The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1877-09-08
The Man Fr0m DeadwOOd.

THE Philadelphia correspondent of the
New York Herald writes; A man from
Deadwood City, the great metropolis of
the Black Hills, passed through here the
other day. He has just quit driving the
overland stage to Deadwood, which place
he emphatically pronounces the most dia-
| bolical town on earth. He has come
back to Goods country" as he calls the
East, to get little money that has been
left him and to see his old home before
he goes back to get some more bullets
shot through him, as he puts it.
| The man from Deadwood has ahistory.
The nephew of one of the richest and
best-known men in Brooklyn and of one
of the Empire States most distinguished
United States Senators, he comes of good
stock. AS a Snowman he has travelled
| through the North and West, as SOL
dier in the rebellion he went through the
South, and as sailor he has circum-
navigated the globe. His fondness for
horses kept him in the circus business
for some years, and he knows all the old
showmen, of all of whom he is full of
anecdote. With the circus he has been
engaged generally in charge of the stock,
and he is proud of the fact that he is one
of the few drivers in the business who
can successfully handle a sixteen. horse
golden circus chariot with brass band.
Lately he has been roughing it in the
West, saw the shooting of Wild Bill and
the hanging of the assassin, and has
more recently, as an overland stage
driver, experienced life in Deadwood
City, the new mining town in the Black
Hills that has already earned the reputa-
ton of being the most depraved COM
munity under the sun.
In view of the interest that attaches to
this phase of American border life have
tried to jot down portion of what the
man from Deadwood told me about this
typical mining town of the far West.
Between eXpectorations of tobacco juice
were the answers to my questions given
by the man from Deadwood, whose man
ner of speech had peculiarly solemn
drawl that was very odd and amusing.
" Is Deadwood as rough and lawless
place as we are told by the Western
Newspapers"
"Worse. don't know what the pa
pers say of it, but l know it's worse'n
any language can tell. There's no law
an no Sunday. Every mans his own
court, an his revolver is lawyer, judge,
jury an acknowledgement execu-
toner. An the gamblin drinkin' an
fghtin' goes on all the time, day an
night. You wouldn't know when Sunday
comes around if you didn't put it down
in book.
Murders? o yes, there's plenty O.
them, but they don't call 'em that. At
least three day on average; some fel
low gets the worst of an argument an is
laid out. It's putty dull in town them
days when somebody don't get killed.
An they do have the queerest Coroner's in
quests out there l ever see. Why, jury
sot on Teller there not long ago, an
they heerd the evidence an found that
Bill Jones came to his death by calling
Red-headed Marks liarr Marks ar
rested? Not much. They darsn't. An
another jury sot on poor boy who had
a difference of opinion with notorious
rough character, an although seven of
the jurymen saw the shootin' an the
man what did it, an Notwithstanding
this fellow went around boastin' of it,
this jury brought in verdict of murder
by some person to us unknown In
terestin', wasn't it?
:" Yes, prices pretty high, too. Nothin'
less'n two bits an no soft money. Drinks
is two bits. l went in drug store to
git dose O salt an they charged me
four bits fifty cents in silver. | SAYS
Gum drops, that's an awful price. In
! Go1,u couptru uO,, lin v;t dnea for opa
Bit WELL says he, that's our price
for salts; but l can give you bits worth
O. anti-appetite pills, an they'll be
enough to take the edge off awhole fami-
ly."
"What did he mean by anti-appetite
pills?" innocently asked the man from
Deadwood.
"Why, pizen, s'pose, said he, grim
ly.
Any man willin' to work kin get five
or six dollars day in gold. Workin' in
the mines pays six dollars day in dust
reg'ler Some of 'em gets six dollars
day and found-found dead in the morn
in!"
He uttered this CHASTITY witticism in
tone even more solemn than usual, and
when laughed he looked at me with an
injured expression.
mo, Twin amt so dear if you mess
together an cook for yourselves. You
can live that way for about six dollars a
week, l reckon, eff you don't get killed
off in the middle O. the week.
No, never worked in the mine; l
preferred stage drivin'. was we'll paid.
got hundred dollars month in dust.
have been drivin' the stage between
Custer City and Deadwood. l have
stuck at it for the past three months, but
now I've stopped"
He paused, but there had been such
singular emphasis on his last word that
felt sure there was something of inter-
est to come, SO l promptly asked him
why he stopped driving. WE'LL" said
he, quietly and indiferently, "rd been
dead man in few hours eff l hadn't"
Something in his manner told me that
he did not care to continue that subject
any further, so dropped it for the present
and asked: care the stages robbed very
often?"
Yes; they are nearly always robbed
when they carry treasure or when any of
the passengers have val'bles. The stages
| have an iron box secured to the hottom