“Well, Rassmussen, have you got anything to say for yourself?”
By this time one citizen after another had dropped into the court-room until the place was crowded, and quite a concourse of people lingered without the door, striving to gain some idea of what was going on within. All through the agent’s statement the Dane had sat silent, apparently not hearing what was said, sullenly contemplating his handcuffed wrists and heavy, patched boots. When the Justice spoke to him, however, he slowly arose from the bench on which he sat and gazed about him on the assembly of his neighbors. It seemed for a moment as though he were seeking for sympathy, but only a vague, disinterested curiosity greeted him from every face as he glanced from one to another. His heavy features did not lighten, and his jaw dropped stupidly for a moment, but at last he pulled himself together, as it were, and began slowly and laboriously, his Norse tongue occasionally having hard work to adapt itself to the foreign language in which he spoke.
“You all, mine neighbors, know me vell,” he said simply, “Olaf Rassmussen, I am. In mine country, miles from here, an’ seas across, I read an’ I hear on America. There, they tell me, is alvays vork to be done, an’ plenty an’ vreedom vor the man who will vork, an’ I safe an’ safe, me an’ mine vooman, an’ bimeby ve come on the money vor to pring us the seas across. So den to America vere comen, an’ ve puy land an’ lif on Minnesota, an’ I gits a little house an’ ve do vell, an’ haf von two children.
“But I hear always Californy, Californy vas the land vor de man vat vants to git ahead, an’ I vishes much I had come on Californy. Den one night came to mine house fire, and ve vas all out purned, an’ afterwards I make up mine mind I shall come on Californy. So, den, I sell mine little farm and ve prings der children to this land. I hafs no more money to puy land, but some man I know he sends me this man to, and he says to me: ‘All right, all right, you rent now, you raise pig crops and sells him for much money, and bimeby ve sells you land and you gits ahead fast and has a home here in no time.’
“So I takes mine twenty acres an’ I puts in crops, an’ me an’ mine vooman ve vork. Ven it vas come daylight ve pegin, an’ ven it come dark ve vas vorking so as slaves. Ve puilds von house, mine vooman nailing up does walls mit her own hands, an’ bimeby ve hat a shed an’ horse, an’ cow, an’ nice home, an’ mine grain do vell der year, an’ I pays mine rent, an’ puts py some money. Venefer der vas extra to do I do him, an’ ven a neighbor vas hat pad luck I help ’im, an’ I do mine duty as a man—you all know dat.”
“That’s so,” said a boy in the crowd. “When my father broke his arm Olaf came over and harrowed for us two days, and never charged a cent.” “Mrs. Rassmussen sat up most every night for a week when our baby was so sick and Mother came down with the grip,” said another close beside me. But the Dane went on with his story, gaining courage and command of language as he proceeded, until he seemed completely to have forgotten everything save the story he was telling.
“Come fruit time, first year, mine vork vas all so I could get along, an’ mine vooman she says she can earn money picking cherries in Burns’ big orchard. I say ‘So?’ an’ I go see der boss about it. He say vork is plenty and help scarce; but when I look I see he haf a pig gang of Chinamen in der orchard, and I couldn’t let my vooman vork mit dem, and so I say: ‘I vill vork in der orchard, and you stay der home py and dig der potatoes and hoe der corn.’ Vell, I go in der orchard von day, an’ I notice der Chinamen go in a corner an’ all talking like mad, an’ bimeby der boss he comes an’ tells me I must quit or the whole gang will leaf. I say to ’im, ‘Let dem leaf an’ git vite men an’ voomans to do der vork,’ but he tells me he haf hire der gang much cheaper as vite men vill vork, an’ he can’t afford to make ’em mad. Den I say I vork der day out, an’ he goes off. Bimeby came der boss Chinaman an’ order me off. I swear I go not, an’ den der whole gang came on me for fight, an’ I knock some over an’ vas most in pieces torn. So the vite boss he pays me nothing vor mine vork, as he say I lost ’im two days’ time of der gang. I haf never any trouble of mine neighbor but what I tell you. You all know it.
“Vell, after that I goes on working an’ doing well, an’ I haf a great crop of potatoes dat year. Dey grow as I never pefore see, an’ one night der agent of der railroad he say to me I pedder be send does potatoes to der city. ‘Don’t delay,’ he say to me, or eferypody else will be ahead of you an’ you gits no market.’ I hurried up next day an’ gits mine potatoes der station to, an’ I see great piles, hundreds bushels potatoes, all at station vor to ship. Der agent say, ‘All right, ve can send plenty. I bin poking up der growers. I don’t like to see mine neighbors git left,’ an’ I sends on mine potatoes to der commission men vat he recommends an’ pays mine freight, an’ he tells me I make lots of money. I keep not back any, as I needs dat money and vas thinking I might bargain dat year to puy der land. Vell, I vaits tree four days—a week. Den come vort by does commission men dat der city vas full of potatoes, an’ der papers had been telling a week now how der potatoes vas being dumped in der bay at der city, an’ mine had been dumped in, too. Der letter said any man vas a fool to ship den. I show ’im to some mens, an’ dey laugh and say dat agent vas tam smart, anyway, to git the potatoes shipped an’ secure his freight; but I vas out mine crop an’ mine freight money, an’ mine children got no shoes dat winter nor me an’ mine vooman any clothes, an’ it vas a hard pull. I talked with dat agent, an’ he say mine loss non his pizness. His pizness vas to do vell by der railroad company. Dat vas vat he vas paid for. I haf no trouble mit him, but von man vat he so fool try to kill him an’ vas put in prison.
“You all know it.
“Vell, next year ye do better. Comes a little feller to mine house to lif, but der crops is good and ve make some money. Den ve tink maybe ve can puy der land dis year, an’ I haf tree hundred dollar to make von payment. I say so to this man here ven he come, but he tell me his company haf conclude not to sell, but to rent der land. He say der come soon annuder road the place through, and value will be higher, so der company conclude to hold, and then he tell me he must have bigger rent der next year. I tell him impossible, I cannot pay more, an’ he say he haf a tenant vot can, and he tell me tree four Japs vant der place for nursery an’ vegetables to send to city, an’ vill pay bigger rent. I tell him nopody can pay more an’ put up puildings, an’ he say puildings are already up. Vy, I tells him dem mine puildings are an’ mine fences, an’ all vat is on der place mine, made mit mine own hands and mine vooman’s, and paid for mit mine own money; but he say dere is nothing in der agreement about dat, or mine taking off any puildings or being paid for any improvements, an’ der place must stand just so as it vas. I could pay der higher rent or move off and let der Japs pay it. Den I look around on mine little home, an’ see dat pretty house covered mit der vines mine vooman had planted, an’ der rose trees in der garden, an’ dat little vineyard by der side of der house, an’ der henyard an’ barn vere I could hear mine horse stomping, an’ I thought of all dem two years an’ mine hard vork, an’ it seems like I got crazy; an’ I asks dat man vas it der law in free America? an’ he tell me he had all der law on his side an’ der company would uphold him; an’ I made up mine mind he would nefer lif to tell his company about dat, an’ so I picked up a cart stake an’ vent for him. He got away an’ jumped in his buggy before I could kill him, or I vould.”