CHAPTER SEVEN:
NEW TOWN'S LAW
The two war within sight of the town as the sky darkened they war just able to see ahead the glow of a town: A town that war in some respectable size, and well what they war looking for. The Rockstone boys felt good for one another that they commenced to hee-hawing and yakking up. Though this war a ways off and the crept in uneasy for it war dark on all sides and they warn't too steady in their nerves, tired or maybe they warn't ready for there to be another town because it meant for them that they would have to converse and act like they had business, even though they just wanted a drink and not to deal with anyone, but the two kept on a-going. The two kept their horses pointed towards the glowing, fire-lit town. Their faces war want to have the light bathe their faces, and they thought it would be nice to be indoors for a change, so they each de-saddled, went and made scat, then returned to they horses and went on into the town.
The town's name war Newtown, but it war pronounced like the infamous scientist, nay the scientist who lived infamy. The town had a list of laws and both Them Rockstone Boy's and them's horses read the sign.
NEWTOWN'S LAW
All first time visitors to report to the Sherriff
All first time visitors who do not report to the Sherriff will be brought to said Sherriff.
Further instructions upon live arrival to Sherriff Office.
It war the type a sign the Founding Father's had fought so it would not sink its picket into America's soil, (or perhaps it war exactly the type of sign they fought for,(be that as it may they nonetheless endorsed the picket)) it war (nonetheless) the type of sign that drew a line in the sand, between (the 12th dynasty Ptolemaic Egyptian Toads and the Western Roman Frogs) and to differentiate from such a line whose purpose so that their's and North and South Caroliner, or that there's a banquet of counties puzzled into the known land mass of the erth that are ruled by waves of governments, the frogs leapt from the rivers to the top hills, the topography to spy the toads, and some would instantly categorize as some good and some bad, but the unbiased pious mice ran and protested and wanted peace and had many tears (yet in another war an innumerable amount of mice defeated and carried away battalions pigs to the sea): consider them all bad, even the America Government, the great country on erth, about to industrialize and give birth to the engineers and dreamers and artists of the next centry as the nineteenth war the ninetieth failure of masculinity and the twentieth to be the first of the suffragette, and over there somewhere else some Northern Parallel Government is making fun of the size of some Southerner's hats. Countries may not be fond of one another, like one another, but there is a divide, arbitrary, admittedly arbitrary, but maybe another Napoleon would rise and it'd all be one and then some other hawk would ruin that too, one real hawk, (and see the reason to not divulge in tangents or read italics, for the writer knows an hawk from an handsaw, and an horse from an ear of corn) have a simplified masculine Hammurabic Code, or Napoleonic Code, which still meshed in the Louisianan delta, but harder still would confront the idea that the nationalism, tribalism all lead to dominating a sphere that will deflate, but it hath touched the European mind and other minds. America's only decent claim about herself war that she said no to Empiricism, but the way the west is being conquered by the white man it wouldn't be unimaginable to see that old European fervor, that pushed us here, enkindle as a black flame in some poor soul's heart, whether his own mind, but some tyrant and such as this Sherriff would be his lackey, and it'd stretch up and up. It ain't the idea that the American Government shouldn't control the states; it's the notion that certain people continue to collectivize their efforts, lording it over the rest of everybody every place a town spring up. And for the white man to act innocent of blood when it is written on his forehead, cheeks and hands…
Unwelcomed the Rockstone's went on in and reckoned the Main Street had the Sherriff's Office, but it war silent in the town and dark in the town and there warn't anybody around and they saw ahead a light of a tavern and Rueben said, "We'll hit the tavern and just ask someone right away I suppose."
Leonard said, "Let's just ride up and down once."
And so they did without further say, and still the night war empty but the billions of stars, a fraction of the number of children of Abraham, who had two sons, and then the Bible says many others, but the Christians of their day had many believe that Jesus war somehow a third son with Ishmael and Isaac, (making three Abrahamic faiths, or two?) (The chronicler hath checked that indeed Christianity is a sect of Judaism, the chronicle also wages Abraham had one faith, and many sons and daughters who share that faith) but like Lazarus Rockstone, it war largely portrayed that he had two sons and they were out west.
