Evening star., 1870-01-06
BAKER'S CAT.
A Story ~ Marx Twain.

Speaking Of sagacity, il reminds me Of Dick
Baker, pocket-miner, of Deadhorse Gulch.
Whenever he was out of lunch and little down
hearted, he would fall % mourning over the loss
Of wonderful cat he used 70 own, (for where
women and children are not, men Of kindly
Impulses take mp with pets, for they must love
eomething) And he always spoke OF the strange
ssgacity Of that cat with the air Of a man
who believed in his secret heart that there MAS
something human about it-may be even SUPER
1 heard him talking about this animal once.
he said, /" Gentlemen, used 10 have a cat here,
by the name OF Tom Quartz, which you'd a took
an interest in, Il reckon-most ANYBODY would.
had him here eight years-and me was the re-
markablest cat 4 ever saw. He was a large gray
one OF the Tom species, and he had more hard.
nat'ral sense than any man I'm this camp-and a
p0srer Of dignity-he wouldn't let the Goy'ner
Of California be familiar with him. He never
ketched rat in his lfe-'peared % be above it.
He never cared for nothing but mining. He
knowed more about mining, that cat did than
any man ever see. You couldn't tell AHA
mining, why he was just born for e. And he
had the best judgment about mining ground
why you never see anything like IL. When he
" wehs INT 20 Mork hed scatter glance around, and
would give look as much ss 20 say, Well, I'D
have to get you 70 excuse me- and without an
other word he'd hyste his nose into the air and
shove for home. II the ground suited him, he
would lay down and keep dark till the first pan
was washed, and then he would slide up and
take look, and IL there about six or seven
grains Of gold he was satsfed~he didn't want
no better prospect IN that-and then he vould
lay down on our coats and snore like steam
boat uIi we'd struck the pocket, and then get
"Well, by and by up comes this quartz excite
ment- Everybody was into it-everybody was
picking and. blasting instead Of shoveling dirt
on the hillsde-everybody was putting down a
SHAFT instead OF scraping the surface. Nothing
would do Jim but we must tackle the ledges,
TO-, 100, ana 50 20 we did. % VIC commenced putting
wonder what In the dickens 1t was all about.
he hadn't ever seen any mining like that be-
fore, and he was all upset, as you may say-he
couldn't come 70 Q right understa nding of IL no
way-it was too many for him. He was down
on IL powerful-and always appeared TO con-
slider II the cussedest foolshness out. But that
cat, you know, he was always agin new tangled
arrangements-somehow he never could abide
'em. You know how IL In with old habits.
But by and by Tom Quartz begin to git sort
together understand othat eternal sinking of a
shaft and never panning out anything: AZ last
he got to coming down in the shaft himself 20 try
to cipher il out And when he'd get the blues,
and feel kind o. scruffy, aggravated and dis,
gusted-knowing as he did that the bills was
running up all the time and we warn't max
In the corner and 90 20 sleep. Well one day.
when the shaft was down about eight foot the
rock got 50 hard that we had 70 put in blast
Quarts was born. And then We lii the fuse and
clumb out and got of about fifty yards-and for
got and left Tom Quarts sound asleep on the
u
Of smoke bust up out Of the hole, and then
everything give out with an awful crash and
about four million tons of rocks and dirt
mile and . half into the air. and. by
George! right i'm the midst of IL was old
Tom Quartz going end over end, and a
reaching for snins. fRS se ali SAps and
But II vaFnt no use, you know; il warnf no
use. And that was the last we see of hin for
about two minutes and half, and then all OF q
N raf IN KS ox.Ar ,hax
directly he come down kerwhop, about ten foot
from where We stood. Well, 1 reckon he was
Rfsps the orneriest looking beast you ever see.
was stove up, and his eye winkers was swinged
on, and ne was all blacked mp with powder and
sns smoke and S all sloppy With mud and slash from
took sort of diseusssd iooI at hisself and then ZEN
he iSGnsd Re e .sN..d 4 .ss Just e..cty the same
smart 70 take advantage Of q cat that 'ain't had
no experience OF quartz mining, but Think d.
yeveni,.and then he turned on his heel and
word.
That was Jest his style, and may be YOU
won't oeneve II, but after that you never see
he was. And By and by, when he asd get 20
going down In the shan again, you'd been as
been astonished e his ssgscity; The minute
we'd touch on . blast, and the fused begin 70
sizzle, he'd give hook as much ss 20 say: We'll
III have 20 get you 20 excuse me- and IL was
surprising the way he'd shin out Of that hole
and 90 for q tree.
"ssescitxF Il amt no name for it. Twas
.ssspsrafioap
Z aid. "weI. Mt. Baker. his prejudice
against quartz mining ,oos remsrkable. consider
ing how he came By Il Couldn't you ever cure
-.cr.sd Am, NO, wAen Tom Quart. was sOs
once, he was dlsays sot-and you mieht blowei
him up much ~ million times and you'i
never . broke him Of his cussed prejudice agin
quartz mining"
The affection and pride that ut up Bakers
race when he delivered this tribute 20 the firm
neB OF his humble friend Of other days vii
always be vivid nneEaory with me.
DISt Louis thinks il can raise by subscription
5000, 900 for its proposed worlds fair.
ga white woman named Nevcomb h und.r
Indictment In the County Court Of 6myth coun-
ty, Va, for marrying anegro.