the hills to build up his squandered for¬ tune and forget his past. Years passed and he prospered. He had built himself a small cabin in a sheltered valley beneath the shadow of Lone Boulder Peak. This peak Jim had picked as a place for a last stand if the need should ever come. He knew once more the feel of money in his pock¬ ets and had forgotten the day on the Texas prairie. Then something happened. A change came over him. His trips to the village became more numerous. Obviously there was an attraction, for most of his time was spent there. One word describes it—LIQUOR. Hitherto he had been only a moderate drinker, but his lonely life in the moun¬ tains had at last weakened his will power. Matters went from bad to worse. The more he drank the more he craved the fiery liquid. He lived only for it and would do anything to obtain it. Then one evening a stranger appeared in town. He wore a star and at once made a tour of the saloons. Justice was reaching out for Crooked Jim. It was not long before the sheriff found him. Jim was drunk as usual but he saw the star on the sheriff’s coat. His mind swept backward to the murder of Mr. Ben- tion. Then his gun flashed, and the sheriff crumpled on the floor. In the confusion, Jim escaped as he had at other times. He rode hard toward his mountain retreat with a posse but a few miles in his rear. Daybreak found him at his cabin, but he stopped there only for ammunition. Then on he went to the top of Lone Boulder Peak where, with an effort, he scaled the side of the huge rock and sank down in a hollow at the top. This depression he had discovered on —23—