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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Silver Moon" data-source="post: 2951453" data-attributes="member: 8530">Chapter 145, “Finding a Marshall”, Thursday, March 23rd , 1882:Mitchell Berg stands and says, "I am certain that this body should be able to find a suitable candidate. One whose moral caliber would not be objectionable to the members of the Vigilance Committee but also not looking to close down all of the saloons in town." Austin Blake of Drover's Hotel and Livery blurts out "What about you?"  Berg is surprised and says, "I didn't mean..." Don Wainwright of Wainwright's Store says, "Who better than a man who has studied the law to enforce it?" Dick Lester of Lester's Funeral Parlor say, "Well, he's probably one of the most honest men in town.""I would be loathe to have Mr. Berg give up his services as a lawyer in town, he provides a valuable service. One that is every bit as valuable as the Marshall's job." Jake states and looks at Berg. "However, if Mr. Berg desires to contribute to the community by expressing his interest in the position I will support it."A smile twitched at the corner of Kate's mouth. Berg obviously wasn't sure about taking the job, which was just as well as far as she was concerned. He might not be familiar with the enforcement part of the work, but Chester and Deputy Rodriguez were. He could do very well. Kate looked over at Jake to see how he liked the suggestion.Hamilton Fisk stands in anger and says of his rival lawyer "That's absurd! He couldn't practice law and be Marshall! That is a total conflict of interest!" Berg replies, "Obviously I could not bring cases before the Judge as a lawyer if I were also Marshall, but I would hope to still be able to prepare legal documents." Even Adair then stands and says, "He doesn't even carry a gun! He's just as bad as that wood elf!" Jumping on that bandwagon Fisk asks Berg "Do you even own a gun?" Berg replies, "Not presently, but I have shot before." A few people in the room snicker at that response. Helen Barker stands and then exclaims "Well, if firearms use is the only qualification then pin the badge on me. I can outshoot any man in town!" That comment receives laughter from throughout the room. When the laugher dies down she turns to Jake and asks "Mr. Cook. Would you happen to have a deck of cards on your person?"Jake answers, "Mrs. Barker I do in fact have a deck of cards on my person. I'm not sure that I understand how that helps us select a new Marshall. Perhaps you could enlighten us all to your thinking?"  She smiles and says "Please humor me for a minute. If you could please remove the deck and hand them to Doctor James Eaton." Eaton says, "Ma'am, I do not..." She gives the Doctor a forceful look and says, "Please, this will only take a moment. Mr. Cook, the cards please."Jake removes the silver case from his pocket. He opens the case and removes the cards, replacing the case in his pocket. He splits the deck putting a half in each hand, fans the cards, and shuffles them back together. He squares the deck off, taps it on the back of his chair and hands it to Dr Eaton without a word.Helen tells Doctor Eaton "James, I have often observed you playing baseball in the field north of the town with your sons Tad and Philby. I know that you have a fine pitching arm. Kindly toss those cards up towards the ceiling as high as you can." He says, "Mrs. Barker, I do not..." She sharply says, "Just Do It!" He does as instructed. As the cards leave his hand she begins to raise her right leg while reaching down to the slit in her skirt with her right arm. In rapid succession she draws her pearl-handled Colt revolver from her boot holster and points the gun upward just as the cards reach the apogee of their ascent. As they begin to separate and filter down into the room she fires off four shots, striking a number of cards while they are in the air. Deputy Marshall Chester Martin hears the shots and charges into the room. By that point she has already returned her gun to its holster. He doesn't see anybody in the room with a gun, only dozens of cards falling down around various people seated in chairs, with Jake, Doctor Eaton and Helen Barker still standing."Very good Mrs. Barker, you have slain my unarmed deck of cards." Jake comments and does not attempt to recover the deck.  Helen says calmly and matter-of-factly "Check the aces." Those seated near the fallen cards rummage through the pile, holding up the four Ace cards once they find them. The Ace of Spades, Hearts and Clubs each have a bullet hole right in the center of the card. The Ace of Diamonds has a bullet hole around three-quarters of an inch left of center. She comments, "Damn, I'm out of practice."Chester points his gun to the ground, but doesn't holster it. "What in blazes is going on in here? Is anyone hurt?"  