Washington standard. [volume] (Olympia, Wash. Territory) 1860-1921, 1874-03-07
One loud aye was the response.

red Jake, "for ain't onto the shoot
to-day. yet Id have to express the gen.
eral disapperbation ef eny. feller says
no. Git yer candles, an eff yergot any
thing that 'ud. be handy to her, fetch
it along"
The crowd rapidly dispersed fol-
lowed by their chiefs, who tarried only
long enough to express, as body, their
distinguishedapprov Of Hoosier Jake's
conduct. Ono by one the boys returned
with scraps of candle, old tin pals, fry
ing pans, tin plates, case knives, and
every sort of portable property that o
a lady was supposed to need. Even
Lavarette, the surly half-breed, gallant
ly brought his only treasure, which was
a hideous yellow dog, and tied it at the
door of the new house.
"Who's to fetch her?' inquired
Jake, Durn it, nobody in this camps
seed that woman yet--leastways, I
nam t, ana 1t time.
Jake looked at each chief, and each
looked at each two and Jake. It was
finally agreed that the three chiefs
should constitute committee, with the
barkeeper as interpreter, to notify the
lady what had been done, and to crave
her acceptance"
"By Judas Priestw cried an excited
miner, the chiefs will get into muss
at last, there's three of 'em, and she
can't take more'n two arms at time"
Every one admitted the gravity OF
the situation, and stared anxiously
through the twilight. Suddenly the
excitable Jack cried
"Thcy're coming! Ihear DENNY s
a-talking Dutch at her!'
The boys formed in line each with
a lighted candle. Soon the procession
approached, led by the barkeeper who
was followed by the lady, who was
supported by Tom Lugg and Baretop
Billy, while Norfolk Ben brought up
the rear with a wash-board, fat-iron
and bundle. The lady was not beau
ty, nor were any cultured lines discern
able in her face, but when the boys
lifted their hats and bowed, and the
woman saw what had been done for
her, she turned in the doorway and ex-
claimed:
"Gott bless you mems all; mine hus-
band vas digger too."
The crowd quietly dispersed and
drank her health and good luck.
Baretop remarked that she ought to
drive brisk business, and Tom Luggs,
instead of contradicting him, as was the
habit of the rivals, actually admitted
that he thought so himself. Norfolk
Ben said nothing, but he thought an
empty barrel of the barkeeper, and
when Nashua, after five minutes con-
suming wonder as to what on earth
Ben wanted of that barrel, stepped out
to ascertain, he was just in time to hear
Ben saying at the widows door:
"I've toted yer up barrel of clean
water, cos the crick II be riled as soon
as the boys get to work in the mornin'.'
The hours slipped away, and the
boys commenced to take farewell drinks
when Hoosier Jake remarked:
"I move ther don't be no more shoot
ing at sight this side of the crick.
There hev been times when gentleman's
missed ther man and laid out some fel.
Ter inside his shanty. Of course that's
excusable--no gentleman's to blame
for mistakes that comes of having his
early education neglected, but ther ain't
to be no practicing on wommin."
"That's sow responded the crowd
so emphatically that men who shot wild
considered themselves solemnly warned.
Hadthe next mornings sun possessed
a human countenance, it would have
been so paralyzed by what it saw the
whole solar system would have been
seriously disarranged, for there. in the
principal and only street at the Turn,
stood Hoosier Jake in white shirt and
clean shaven face. The contagion spread
rapidly, and Jake's razor was so indus
triously borrowed that it's edge soon
resembled that of superanuated hoe
Men disappeared mysteriously, to re-
turn clad in such gorgeous raiment as
could be purchased at the stores up and
down the creek. Parleyvoo, the only
Frenchman in camp, heated pipe stem
and tortured his long hair into thous-
and little curls. The restless Nashua
spent several hours in deep thought,