Eureka daily sentinel. [volume] (Eureka, Nev.) 1871-1887, 1876-11-18
DEATH OF AN ECCENTRIC CHAR
ACTER.

The Austin RcVeiJIe Of Wednesday
last contains an account of the death
Of old Jack Williams, a name that will
be readily recognized by all old Aus
~tinites. Jack Williams, for thirteen
years, has been a noted character in
Austin. He arrived III that town in
the rush of 1868, known as the Reese
River excitement, and took up his
quarters in an abandoned mining tun.
mel run into a hill on the south side of
Pony canyon and near the western
end of what now constitutes the town
Of Austin. In this tunnel he made his
home up till about two years ago.,
when Allen A. Curtis, agent of the
Manhattan Company, gave him a lot
of lumber, and there arose the house
that Jack built, in the shape of a sub
stantial little cabin. Jack never had
any new clothes; he didn't own a gold
watch with a gold chain set with gold
quartz; his diamond pin and ring he
must have disposed of before he came
to Austin, for nobody there eve saw
him wear them. He claimed to have
followed the sea for twenty-seven years
and to have been the hero of numer
Gus hard fought contests in the fistic
arena. The truth of the latter asser-
ton was borne out by his appearance.
A part of his nose had disappeared
and his face in general bore the bat.
tered look to be seen on hat of a re-
tired prize-fighter, which Jack was
generally credited with being. But for
all his bunged-up looks, and for all
his fighting reputation, he was harm
less as a kitten, and was never known
to seek a personal difficulty or engage
in a fight. How he managed to live
nobody knew. His tunnel home was
always neatly and clearly kept, and
we'll supplied with provisions, and
there was always a comfortable look
ing wood pile at its mouth. AS he
never worked and seldom begged, it
was a mystery to people how he pro.
cured the n~ecessaries of life; and there
used to be a romantic story of q rich
brother in Sacramento, who made
Jack a certain monthly allowance on
condition that he would immune him.
self in the Businesses of the noun
tains and not disgrace his brother by
his presence in the same place. Tlis
story was all bosh. Jack was never
seen with any money, and never en-
tered the bank or express Office during
all the time he lived in Austin. He
was seldom seen on the streets during
daylight, but could be seer providing
around the streets and saloons at night
as long as there was a light burning. |
Being harmless and poor, he came in
for a goodly allowance of free whisky;
almost any man who was feeling good
would ask Jack to take a drink, and
Jack would never refuse, and by this
he managed to keep himself al
most constantly in a state OF comfort
able drunk, during which he would
recount to any person who would listen
to him his hairbreadth adventures on
the briny deep and within the gladi.
atorial ropes. A short sine ago, Jack
was struck in the thigh by q piece of
wood, while engaged in chopping, the
blow fracturing the bone and causing
his death. The Reveitie says he died
from sheer fright. 1t Is probable that
old age and the superabundance OF
whisky furnished by a reform cam
paign had something to do with his
death. BY his death Austin loses one
of her notables. She has several more
tn spare, over whom, when Grim
Death comes along and snatches them
bald headed there will be but few
more tears shed than were shed over
the grave of poor, old, harmless, use
less Jack Williams, who was twenty
seven years a mariner and a boxer
from the ground up.