Maza could not bribe. It was Franklin B. Dorr, who was running the Douglas Daily Examiner.
In his paper Dorr raised a protest that stirred the blood of the people of Douglas. Street meetings were held to further arouse the people. Mother Jones was there. A crowd looked for Maza with a rope. Telegraphic appeals were sent to the state and national governments. And finally—Sarabia was shamefacedly returned.
What would have happened to Sarabia if his voice had not been heard on that night in June, 1907? Exactly what has happened to others whose frightened voices have not been heard. He would have dropped out of sight and no one would ever have been able to say for certain where he had gone.
And what, pray, happened to the kidnappers? Absolutely nothing.
Consul Maza, Ranger Hayhurst, Lee Thompson, city jailer, Constable Shorpshire, Henry Elvey, the chauffeur, and some private detectives whose names were never given to the public seem plainly to have been guilty of the crime of kidnapping, which is punishable by imprisonment in the penitentiary. Those named were arrested and the first four were duly held to answer to the upper court sitting at Douglas. Elvey made a clean breast of the case and the evidence seemed conclusive. But as soon as the excitement had blown over every one of the cases was quietly dropped. It was not Sarabia's fault, for an effort was made to bribe Sarabia to leave town and Sarabia refused the bribe. Evidently the money which had bribed Hayhurst, Thompson and Shorpshire was not all the money that was used by Maza at that time.
Nearly every small town along the Mexican border