In the morning, the Court again met, and the Judge informed the people that he had received the verdict, which he would now hand back to the foreman to read. Mr. Langford accordingly read it aloud. From that time forward, a feeling of the bitterest hostility was manifested by the friends of Moore, Reeves and Mitchell toward all who were prominently connected with the proceedings. During the trial, the roughs would swagger into the space allotted for the Judge and Jury, giving utterance to clearly understood threats, such as, “I’d like to see the G--d d----d Jury that would dare to hang Charley Reeves or Bill Moore,” etc., etc., which doubtless had fully as much weight with the Jury as the evidence had. The pretext of the prisoners that the Indians had killed some whites, friends of theirs, in ’49, while going to California, was accepted by the majority of the jurors as some sort of justification; but the truth is, they were afraid of their lives--and, it must be confessed, not without apparent reason. To the delivery of this unfortunate verdict may be attributed the ascendancy of the roughs. They thought the people were afraid of them. Had the question been left to old Californians or experienced miners, Plummer, Reeves and Moore would have been hanged, and much bloodshed and suffering would have been thereby prevented. No organization of the Road Agents would have been possible. CHAPTER VII. PLUMMER VERSUS CRAWFORD. “I had rather chop this hand off at a blow And with the other fling it at thy face, Than bear so low a sail, to strike to thee.” SHAKSPEARE--HENRY VI. Crawford, who was appointed Sheriff at the trial of Moore and Reeves, tendered his resignation on two or three different occasions; but was induced to continue in office by the strongest representations of his friends. They promised to stand by him in the execution of his duty, and to remunerate him for his loss of time and money. The arms taken from Plummer, Reeves and Mitchell were sold by Crawford to defray expenses. Popular sentiment is shifting and uncertain as a quicksand. Shortly after this, “Old Tex,” one of the gang, collected a miners’ meeting, and at it, it was resolved to give the thieves their arms, Plummer and Tex claiming them as their property. The Sheriff had to go and get them, paying, at the same time, all expenses, including in the list even the board of the prisoners. For his services not a cent was ever paid to him. Popular institutions are of divine origin. Government by the people EN MASSE is the acme of absurdity.