Several officers present sprang to the side of the special commissioner, but fortunately refrained from drawing revolvers.Iwas standing at some distance from the table, and as I made a lunge forward, old man Don was hurled backward into my arms.He could not whip a sick chicken, yet his uncontrollable anger had carried him into the general melee and he had been roughly thrown out by some of his own men.They didn't want him in the fight;they could do all that was necessary.A number of soldiers were present, and while the officers were frantically commanding them to restore order, the scrap went merrily on.Old man Don struggled with might and main, cursing me for refusing to free him, and when one of the contractors was knocked down within easy reach, I was half tempted to turn him loose.The "major-domo" had singled out Sponsilier and was trying issues with him, Bob Quirk was dropping them right and left, when the deposed commandant sprang upon a table, and in a voice like the hiss of an adder, commanded peace, and the disorder instantly ceased.
The row had lasted only a few seconds.The opposing sides stood glaring daggers at each other, when the commissioner took occasion to administer a reproof to all parties concerned, referring to Texas in not very complimentary terms.Dave Sponsilier was the only one who had the temerity to offer any reply, saying, "Mr.Yank, I'll give you one hundred dollars if you'll point me out the grave of a man, woman, or child who starved to death in that state."A short recess was taken, after which apologies followed, and the commissioner resumed the hearing.A Western lawyer, named Lemeraux, made a very plausible plea for the immediate acceptance of the tender of Field, Radcliff & Co.He admitted that the cattle, at present, were not in as good flesh' as his clients expected to offer them; that they had left the Platte River in fine condition, but had been twice quarantined en route.He was cautious in his remarks, but clearly intimated that had there been no other cattle in competition for delivery on this award, there might have been no quarantine.In his insinuations, the fact was adroitly brought out that the isolation of their herds, if not directly chargeable to Lovell and his men, had been aided and abetted by them, retarding the progress of his clients'
beeves and forcing them to travel as fast as twenty-five miles a day, so that they arrived in a jaded condition.Had there been no interference, the tender of Field, Radcliff & Co.would have reached this post ten days earlier, and rest would soon have restored the cattle to their normal condition.In concluding, he boldly made the assertion that the condition of his client's tender of beef was the result of a conspiracy to injure one firm, that another drover might profit thereby; that right and justice could be conserved only by immediately making the decision final, and thus fearlessly silencing any and all imputations reflecting on the character of this government's trusted representatives.
The special commissioner assumed an air of affected dignity and announced that a conclusion had been arrived at.Turning to old man Don, he expressed the deepest regret that a civilian was beyond his power to punish, otherwise he would have cause to remember the affront offered himself; not that he personally cared, but the department of government which he had the honor to serve was jealous of its good name.Under the circumstances he could only warn him to be more guarded hereafter in choosing his language, and assured Lovdll that it was in his power to escort any offender off that military reservation.Pausing a moment, he resumed a judicial air, and summed up the situation:
