# The Town Marshal explained — Spoon River Anthology

> Chapter companion for Spoon River Anthology by Edgar Lee Masters.

## What happens

The Town Marshal, a former drinking man who killed a Swede at a sawmill, is appointed by the Prohibitionists to enforce law and order after the saloons are voted out. He is given a loaded cane and strikes Jack McGuire, who then kills him. The Prohibitionists fail to have McGuire hanged because the Marshal appears in a dream to a juryman and reveals the secret story, leading to a fourteen-year sentence.

## Themes in this chapter

### Hypocrisy and Corruption

The Prohibitionists appoint a former killer as marshal, and the marshal's ghost intervenes to prevent justice.

### Death and Legacy

The marshal's death and his posthumous influence through a dream shape the outcome of the trial.

## Character check-ins

### Jack McGuire

Killed the Town Marshal after being struck with a loaded cane.

## Key lines

> The Prohibitionists made me Town Marshal When the saloons were voted out, Because when I was a drinking man, Before I joined the church, I killed a Swede At the saw-mill near Maple Grove.

The Prohibitionists appointed me as Town Marshal after banning saloons, because I had killed a Swede at the sawmill near Maple Grove when I was still a drinker before converting.

_The marshal's violent past is the reason for his selection as enforcer._

> And they presented me with a loaded cane With which I struck Jack McGuire Before he drew the gun with which he killed me.

They gave me a weighted cane, which I used to hit Jack McGuire just before he shot and killed me.

_The loaded cane is a symbol of the marshal's authority and his fatal confrontation._

> The Prohibitionists spent their money in vain To hang him, for in a dream I appeared to one of the twelve jurymen And told him the whole secret story.

The Prohibitionists wasted their money trying to have McGuire executed, because I visited one of the jurors in a dream and revealed the entire secret.

_The marshal's ghost influences the trial outcome, preventing a death sentence._

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/spoon_river_anthology_se/chapters/the-town-marshal
- Book: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/spoon_river_anthology_se
- All chapters: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/spoon_river_anthology_se/chapters