=_203._= LYNCH LAW AT EL PASO.
On the present occasion, circumstances rendered it necessary for safety,
as well as for the purpose of warning the desperate gang who were now
about to have their deserts, that all should be doubly armed. In the
court-room, therefore, where one of the most solemn scenes of human
experience was enacting, all were armed save the prisoners. There sat
the judge, with a pistol lying on the table before him; the clerks and
attorneys wore revolvers at their sides; and the jurors were either
armed with similar weapons, or carried with them the unerring rifle. The
members of the commission and citizens, who were either guarding the
prisoners or protecting the court, carried by their sides a revolver, a
rifle, or a fowling-piece, thus presenting a scene more characteristic
of feudal times than of the nineteenth century. The fair but sun-burnt
complexion of the American portion of the jury, with their weapons
resting against their shoulders, and pipes in their mouths, presented a
striking contrast to the swarthy features of the Mexicans, muffled in
checkered _serapes_, holding their broad-brimmed glazed hats in their
hands, and delicate cigarritos in their lips. The reckless, unconcerned
appearance of the prisoners, whose unshaven faces and dishevelled hair
gave them the appearance of Italian bandits rather than of Americans or
Englishmen, the grave and determined bearing of the bench; the varied
costume and expression of the spectators and members of the Commission,
clad in serapes, blankets, or overcoats, with their different weapons,
and generally with long beards, made altogether one of the most
remarkable groups which ever graced a court-room.
Pages:
382
383
384
385
386
387
388
389
390
391
392
393
394
395
396
397
398
399
400
401
402
403
404
405
406