The cold, the dead town awash with anxious feelings as the Rockstone boys saddled on their horses, but a voice war in the road up ahead. The two caught the voice in their ears, singing, the two looked down the road disseminating the dark, at the same time, up taking a corner of the block heading down their way. At first they war spooked stiff, but as they approached they saw the voice war that of drunkard hobbling along with his nonsensical song. They reckoned he war no way an authority figure. He came within sight.
"God bless George Washington!" –Were the words of the man addressing the four singularly.
"God bless Abraham Lincoln!" –were the response from Leonard
And laughter resounded until the figure spoke and asked: "Do you know me?"
"No sir, we just just got into town. How bout that snowfall?" –Leonard .
"What'd you do with Gary?" –said the man in dismay.
The boys stayed back a distance on their saddles, smiling because they knew a Gary who ran the General Store. The man came forward just enough to a post, which in a great respect helped his posture. He leaned every ounce of hisself upon it.
"Sir we don't know Gary or anyone. We just came from the East." –Rueben
"The EAST!" –he boomed, rising and falling back to his slump.
"Yes, the East. We come far from the East." –Leonard comically.
"East! Nothing good ever, ever came from the East…" –The man said shaking his brow.
"Eh, boys? Nothing good ever came from the East?" –The man said again after a laughing and coughing fit.
"Well, we're not here for trouble." –Leonard .
"No, I suppose not. I suppose you left your troubles back East?" –the man now war elbowing the post, but Rueben and Leonard both were amused as war their horses.
"Sir, we are just passing through, but is there a place to stay?" –Rueben .
"No, no room in the inn. No room in the inn. In the inn, there's no room in the inn, there is no room in the inn…." And he continued this as he bounced hisself up off the post and started directing the orchestra of his new song.
The man waved his hand in such a way as to follow his lead. The Rockstone boys followed, but he wavered onward and made a quick left, followed by another and another singing "In the inn there's no room in the inn…"
…Rueben called out after the third left turn: "Alright, knock it off buddy."
The man would not quit his song. Leonard told Rueben to let him be and he war singing a little bit with him as he thought it war the best thing he'd ever encountered: he never mover more than, than four strides then returned to the post. The man, as some sort of instinct, returned to his post. Returned and leaned against it against it again and fell asleep.
Leonard started laughing like mad and Rueben war set to go into a fit, splitting his side.
"What are you laughing at?" –Rueben.
"We haven't done anything and here we are and here's the man we get to meet." –Leonard.
"Ya, he led us in a circle." –Rueben.
"He welcomed us with a song." –Leonard.
"He just said the same things over and over." –Rueben.
"But he war singing, you can't deny him that." –Leonard .
And the man war sleeping now, head down on his arms, down on his luck, and after a moment Leonard and Rueben decided to climb down from them's horses and go over to the man, for both in their own way felt guilty for dehumanizing him.
"Sir, sir." –Leonard .
Leonard put his hand on the man's shoulder. He didn't shake him: just rested it and tried to look up at his face. He war old, older than his voice, but his face war a sad, cragged, rosy nosed German.
The sleeping man would not wake and the two Rockstone boys found it hard to leave him, so they stood with him at his post and they bared the cold with him, and they thought he could have some sort of comfort if they remained.
"Well, should we just walk him somewhere?" –Rueben
"I suppose. We didn't see the Sherriff office out there, perhaps it is somewhere up where this guy came from, or someone else is. Get the horses, I'll stay with him." –Leonard .
And Rueben went and did as Leonard said and Leonard woke up the man enough to walk. Rueben held the man and Leonard held both the reins with his right arm. His left hand still set on his wound and now they realized the pain of the whole journey. The, the…
"JAY-HOSAPHAT'S GOAT!" –screamed and scowled the sleeping man with larger than life eyes shooting daggers into the dark.
"Sir?" –Leonard said.
"Jay-jay-jay-hosaphat's goat!" –he said again in a less abrasive, but still a progressive tone, shaking jowls and limbs.
"Hold still you codger." –Rueben said, but the man broke away pushing Leonard aside pronouncing the Hebrew Alephbet.
"ALEPH! How Doth the city sit solitary that war full of people! How is the mistress of the Gentiles become as a widow: the princes of the provinces made tributary." –growled the man again, fully awake.
