“The neighbours join together and run down the thief as quickly as possible,” said Brother Wright, with sharp emphasis.
“And having run him down, hang him,” added Mary Winkle.
“That course is impossible for us,” observed Madame.
“That is a point I should like to debate,” said Brother Wright. “If we are to live here we must have horses, and we can’t keep horses if it is known to be against our principles to shoot a horse-thief. That is all I’ve got to say.”
“An’ I want to notice the p’int o’ Injuns,” said Aunt Ruby. “Ef there’s Injuns as will do any wickedness un’er the sun, I want to know are we to sit still an’ be roasted on our own fires by wile savages like that, or will the men-folks defen’ us as other men do? An’ I likewise would wish to p’int out to the ’Sembly as border ruffians is mos’ly as bad as Injuns, an’ it stan’s to reason as horse-thieves is ’bout the same.”
“It seems to me,” said Brother Green, speaking with great deliberation, “that our principles were formed and adopted because we thought them right. I don’t see in what we should differ from anybody else if we took to the usual prairie arms the moment we felt the shoe pinch! If non-resistance is right, it should be practised against horse-thieves; if it is wrong, then we should be prepared to shoot the thieves of other men’s horses. There is no middle course. The throwing away of our settled convictions just because our horse has been stolen is not consistent.”
“I’ll vote for non-resistance and the maintenance of our principles,” said Mary Winkle severely, “and I further think that what is decided by the majority in this meeting should bind all the members.”
She fixed her eye upon Wright with meaning.
“It is a most difficult juncture,” remarked Madame. “I wish much we had the help of Brother Ezra’s wisdom to guide us.”
“Yes,” said Uncle David cordially, “an’ sister Olive too.”