National Republican. (Washington City (D.C.)) 1872-1888, 1873-08-09
nUMsUccrra JOHN BuLt.

=
Brisish IDEAL o. the west.rn America.
A writer in tho 0perldnd Monthly dllato,
,upou The esgoruesswhlch tho British mani
fest for thrilling stories Of adventure, saying
that tho American Of tho far West, In the
respectable British Imagination, Is reckless,
'bioodthirstiy, impctuous, vindlctive being,
hung with slx-shooters aud bowie-knlves.
He goes on TO relate reply which he once
made TO two gentlemen who had asked him
II then was not great deal Of cutting aud
shooting among his people. ...tl
perceived that these mon were hungry for
. meal Of Wild, western, bloody fiction, II
was cruel 70 deny thom. ~ u,
shoot ofteu. We shoot socially, II, for In
stance, tho company be altuug about the
stove In the Rinc SALOON, aud the convorsa-
ton flags, and things generally are dull,
nothing Is more common than fora gentle
man 70 get up, stretch himself, draw his re-
yolvcr, cock II, flourish Il soont ms head and
proclaim himself the royal Bengal tiger OF
The southern mines. Then the sluggish blood
begips TO quicken In the veins Of some other
gentleman, and he gets up, stretches himself,
draws his revolver, cocks II, nourishes II
about aud proclaims himself another Bengal
tiger Of the southern mines! Then arc heard
ten or twelve short, sharp reports. The
Tho. rival Bengal tigers shoot about ct
random In the dark, and hit everybody else
save Themselves. The unhurt portion Of
tho company scramble behind the bar and
under the billiard tables aud cry out, Don't
shoot this wayp When the barrels OF
both revolvers are emptled the COM
batants cllnch, and, Us they Imagine, cut each
other all TO pieces with bowie-kniyos; al
though, when the lights are brought, II turns
out 10 DO somebody else. Then the two royal
Beugals shake hands, fratsrnize over drink,
and go Of to. the guusmith's TO get their pis-
dead aud wounded. There Ia q great deal Of
talk over tho affair for several days. The
bodies arc kept until Sunday: Then there
70 . splendid funeral. The Odd Fellows, the
Masons, the military companies and the Tenn
perance socictics, all turn out, with music
and banners. Tho Sunday school children,
dressed In white, appear In the procession,
away, &c, Tho minister breaches very
effective discourse, aud Is very careful not TO
say anything 10 wound thu feelings OF the
two Bengal ugors, who stand In the front
pew overlooking the collins rs quiet mourn
ers, holding together by their left hands tho
tho right OF either grasrs his revolver, ready
70 send ball through Tho clerical organiza:.
ton, should ho say anything In tho funeral
sermon personally offensive TO them. Every
body for twenty miles around comes on
horseback and In buggies. The saloons and
shops do q good business, and the day COM
monty winds up with grand ball and sup
per. Al tho young ladies are proud 10 dance
with tho two Bengals, all the young men
envy them, and resolve TO kill somebody ct
the fret convenient opportunity. Before
morning there arc probably two or thrcc
more fatal ARRAYS and so the life and ex-
element peculiar to our free, easy, uncon-
ventional society Is sustained from month to
month and year TO year. .
when al this 10 over, subscription Is gen.
orally set on foot In the camp Tor erecting
monuments over the graves, and whom this Is
ell raisod, the man 70 whom 1t 10 entrusted
goes 70 San Francisco to buy the marbles,
and there he falls In with old friends, and
drink and sproes, and CANDLES all the money
away. II he comes back and makes confess
sion we either blow tho top Of his head of or
say, NO matter. II you had q good time 1t
Is Just as we'll. Bob, jim and Tom will reet
quite as easy without any monumental Then
we put over them avery cheap wooden tomb
stone, with q pretty verse painted on IL.
These boards, after a few years, rot away at
the lower end, aud tho goats and cows, pas
tured In our camp burying-ground,r rub against
them and knock them over, and hually we
gather and split them up for stove klndling."
They liked this sketch Of California lifo
They rcllshcd IT, They picked Its very bones
clean.