The New Bloomfield, Pa. times. (New Bloomfield, Pa.) 1877-188?, 1878-06-18

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now.
We were down at Frisco" one day.
last winter, Chauncey and 1, when all
at once he stopped just, before the office
of the F" Life-and-Death Insurance Com
pany."
"Reddy," said he (my name is Red
wood, but I've always been "Reddy" to
him), "Reddy, I'm going in for a
policy"
What have you to get insured ?" 1
inquired, wonderingly. knew that he
had not a thousand dollars in the world
just then. Only week before he had
borrowed five thousand of me, which
he had at once deposited in flourishing
faro bank down town, and from which
he was not likely to soon draw it out
again.
have myself to insure" he replied
don t feel just right about that five
thousand dollars. If anything should
happen to me you'd lose it sure"
If anything should happen to you,
old boy, L shouldn t care whether / lost
it or not"
Il know it, Reddy; but l should
You are the nearest to me of anybody
now. I'm going to take out policy for
twenty thousand dollars, and in your
favor. Then, if go under at any time,
you'll be all right"
OF course l objected to this squarely,
4l,at,Oh 10 " n.
office, and Disbrowe announced his err
rand. He was well known in the city,
and much respected Notwithstanding
his wild life. No one ever spoke of him
but as man of honor. He had no diff
ficulty at all now in obtaining policy.
They knew that he carried I" his
life in his hand" and who was careless
of any peril; but they knew too that he
was hard man to kill. He had been
hard-hit more than once, and came out
all right. 1t was common supersti-
ton West of the mountains that Chaun-
cey Disbrowe was not born to be shot,
And as for his health, it was simply per-
feet. A more splendid specimen of phys
ical manhood did not live.
So policy was made out,-a policy
for twenty thousand dollars and, pay
ing his first premium at once, Chauncey
handed the document to me. / declined
to take charge of it. Had 1 foreseen
what was to come of that bit of paper, 1
would have torn it to atoms on the
spot.
Z" An right said he, coolly, when
shook my head /" suppose it's just as
well for me to keep it, We're always
together" And he buttoned it up in his
pocket.
1t was not long after this that we went
East as far as Denver City and, as ILL
luck would have it, there we fell in with
Richmond again. Richmond was
cold-blooded, out-and-out rascal. Chaun-
cey knew that as well as did and there
fore / never could understand why my
friend did not cut the man dead, and
have nothing more to do with him. 1t
came out, however, this night we met
Richmond at Denver, that Chauncey
had lost money to him at cards some
time before; and, though the debt
ground him good deal, still Jas he could
not pay the money, he was to certain
extent in Richmond's power. The latter
was smooth, oily kind of fellow,-one
with whom it would be difficult to
quarrel.
1t was at rather low place-I think
it was den known as Buckner's Bower
that we met Richmond that evening.
AS general thing, tried to keep my
friend away from such places for, as /
have said, he was an inveterRte gamester
and the very sight of play always gave
edge to his appetite. But on this night
/ did not take much thought on the mat
ter, and knew he had very little mon
ey about him, and 1 myself had still
less.
AT most of the tables @ sell pitch" ap-
peared 10 be the chief occupation.-
There was one, however, in the middle
of the room, where, from the large num-
Der of lookers-on, we concluded that
bluff" must be the attraction and to
this table we made our way. True
enough, bluff was the game and, sit
ting there, coolly shuffiing his cards,
and betting with unwavering confidence
on his own hand, with apparent reck-
lessness, but really with consummate
cunning and calculation, was Rich
mond. He nodded to us, and his eye
sought Chaunaev,s with a nacnIiar