Lumley says, "Everything's fine, Deputy. Mrs. Barker was just giving us a demonstration of her shooting skills."  Chester looks at Mrs. Barker. She gives him a look that dares him to say something. Chester doesn't take the bait, shakes his head, and leaves the room. He thinks to himself, “Gunplay in the Town Hall. Is she crazy?”   Isby approaches Chester and says "You may want to stick around."  He replies, "Sure thing, your honor. Bet you didn't expect to see me wearing a badge."  Isby responds, "I can't say I did, Deputy Martin. I'm glad you decided to enforce the law rather than break it." Chester snorts. "What did you want me to stick around for?" Up front, Sam Slade exclaims "That must have been a trick, she used magic." Gunsmith Pierre Jacquet stands and says "No, that is how she shoots. I've gone target shooting with her on a number of occasions and have also serviced that revolver many times. It was presented to her by Samuel Colt himself for her marksmanship skills." Town Butcher Ruby Baines stands and says "I'll attest to that, I was there. She beat out over a thousand men at the Baltimore Fair to win it. And most of the guys she was shooting against were Army veterans." Randall Mason of Mason's Feed & Grain says, "But she just put four holes into our new roof!" Helen exclaims "Marshall Berg can deduct the cost of the repairs from my first month's Deputy pay." That comment causes some commotion in the room and Stanley Barker's face turns ashen at the prospect of that. Lumley pounds the gavel to restore the room to order. He says, "Well, Mrs. Barker, that was some rather impressive shooting. Although to be totally honest I was even more impressed that you managed to get Doc Eaton to actually touch a deck of playing cards." That comment results in a loud round of laughter, helping to break the tension in the room. Lumley says, "Mr. Berg, are you willing to accept the nomination for Marshall?" Berg replies, "Absolutely, provided that Helen will give me some points on shooting." That results in more laughter. Berg then says, "I do feel that the town should incorporate, at which time the Marshall will become an elected position. But I am willing to wear the badge until then." Lumley says, "I'll put incorporation on the agenda for our meeting next week. Let's all vote now on the nomination." Berg wins by a resounding 41 to 8 with 5 abstentions. Kate Higgins of the Long Branch Saloon stands and then says "I nominate Helen Barker for the position of Deputy Marshall." Laurie Gilson stands and says "I second the nomination." Chester comments to nobody in particular, "That's interesting. A woman Deputy Marshall. Who would have thought that could happen?"  Chumbley whispers over to Katherine "Ah, this makes sense. Articles of Incorporation would include specifying exactly who has the right to vote. If Barker is a town official that'll almost guarantee that women will be permitted to." A lengthy and very lively debate follows. Several women in the audience leave the building, soon returning with many of the wives of the various members. Prior to the vote being cast Helen asks for a short five-minute recess, during which time the wives each head over to and speak with their husbands. Helen avoids Stanley, instead heading over to Cook and Hoover. She tells them both "If I win that'll mean I'll be permitted to carry my gun into your establishment again. I'll bring you a replacement deck of cards tomorrow night Mr. Cook." The vote is called for. She manages to squeak by with a win on a vote of 18 in favor, 15 opposed and 21 abstentions. Lumley quickly calls for a motion to dismiss the meeting before anybody suggests a three-month appointment as they had for Martin and Rodriguez. He calls for the next meeting of the group to be the following Tuesday morning.   The meeting adjourns. Helen locks her harm in Berg's and says, "Well Boss, Let's go see our new Office."Before he can leave the meeting Jake grabs Mr. Hammer and reminds him not to tell Ruby who bought the ring she was admiring. Then Jake runs to catch up with Mitchell Berg and Helen Barker. "I won't congratulate you two, but I will wish you luck. You don't yet know what you just got yourselves into. I have some information the previous Marshall asked me to share with his former deputies, I think he'd want me to share with you as well. You will need to know all of this for the days ahead not only to keep Promise City safe, but to safeguard yourselves and any of those to which you are close." Jake finishes that sentence by looking at Helen. "Mitchell, when you have settled in gather up your deputies and arrange to speak to me today."  