Washington standard. [volume] (Olympia, Wash. Territory) 1860-1921, 1878-09-28
Black Hills "Rla0ae. ~

whes ! sas in the Blsek Higia. q lit
tie oser = year aga, had many expesi
snoes that ~ere cid. not On say startling
Oae Il the most extraordinary Of tbe-,
occurred in Caster City. vhea I v.s ol
my ~sy back 90 civiiixation.
At that time there we're nos many To-,
PIE ia Custer. bat What there wese. a..
, hasstts that acre calculated TO keep
strangers blood in god and rspid circu
iafloa-
one nigh; ] had teen taking 10 ia,
-lghi. ia the city oi Custer. I had .eei
la the brewery. over on the hill. ~is~r,
they male ter which was liquid Io-is
hai t.ern 81 the Aihambfa. xhe-e .
s1dsiei aud prsmiscsus discharge II ira
arms hal esavinc-d me thst ahe osi-
so1r atmosphere was healthier for me
had seen il oil, and wss going dosr
To the wAgcn % sle~p away the rest q
the night
Saddenly q slgn pr. jsefing ovez tss
sidewalk, caught nv eye IL nesd:
drugs, Groceries and Noe Paint
There Gas dim light in the shasty
and il occurred Ia me that il voaId b.
an excellent idea to 20 in and invcs,igsi,
the meaning of the strange leesnd- tn
door yielded readily 10 my pressure
and entered
The room in which found myself "a
square, and utterly devoid OF ornament
There was no floor, no ceiling, nothing
but rough rafters and unplaned pin.
bosrds. An ancient kerosene lamp cxa
its sickly radiance over the scene. IL
the front part Of the room was cracked
stove, around which, in the various atti-
sudes suggested by lsziness, poor whi..
ky, and the general CHARACTERISTICS If
''bummerism," sat three men.
They were not pleasant objects fI
contemplation, and their appearance IT.
dictated that they would Individually 1
collectively commit any crime for tri-
fling cmolument. Further examination
did not add to the fascinating elem ,nts
of the place. In the further end of tie
apartment stood the bar. 1t cob
sisted of wide pine plank, each END
of which rested upon an empty and de-
crepit whisky barrel. Behind it stool
the proprietor of the groggery, tobacco
stained, heavily armed, red-shirted, pro-
fame and hopelessly drunk.
Behind him was shelf, which held a
couple of black bottles and some thick
tumblers, which would have been equally
useful in seasons of peace and war.
BY the time my inventory was CON-
pleted, was satisfied that "drugs, gro
ceries and nose paint" meant whisky.
would have Withdrawn then had the cir
cumstauces been different, but having
gone so far, retreat was useless. So I
stepped up to the bar, and with the best
grace l could command, said to the sa.
loon-keeper:
~ am just going to turn in, and I
want some kind of light drink. Can't
you mix me up sherry cobbler, or some
kind of thing like that9"
He Strengthened himself up, looked me
all over from head to foot with depre-
eating sneer, rolled up his red shirt.
sleeves, and responded in these terms:
''Sherry-cobbler! H'mph! You'll take
whisky, you dash blanked son of hay
stackl And you'll take it straight! Aud
you'll be dash blanked glad to get it'll"
At this juncture the other three men
rose to their feet, and it suddenly struck
me that whisky soas what wanted after
all. And long after went to sleep that
night l imagined that q torch-light pro-
cession fourteen miles in length was 60.
ing down my throat.
But cases of "bluff" are not always so
successful as this one was. once saw a
gambler playing cards in Deadwood
saloon, his opponent being a wealthy
miner. The gambler was very sharp in
handling the cards, and for long time
went on in the process of "skinning" the
miner, without being detected. His
winnings we're quite heavy, and his an
tagonist was pretty we'll strapped" when
he discovered the gambler in the act of
"filling" his hand from his sleeve. He
Immediately rose to his feet, threw his
cards upon the table, and demanded his
money back. The gambler refrsed ar
rogantly, and the miner with deter
mined look upon his face, turned and
strobe out of the place. After he had
gone, the gambler gathered up the
money, and walking over to the open
window, tilted himself back in the chair,
and put his feet upon the table.
Some of the loungers about the place,
who knew the character Of the miner,
went over and warned The gambler to
''heel" himself. His reply was to toss
back his head, thrust his thumbs into the
arm holes Of his vest, spit contemptuously
upon the floor, and thus deliver himself:
"Oh, he won't hurt me-what2 Him get
away with me-mes Oh, mol l guess
not! Why, gentlemen, you don't know
me. I'm Mountain Jackl I'm the tall
gopher of the Wabash! I'm just creased
lightning on circus pole! WHAT
hurt me-! Him? oh, no. Not anyl I'm
the Wild Kangaroo of tho Plains! I'm
the Whirlwind of the great South Sea !
Tarantalers eggs are my daily meal. I
feed on ratlesnakes and catamounts. I'm
tornado. I'm only happy when I've
got shootin'-ir0n 10 one hand and .
bowie in the other, with ten galoots like
him afore me to be chawed up. I'm
Here he caught sight of the miner COM
ing in by back door, with q double
barreled fowling- piece in his hands.
Without pause in his flow Of words, the
gambler continued:
''But shot gun lets me QUIT"
And by skillfully executed somerset
be went out through the window hack