The city block the three inhabited war quite desolate, desolated perhaps and perhaps that war why the man war tired and why he awoke just now uproariously.
Leonard and Rueben stood aback and the man started shooting his index fingers at the building and, and continued to quote at them:
"BETH! Weeping she hath wept in the night, and her tears are on her cheeks: there is none to comfort her among all them that were dear to her: all her friends have despised her, and are become her enemies."
It aired on the side of caution. This town in particular war only opened in lieu of the late 1870s army appropriations due to peace treaties, and subsequent gold-rush enthusiasm, as the whites had it in their text… The prior century it had been inhabited in migratory patterns by the rightful owners, but the burdensome white reeked his boiling coffee breath and fire water unto the plains and this town war no Jerusalem, as Jerimiah spoke of, but the man, and the two brothers were the ones who took the words, and had sole affixation to them.
The density of the earth seemed hollow at the moment, and not do disparage, for the writer hath a natural bias for this planet and regards the others as inferior: truly, truly it is our people, all peoples, one people on this earth against ten or so other roving giants, the secret titans, the ancient and the far future all warred in the present for the atonement of man, the atonement of man in the Indian Summer that carried through until the day Christ gave the final blessing war the paschal lamb, and that war about as likely as this town, Newtown, as stated, war in any connection to the holy city on the hill, which ever one way is a straight line there….
…but he had his wind…
"GHIMEL! Dakota hath removed her dwelling place because of her affliction, and the greatness of her bondage: she hath dwelt among the nations, and she hath found no rest: all her persecutors have taken her in the midst of straits.
"Alright. I'm not listening to this." –Rueben .
"Typical." –Leonard .
"What do you mean?" –Rueben
"You running out on a sermon." –Leonard .
"What are you talking about? He's drunk." –Rueben
"Typical again. You are the archetype." –Leonard .
"The archetype what?" –Rueben
"You say you believe in God, but you do not recognize his prophets." –Leonard.
"This guy?" –Rueben
"He's quoting Jerimiah's Lamentations." –Leonard.
"Dakota?" –Rueben.
"Well, he's obviously lifted it for poetic license." –Leonard .
The man war down to 'heth' and could go no more as he panted.Leonard approached the man and Rueben stayed with the horses.
Leonard reached the man and he war whispering: "And Mehusim begot Abitob, and Elphaal. And the sons of Elphaal were Heber, and Misaam, and Samad: who built Ono, and Lod, and its daughter cities."
[Poetic Interludes]
......…
Leonard -
"Swoons good man, stand thee ho, a play began!"
Man-
"War contingency before conception?"
Rueben -
"I'll have none, anon." [he steps aside.]
Leonard -
"Before my conception, but perhaps thine?"
Man-
"Nay, I breached the gates as all man doeth.
And by selfsame gate, herself creates anew."
Rueben -
"Where is this guy going, Leonard ! Leonard !"
Leonard -
"He is but a cockritice?! A coxcomb!"
But his harm is to no one, but harm him!
He runneth water into the quarry
The ancient talker, the market knower,
The thief of phrase, the bow of plagiarism"
Man-
"Fie, fie, thine arrows have caused the effect,
Stuck in me like toothpicks to a Danish.
And what will not heal, my metal shall wear
As I wore my heels in my soldiering.
Leonard -
"By troth sir, is it as thou doth proclaim?"
Man-
"Aye boy, I war in them wars, them dread wars.
Rueben -
"It can't be as bleak as this, thus scripted."
Leonard -
"Here, steady thy hand good sir, steady, here.
Man-
"No, I shall lead, I war the one in front,
The one who shielded the rest from terror
The head, the tip, the very verge of force!
And like all man I bled, but I bled happy
For my part I war in the way of…"
The man stopped the play and witnessed as the other four witnessed and were met by the whirlwind of a man upon horseback. He showed up out of a shadow and a wicked gleam glinted out the corner of his eye. He had a wicked scar on his cheek, and so did his horse. The man had a gun, a rifle, held in his left arm and held the reins with his right. He war had the star of a sheriff on his hat and vest. The way he held his gun it appeared he war left-handed as Leonard. And lost to too many, yet thus began the histories.