Collection of Nebraska Pioneer ReminiscencesDaughters of the American Revolution. Nebraska
History
Collection of Nebraska Pioneer Reminiscences
Daughters of the American Revolution. Nebraska
Frontier and pioneer life -- Nebraska; Nebraska -- History
While he was eating, two Pawnee warriors arrived at the station on a
freight train, from the east. They at once hunted up the sheriff, a
broad-shouldered Irishman named John Kehoe, and made complaint that the
half-breed Sioux had stolen a horse from one of them and had the animal
in his possession. Complaint was formally made and a warrant issued for
the half-breed's arrest upon the charge of horse-stealing, the warrant
being issued by the aforesaid justice of the peace.
The Sioux was at once taken in custody by the sheriff and brought before
the justice. One of the Pawnees swore the horse the half-breed rode when
he entered the town was his property, and the other Pawnee upon oath
declared he knew it was. The prisoner denied the statement made by the
Pawnees and vehemently declared the animal was his property; that he
came by it honestly, and that the Pawnee had no title whatever in the
horse.
There was no jury to hear and judge the evidence, and the justice was
compelled to decide the case. He had had some experience with redskins,
and entertained but small regard for any of them, but as the
preponderance of the evidence was against the Sioux, he decided the
latter was guilty, and after a short study of the matter sentenced the
culprit to be hanged.
There were no lawyers in Plum Creek at that time, a condition that has
not existed since, and each side did its own talking. The Sioux at once
filed a vigorous complaint against the sentence, but was ordered by the
court to keep still.
Realizing he had no chance, he became silent, but some of the citizens
who were present and listening to the trial, interposed objections to
the strenuous sentence, and informed the court that "as we are now
organized into a county and have to go by law, you can't sentence a man
to hang fer stealin' a hoss."
This staggered the justice somewhat and he again took the matter under
advisement, and shortly after made the following change in the sentence,
addressing the prisoner as follows "----, Dem laws don't let you get
hanged, vich iss not right. You iss one teef; dat iss a sure ting, and I
shust gif you fifteen minutes to git out of dis state of Newbrasky."
The Pawnee secured possession of the horse, but whether it belonged to
them or not is questionable, and hit the eastern trail for the "Pawnee
house," while the Sioux warrior hastily got himself together and made a
swift hike toward the setting sun and safety.
A GOOD INDIAN
BY MRS. CLIFFORD WHITTAKER
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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