to git him."

The words of the leader got their support in the rumble of fourscore
throats.

"I'm telling you the truth," quavered poor Aurora Lane. "Men, can't you
believe me? Have I ever lied to you?"

A roar of brutish laughter greeted this. "Listen at her talk!" cried one
tall young man. "Fine, ain't it! She's been just a angel here! Oh, no,
she wouldn't lie to us about that boy--oh! no, she never has! Why, you
ain't never done nothing _but_ lie, all your life!"

They laughed again at this, and became impatient.

"This is her little old place," began the same voice. "I've never been
in it before. I bet they's been goings-on, right here, more'n once."

"That's so!" said a man whose mouth corners were drawn down hard. "And
in this here God-fearin' town o' ours, that's always wanted to be
respectable."

"Sure we did, all of us!" encored the cracking treble of the same tall,
well-dressed young man. "Whose fault if we ain't? She's his mother. This
whole business come of her bein' what she is--looser'n hell, that's all.
We stood it all for years--but this is too much--killin' the city
marshal----"

"I didn't!" cried Aurora Lane, ghastly pale. "He never did. I've tried
to live here clean for twenty years. Not one of you can raise a voice
against me--you cowards, you liars! My boy--if he were here, not any ten
of you'd dare say that! You'd not dare to touch him. Oh, you brutes--you
low-down cowards!"

"We'll show you if we don't dare!" rejoined the steady voice of the
leader. "Fetch him out now and we'll show you about that. We're goin' to
git him, first 'r last, and it's no use trying to stop it. We'll
reg'late this town now, in our own way. If that boy's out of jail, he's
either skipped or else he's here. Either way, the safest thing to do is
to come on through with him. If you don't, we'll see about _you_--and
we'll do it mighty soon. Bring him out."

"Oh, hell!" shrilled a falsetto voice, "you're wastin' time with her.
Go on in after him--she's got him hid--she's kep' him hid for twenty
years and she's keepin' him hid now--and you can gamble on it! Go on in
and git him!"

There came a shuffling of feet on the walk, on the gallery floor. Aurora
was conscious that the blur of faces was closer to her.... She saw
masks, hats, kerchiefs, stubbled chins crowding in, close up to her. A
reek of the man pack came to her, close, stifling, mingled of tobacco,
alcohol, and the worse effluvia of many men excited.... Th