The weekly pioneer and Democrat. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn. Territory) 1855-1865, 1865-09-15

81 raise you two hundred dollars" an
swered the cool person, gravely. You
have q handsome emerald upon your finger
will you stake it for that amount ?"
The pale man threw it down with a
curse.
II show four queens !" he said.
The ring and watch are mine," re-
pied the other, calmly. 81 show four
kngs!"
The pale man sprang from his chair
with howl.
81 call God to witness that have been
swindled, (" he hissed. 81 am disgraced-
ruined! The money which I have lost is
not mine. That man has made me Q thief,
and he wears upon his finger my poor
wifes wedding ring!"
In another instant he had scattered his
brains over the bystanders. The survivor
wiped his coat complacently and lit fresh
cigar.
The steamer was pausing at some sta
ton, and amid the haste and confusion he
slept pleasantly ashore. The lines had
been cast adrift; the wheels spun round
again the boat moved on, when q shrill,
piercing scream arose from the throng. It
was the dark eyed child, and he had found
his papa.
"Oome here, my little mars'r, said an
old negro steward, hitting the boy aloft and
wiping his eyes. "Does ye see genle-
man yonder on de qaay-a mos respeeta-
BILE gentleman awyn in de hack? Dat man
has got yer pas golden jewels"
The boy marked fiercely through lis
tears the shapely limbs and. long bright
ringlets, and on the strangers white hand
the glitter of the dead mans gem. A gush
of grief drowned out the scene, and the
steamer drifted away.
Twenty years followed, and each year
witnessed upon the Western waters its
host of dupes and black-legs. But
among the latter class there was one sin
gularly eccentric and successful He never
lost. .r...E 80"
There were no impossibilities in the
games which he played. He was necro-
mancer; with some there were chances
he made all chances q certainty. He
plundered the poor and the rich, yet cast
their purses back again with scorn in his
dark eyes; and he was invariably search
ing tor gentlemanly tourist with flowing
hair, upon whose track he seemed TO be
forever, yet whom he never found. At
times be would leap from the gaming ta-
bic, as q steamer passed, exclaiming that
he saw the object of his search, and offer
ing the captain his fortune to turn and
overtake him. He remarked him upon
RATS and landings, and in receding vii
lagos, and among the thousand faces of
busy cities. Yet with those glimpses, the
figure passed away, and the years dragged
by, and the travelling public thought the
young man crazy-though not upon the
subject of cards.
They met one day-the pursuer and the
pursued-after all those twenty years. It
was fair afternoon, upon the steamer
Kishicoquillas. They sat in the forward
cabin at one of the many tables, and the
floor at the feet of the pursuer was dark
with ancient blood stains.
81 beg your pardon" he said quietly,
bending bis dark eyes upon his opponent;
"will you change places with me?"
The flowing hair of the other was very
grey, but he was calm as winter, and for
moment only faltered.
eff you insist" he answered quietly.
" It can give you no advantage"
They were wonderfully matched, bat the
young man won. They wagered extrava-
gantly, and they waited deliberately; but
the young man always won.
81 will play you my WATCH" said the
elderly person and the young man again
won.
"Here are sleeve buttons, and here is a
brooch, he said again, "let US go on"
and the young man won.
"I have nothing more" smiled the pur-
sued, as cold as stalagmite.
81 see handsome ring upon your fin
ger-an emerald-will you hazard that ?'
"It is my last ornament" he muttered:
I" show four queens"
''And l !" shrieked the dark-eyed youth,
tossing away gold, table and chairs, 81
show four kings! the ring is mine. You
won it from my father, whom you murder
ed. His blood fell where you stand, and
where ! will have yours.
They grappled at once knives flashed
in the dark, close cabin, and pistols snap
ped. The boats officers and bystanders
dashed in and tore them apart, and they
would have beaten the young man for
rising his hand against grey hairs.
''Give de boy fair play!" cried an old
negro steward. 81 knows 'em boff! Desc
eyes saw de fadder of de young Marss
stretched at de oder's feet. Set 'em ashore,
Captain. Give each of dem knife, and
let the boat 60 on"
They placed them on the slippery dixie
"a marsh on one side, where Shiny alliga-
tors lay basking, and on the other the
broad turbid Mississippi. The passengers
crowded aft; the great bulk of the steam
er swiftly drove onward. They fell upon
each other in the clear light of the after
noon, their knives glittered moment and
then the avenger stood alone, with the
grey hairs at his feet