The Hickman courier. [volume] (Hickman, Ky.) 1859-current, 1874-04-04
trail, an ketch us with the traps in our

trail, an ketch us with the traps in on,
possession they might"
Divide yerselves p said the colonel
with abruptness and a great oath. "]
deht want none of it.
Colonel" said Perkins, removing
his own domino and looking anxiously
into the leaders face, "be you sick :?
Here's some bully brandy I found in
one of the passengers pockets"
81 hain't nothin'," replied the col
onel, with averted eyes. "Tm goin',
and I'm a retirin' from this bizuess for
ever"
"Ain't a-goin' to turn evidence %
cried Cranks, g asping the pistol on the
! table
Elm again to make lead mine of
| you eff you don't take that back -
roared the colonel, with bound, which
caused Cranks to drop the pistol and re-
tire precipitately forward, apologizing
as he went. I'm going to tend to my
own bizness, an that's enough to keep
any man bizzy. Somebody lend me
fifty till L see him agin."
Perk us pressed the money into the
the colSnef was ON W ifps;e ss-;tso ppln plnlatff
galloping on In the direction the stage
had taken.
He overlook it, he passed it, and still
he galloped on.
The people at Mud GuIch knew the
colonel well, and made it a rule never
to be astonished at anything he did, but
they made an exception to the rule
when the colonel canvassed the princi-
pal bar-rOoms for men who wished to
purchase horse and when a gambler
who was flush obtained Tipsie in ex-
change for twenty slugs-only thou
nd l,ll 1
ways said that there wasn't gold enough
on top of the ground to buy her-Mud
Gulch experienced decided sensation.
One or two enterprising persons
speedily discovered that the colonel
was not in a communicative mood so
every one retired to his favorite saloon
and bet according to his own opinion of
tho colonel's motives and actions.
But when the colonel, after remain
ing in a barber shop for half an hour,
emerged with his face clean shaven and
his hair neatly trimmed and parted,
betting was SO wild that cool-headed
sporting man speedily made a fortune
by betting against every theory that
was advanced.
Then the colonel made tour of the /
stores and fitted himself with a new
suit of clothes, carefully eschewing all /
of the generous patterns and pronoun- |
ced colors 50 dear to the average miner. |
He bought a new hat and put on pair |
of boots, pruned his finger nails, and, /
stranger than all, he mildly declined all |
invitations to drink.
AS the colonel stood in the door of |
the principal saloon, where the stage al |
ways stopped, the Challenge Hill con-
stable was seen to approach the colonel |
and tap him on the shoulder, upon |
which all men who bet that the colonel /
was lodging somebody claimed the /
stakes. But those who stood near the |
colonel heard the constable say
SColonel, 1 take it all back, an own
up fair an square. When 1 seed you
git out of Challenge Hill il. came to me
all of a sudden that you might be in
the road agent business, so 1 follered |
yOu-duty you know. But when I seed
you sell Tipsie I knowed 1 was on the
wrong trail. / wouldn't suspect you
now if all the stages in the state wuz
robbed and I'll give you satisfaction
any way you want it. "
a.sInile. aue cuiisuaUi1 'sslssI 'r'alSE- sssI1
that nobody had any idea of how curl
ously the colonel smiled when his beard
was off. "Give this fifty to Jim Per
kiRs LI . fust tt,ime'yg see him. I'm leaTln
Suddenly the stage pulled up at the
door with a crash, and the male passen-
gers hurried into the saloon in state
of utter indignation and impecuniosity.
The story of the robbery attracted
everybody, and during the excitement
the colonel slipped out quietly and
opened the door of the stage. The old
lady started and cried
"Georger"
And the colonel, jumping into the
stage and putting his arm tenderly
about the trembling form of the old
lady, exclaimed
90 Mother -