Jake leaves the dispersing crowd shaking his head and muttering to himself. "It could have been worse. Of course I still have to tell Ruby what happened."Kate said good bye to Chumbley and tried to work her way through the crowd toward Jake. He was already on his way out the door before she even got halfway there. Instead she headed back toward Pedro. "Well, that was... Interesting. It could have come out a lot worse. I'm not sure about Mrs. Barker, she seems to have a quick temper, not a good trait for a law officer. But Mr. Chumbley pointed out that with her as a Deputy it will be hard to deny women the right to vote after we incorporate. I have to say I do like that." He laughs and says, "Yes, I think what we saw played out today was a variation of the ancient Greek play Lysistrata. Are you familiar with that work?"  “Yes, I am," she laughed. "I'm glad our ladies didn't have to go quite that far. We would have a lot of surly husbands on our hands." He states, "Yes, but the question regarding gender is only one of the two battles to be fought regarding who will be entitled to vote. Mrs. Barker made a strong statement today, if Articles of Incorporation are drawn up women may indeed get the right to vote in this town. The other battle however will not be so easy, namely giving that right to non-humans. While many of the Association members have a woman influencing them they don't have non-humans living under their roofs. The support today for Deputy Marshall Rodriguez will help, but it will be difficult." She says, "It will be difficult. I've met many people here who know that whatever race you are, you deserve respect, and I'm sure that would extend to voting. And then there are those like Adair. You know I'll make my opinion clear to anyone who asks," she finished, squeezing his arm. He replies, "Yes, but you are not a member of the Merchant's Association. There are only two non-human members and they don't pay much attention to us. And before any Articles of Incorporation are drawn up the Vigilance Committee also has to sign off on them, that will be a harder sell. Perhaps if we ask her Minerva might preach on the subject of tolerance and equality this Sunday. That could help get people thinking before Tuesday's meeting."   She answers, "I will be. Before the next meeting if I need to be. I have the money for the dues, and the permanent structure. I don't see why I couldn't start right away." After the meeting, Minerva approaches Katherine and asks her how she is feeling today and if she has recovered from their outing of the night before.  Kate replies, "Mostly. I'm still... It's odd to go from such a thing back to my usual life. I'm afraid it will be some time before I can... reconcile some things."  The Priestess then walks over to Laurie Gilson’s bath house to freshen up and talk to Laurie about her offer to help with the festival. As Laurie helps her prepare for her bath, Minerva tells her that she would love to have her assist with the Festival. She asks her what skills or talents she has that she could use to contribute to the Festival.Laurie replies, "Skills? I don't have any skills. All I can do is manage a bath house. I'm no pianist, or singer or dancer."  “Oh, Senora Gilson,” she laughs "You have the most sought after talent in the world. You are able to run this bathhouse, and keep everything straight and organized and keep your customers happy. I am embarrassed to admit that the gods did not bestow that gift upon me.  There is so much to keep track of, who's planning what, who's donating what, where all the events are being held and when. It makes my head spin to even think about it! If you could help me keep it all straight, I would be so grateful!"Laurie replies, "Oh, is that all. That will be easy to do, and I think that Mr. Lacey has already started some of that work. I'll talk to him about that at the earliest opportunity. Between the two of us you should have nothing to worry about."  