The Columbia herald. [volume] (Columbia, Tenn.) 1850-1873, 1871-04-07

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growing finely the peach, plum, and
other fruit trees are in bloom, and elm
and ofher forest trees that put 1brtl
early are in almost full ieaf. All this
with a view of the rich, gleen-gras
carpet of the prairie, renders the sur
rounding at once spring-like, cheerful
and pleasing; the more 50, as the pre-
vailing weather is delightfully."- pleasan
and seasonable., A KENTTcKIAN.
LIFE IN DENVER.
4 Dark sasl Peeu1far Phase -1EoW tlat
Miners Lose Their Money
Without any Disguise.
Right i'm the center of this town
saws a Denver correspondent, stand
''The C.icket." And lively cricket j
is too. Butts ways are far from in
nocent, and its chirp, instead of th,
gentle piping heard in the quiet hour
of night, is the rattle of gaming ap
pliances rising above the din of ,
hundred vociferating tongues.
The public gambling house is re
cognized feature Of border towns
and it is among the first of ''institu
TONS to herald the approach of civil
Zation of the far West 1t is the in
seperable of the star of empire, ani
its effects may be observed anywher,
along the line ofthat lnminary's s march
But nowhere does it assert itself mors
successfully than i'm such places as owe
their existence TO their proximity to
mines.
Miners are little given TO that clsss
of diversion which we of the quictel
walks of life are content with. They
are for the most pafta q furbulent. set
in whom (if not lnRthrally then by
force ofassOciatiOn) the animal pro.
pensities' develop, to the exclusion Of
the better qualities land of a consc-
quence their conceptions of enjoyment
are realized i'm such amusenicnts only
as afford gross or absorbing excite.
ment. Gambling houses, with theil
accompanying quarreling and drink
ing, are perfectly adjusted to the min
er's idea of pleasure, and they consti-
tute means of gratifying his inclina-
tons, as compared with which, i'm his
judgement. all other means are insig-
nificant.
The Cricket, it would seefn, "has
struck paying lead" 1t works like
a beaver from morning till light, and
night till morning; and tl;en, not
overcome by its unremitting labor, il
commences afresh, and does the same
thing over again. It's an enterprising
fellow, you may rest assured for it
makes hay whether the sun shincs or
not, and by virtue of its industry and
the grabbing facilities it possesses it is
gradually but surely garnering an
abundant harvest.
The gaming establishment under
consideration stands in Denver, in ils
principal street, and upon one OF the
most conspicuous and desirable sites.
Located within the very heart Of trade
it announces itself with all the assu-
rance of a legitimate business, and its
claims TO patronage are responded TO
in the most liberal manner. 1t en-
joys an immunity from espionage un-
accorded to kindred destablishments in
the Eastern States, and its scope and
publicity are as untrammeled as if its
effort were devoted to the best inter-
ests of the community. Admission
into it involves neither The scrutiny
of. faces nor the traversing of dark
passages, One simply opens the door
as though entering an ordinary house,
and with single step he is in the
midst of most extraordinary scene.
The room is very large and its sides
are lined with tables The proprie-
tor. from n spirit of Accommodation
restricts each table to a distinct game :;
so that there arc as many different
games going on at once as there are
tables in the room. Consequently,
the peculiar tastes or preferences Of
every one wishing to play may be in
dulged, and an individual has only to
take his choice, and he forthwith pays
his money. Then the assembla9e
gathered here. One might fancy he
had dropped into Bill Sykes broth.
erhood.
Nowhere in any civilized portion Of
the earth could there be more rcpul-
sive collection of physically sound
human beings discovered. 1t is a
conclave of unkempt, hard-featured,
creatures, cursing and
and making the place very
penfold Of the lowest beasts.
The room is disgustingly foul; it
could hardly be otherwise, consider
ing the occupants. The croupiers, Or
dealers, are correspondingly begrim-
ed, and the tables, ignoring the aesthe-
tic combination of ornament and utili-
ty, suSserve the latter purpose solely,
and are in keeping with the general
flth. In fact, to an observer whose
habits of life have associated him with
cleanliness and decency, this den, this
hole, has all the attributes of a pig
pen, and exhibits numberless other
characteristics which poverty of Ian
guage precludes description of.
The dealers are eminently fitted for
the positions they occupy. Did any
of them ever experience q sposition
toward the honest callings of life,
am confident that under the most
favorable circumstances such vagary
could be nothing more than moment
ary and spasmodic. They look as
though they had been intended for a
stated mission; and that mission they
are fulfilling to the best of their abili-
ty. / noticed one in particular; he
was plying his vocation as eagerly as
the greediest, and yet don't recollect
ever Seeing more thoroughly weary
expression than was on his face. He
was forty years of age, or thcreabouts.
and his exhausted appearance told
what crowded years they had been.
He was as thin as a skeleton, and his
arms, with the shirt-sleeves turned
back 10 facilitate the working OF his
cards, disclosed to the elbows, were
all but flcshless, and were marked by
deep blue veins that seemed swollen
to their utmost tension.
His face was cadaverous, and his
eyes, though bright; were shockingly
protrudcd. lie was i'm the last stages
of consumption, a1d a terrible cough
of which occasionally
delayed the gamc-7was rapidly tear
ing him to pieces. That the struggle
wouldn't last much elongcr. his wan
and worn-onf look made unmistaka-
bly, evident. Still this unhappy be-
ing, on. the brink Of the grave, with
the hand of death already upon him
was as kcenly alive to The tricks of
his trade as if a long and jocund life
were to be rewarded of his thieving !;
and calIonSlx indiflalenf of his- i'm