Butte record. (Bidwell, Butte County, Cal.) 1853-1858, 1855-06-16

d-ua a(s-hS Dtt money
"BIood's my money - reared forth
the giant; "Fee, e, fun -
Hal tried in vain to hoist the window.
"Wil you bet -
eyes. SIR said Hal; and he thought
as il was only an ounce, he could spare
that without much danger, and ii might
appease the monsters appetite.
Roll first :" said The giant.
Yes, sir !" replied Hal, as he seized
what he supposed to be the largest and
his favorite ball
What are you doing with Mimr's
head :" roared forth the monster.
Il beg your pardon, most humbly."
began Hal, as he let the bloody head
fall Il did not mean any harm"
"Rumble, bang wbang !" beloved the
thunder.
Hal fell on his knees and recited most
devouily, '.Now I lay me down." etc.
"Roll on I. roll on l say and the
giant seized poor Hal by the collar and
set him on his feet.
He now selected large ball, and pois-
ing it carefully in lis hand, ran a few
steps, and sent it whirlins right in a
mong the nine-rins but what was his
asionishment to behold them jamp light
y aside, and permit the bail TO pass in
an avenue directly through the middle
of the alley. Hal shuddered! The
second anl third balls met with no bet
ter success. Odin-for Hal said il was
certainly he, as he had Mimir's head
al"ng-now graspcd a ball ard rolled it
with all his m ght; but long before it
Feach' the ninc-rins they had, every
one Of thcm, tua. bled down and lay
sprawling on the alley.
"Two spares !" shouted the giant, as
he grinned most gleefully at poor Hal.
Get up - and up the pirs AL stood
Instantly Taking another ball.he hu.l-
ed it down the alley, and the same result
fal'owcd.
1.-TWO mosc spares!' and Odin shook
his gig ntic sides with laughter.
Il give up the game,' whined out
Hal.
"Then you lose double, ;" replied Odin.
Hal readily consented to pay two oun-
ces, for he imagined, by yielding at once,
he would SO much the sooner get rid of
his grim companion. As he said so,
Odin pulled pair Of scales out of his
coat pocket, made proportionably to his
own size. He poised them upon beam
in the alley, and drew forth what he de-
nominated two ounces, and put them in
one scale. Each ounce was about the
size of twenty-eight pound weight, and
was quite as heavy.
'Ha Ia ha ! ha ha hall! la !
ha ha ~ shouted the giant, as he
grasped the gasping and terrified gam
bier. He soon rolled up his sleeves, and
bound Halls arm with pocket bandker-
chief Next he drew forth lancet as
long as a sword, and drove The point into
the biggest vein he could discover. Hal
screamed and tainted
When he returned to consciousness,
the sun was shining brightly in at the
window, and the sweet rumbling of the
balls assured him that he still lay where
the giant left him. On rising to bis feet
he perceived that large coagulum of
blood had collected where his head rested
all night, and that he could scarcely
walk from the effects of his exhaustion.
He returned Immediately home, and told
his wife all that had occurred and
though, like some of the neighbors, she
distrusted the tale, vet she never intima-
ted her doubts to Black Hal himself
The alley-keeper assured me in whis-
per, one day, that upon the very night
fixed on by Hal for the adventure, be
was beastly drunk, and had been ensa>
ged in fight with one Of his boon COM
panions,. who gave him black eye and a
bloody nose. But the alley-keeper was
always jealous OF Black Halls superiority
in story telling; besides he often drank
too much himself, and | suspect he started
the report related to me in a fit of
Wounded pride or drunken braggadocio.
One thing is certain, he never ventured
10 repeat the story in the presence of
Black Hal himself.
THE ship Skidbladnir was the proper
ty of 0din. He could sal in il on the
most dangerous seas, and yet could fold
it up and carry it in his pocket.
fMimir's head was always the comPan-
ion of Odin. When he desired to know
what was transpiring in distant countries,
he inquired of Mimir. and always re-
ceivsd correct reply