Minerva hugs Senora Gilson gratefully. "Oh, Gracias! You are certainly a gift of the gods. Bless you Senora, you are a lifesaver! Now I must hurry home to get ready for my next appointment. Adios" She turns back as she is leaving. "I will be back tomorrow and you can begin to dig me out of this mess!" Kate walked back to the El Parador with Pedro and sat with Ginnie as she ate her breakfast. Then, instead of letting her go back to the books, she took her next door to Mr. Rixton's furniture shop. "Good morning, Mr. Rixton. I hope you'll be able to help me. You might have heard I'm planning on starting a school. I'm going to need school desks, or at least benches and tables. I'm also going to need some home furniture. Since I'll be needing so much, I hoped we might be able to arrange for a bit of a discount?"He replies, "Oh absolutely. We should probably work out the specifications for student desks. The advantage to buying them locally is that I can have them made to the appropriate size for each student. In the meanwhile I have several tables and chairs in stock that could help get you started."She states, "That would be wonderful. Much more comfortable for them than desks that are too big for the little ones and too small for the older. I'm sure the tables and chairs will do just fine for now. Is it possible to rent them until I get the desks?  We'll also need a couple beds, some parlor and kitchen furniture, and other bedroom things."  He replies, "Well why don't you take a walk thorough my store and pick out whatever pieces are of interest to you. Don't worry about payment, we'll work something out.""That's very generous, sir," Kate said, surprised. "Ginnnie, why don't you see if there is anything you like in particular." Kate looked around and spotted a few sturdy, simple pieces that would do well for the ranch house. For the house in town she chose things a little nicer for the parlor, and a pretty vanity set as a treat for herself. She showed Mr. Rixton what she was interested in and asked, "About how much do you think this would come to?"He says, "Oh, around $ 80. If you put $ 20 down and agree to pay $ 5 a week until the balance is paid we can get you set up right away."  She answers, "I can put the twenty down right away. I'd like to add four more kitchen chairs, if you don't mind. Now, will I need to arrange for moving the furniture?"He states, "I can get my friends over at the El Parador to help me move them for you, just tell me where you want them delivered to."  She replies, "Some of it will go to the old Bauer house. I'll be using it for the school building and be living upstairs. The rest will go out to my ranch, about a mile out of town. I'm not sure I'm ready to have it all moved yet, would it be possible for you to hold it for me for a few days?”  He answers, “Of course. I'm always willing to help a fellow member of Dorita's extended family."  "Fortunate are we whom Dortia has taken under her wing," she smiled.She adds, “Oh, and might it be possible to get a few pieces I don't see here? A couple of vanities and chests of drawers?"  He replies, "Absolutely, that would be fun. Let me know the number of drawers and size that you want each and I'll get started on them right away."  Kate thanked Mr. Rixton and described what she had in mind, telling him to feel free to be creative if he liked. She then took Ginnie back home and spent some time with her in Mr. Gonzales' rooms before heading over to the Lucky Lady to meet with the others. The meeting left her with much to think on, and she spent a great deal of the rest of the afternoon doing just that, as well as finally taking the time to consider what had happened the night before. Discomfort didn't get even close to how she was feeling. Her own fear and distrust warred with the feeling of comfort she had experienced during their moonlight ritual. She could never believe, as Miss Florencia seemed to, that the gods had their hands in everything; some control of her own life must belong to her. Giving up any of that control to a god terrified her. And there was the matter of the Cowboy Gang. Life seemed surreal, going about as if everything was normal, living her every day life, and then finding she didn't dare send furniture to her new home for fear it would be seen and the gang would target the school building. Underneath it all was that radiant contentment she felt, knowing that she had the one thing she had thought she would always be denied. Sometimes it seemed that soon she must split in two. She cleared her head when a tray of food arrived at her door. Dinner hour was almost past, and as Dorita said, if she would not come to dinner, dinner would come to her. She ate obediently and then dressed in the gown she'd had made for the Lucky Lady's reopening. That would please Ruby for their night of fun, it was the lowest cut thing she had that wasn't an evening gown. Once she was dressed she went downstairs where Grant Keebler waited to walk her to work.</blockquote>

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