As Keith surmised, intimidation had no effect. In such a city of
fire-eaters it was promptly tried. A dozen publically announced that
they thirsted for his blood, and intended to have it; and the records
of the dozen were of determination and courage in such matters. In the
gambling resorts and on the streets bets were made and pools formed on
the probable duration of King's life. He took prompt notice of this
fact. Said the _Bulletin's_ editorial column:
Bets are now being offered, we are told, that the editor of the
_Bulletin_ will not be in existence twenty days longer, and the case
of Doctor Hogan, of the Vicksburg paper, who was murdered by gamblers
of that place, is cited as a warning. Pah! War, then, is the cry, is
it? War between the prostitutes and gamblers on one side, and the
virtuous and respectable on the other! Be it so, then! Gamblers of San
Francisco, you have made your election, and we are ready on our side
for the issue!
Keith read this over John Sherwood's shoulder at the Monumental. The
ex-gambler, his famous benign spectacles atop his nose, chuckled over
it.
"He doesn't scare for a cent, does he?" was his comment. "Strikes me I
got out of the ranks of the ungodly just in time. If I were still
gambling, I believe I'd take some of those bets he speaks of. He won't
last--in this town. But I like his pluck--kind of. Only he's damn bad
for business!"
Saying which, John Sherwood, late gambler but now sincerely believing
himself a sound and conservative business man, passed the sheet over to
Keith.
From vague threats the situation developed rapidly to the definite and
personal. One Selover sent a challenge to King, which was refused.
Selover then announced his intention of killing King on sight. The
_Bulletin_ published this:
Mr. Selover, it is said, carries a knife. We carry a pistol. We hope
neither will be required, but if this encounter cannot be avoided, why
will Mr. Selover insist on imperilling the lives of others? We pass
every afternoon, about half-past four to five o'clock, along Market
Street from Fourth to Fifth streets. The road is wide, and not so much
frequented as those streets farther in town. If we are to be shot or
cut to pieces, for heaven's sake let it be done there. Others will not
be injured, and in case we fall, our house is but a few hundred yards
beyond, and the cemetery not much farther.
These detailed attacks and bold defiances had the effect of greatly
angering those who were the specific objects of attention; of making
very uneasy the class to which these victims belonged; of focussing on
public matters a public sentiment that was just becoming conscious of
itself because of the pinch of hard times; and of rendering
contemptuously indignant all of "higher" society.
To this latter category Keith would undoubtedly have belonged--as did
his wife and practically all his friends--had it not been for his
association with Krafft. Through him the young lawyer came into
intimate personal touch with a large class of people who would
otherwise have been remote from him. He heard of their difficulties and
problems at first hand, saw the actual effect of abuses that, looked at
from above, were abstract or academic. Police brutality as a phrase
carried little significance; police brutality as a clubbing of Malachi
Hogan, who was brought in with his skull crushed, and whose blood
stained Keith's new coat, meant something. Waste of public funds,
translated before his eyes into eviction for nonpayment of taxes, took
on a new significance. Keith saw plainly that a reform was needed. He
was not, on that account, in the least sympathetic with King's methods.
Like Judge Girvin, he felt them revolutionary and subversive. But he
could not share the contempt of his class; rather he respected the
editor as a sincere but mistaken man. When his name came up for
discussion or bitter vituperation, Keith was silent. He read the
_Bulletin_ editorials; and while he in no way endorsed their
conclusions or recommendations, he could not but acknowledge their
general accuracy. Without his knowing it, he was being educated. He
came to realize the need for better administration by the city's
officers and a better enforcement of the laws. Very quietly, deep down
within himself, he made up his mind that in the Assistant District
Attorney's office, at least, the old order of things should cease.