The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1878-03-21
Picked in o Boiling Spring.

Tom Collette is q miner, teamster, coal
burner, or anything else that is necessary
when he finds that his pocket is growing
empty and his larder lean. Tom, with
two friends, Joe and Jake, was making a
painful journey from Pine Grove, in EN-
eralda county, to Eastern Nevada. They
camped one afternoon by some hot springs
near Walker lake, and discovering hole
half full of cold water near one of the
hottest springs, turned the hot water, as
it flowed out of the spring, into the hole
until the hot and cold water blending,
made exactly the right temperature for a
bath. Then they plunged in and en-
joyed the delicious water rs only those
can who have travelled over dusty alkali
roads for several days. When they had
eaten their supper and lighted their pipes,
the theme of conversation for long time,
while they smoked, was their bath and
the wonderful refreshment it had brought
them. They spread their blankets on o
grassy spot behind some willows, few
yards away from the springs, and soon
fell asleep.
Tom was up with the dawn. The
memory Of the bath was fresh in his
mind, and so he bounded from his blank
cts, and, with a skip and a jump, plunged
into the clear water and sank to his neck.
TLen came a howl of anguish, and he
sprang upon the bank with all the agili-
ty of wild cat. In the meantime, his
fair skin had changed to the color of q
picked lobster. The hot water had been
running all night; and the cold water
had been neutralized hours before the
dawn, and now the water in the hole was
almost of the same temperature as the
water in the boiling spring from which
it flowed. Tom was in a terrible state:
"I thought was picked" But he did
not hesitate as to the course he should
pursue.
With infinite care he drew on his pants
and boots. Forcing back tears of an
guish, he managed to walk back to the
camp. Though it wrung his heart, he
put on his old-time frank smile as he
neared the rendezvous, for Jake was just
then sitting up in his blankets, gaping
aud stretching. Seeing Tom approach,
Jake asked where he had been. Tom
replied that the recollection of the mag
nificeut bath of the previous evening was
so vivid in his memc-yy that he could not
think of breaking camp without repeat
ing it, and added: ats just lovely,
Jake"
Jake did not want to hear more, but
sprang from his bed and rushed away
toward the spring, As swiftly as Tom
could ne followed, and from behind the
willows kept covert watch. He saw
Jake throw off his clothes, spring into
the water, heard yell of anguish, and
then saw him with wonderful haste
emerge and spring upon the bank, and
vainly try, by swift applications of his
hands to different parts of his body, to
arrest the intolerable pain, swearing and
crying all the while.
At last Jake managed to get into his
clothes and started for camp. Meeting
Tom, he began with fierce invective to
upbraid him for his deception. But Tom
cut him short in an instant. "Hush up"
said he, "would you bawl like calf and
give US both away when I want To cook
that other son-of-a-gun up in camp%
soothed by this, Jake grew quiet, and
both leisurely proceeded to camp. By
this time Joe had commenced to rouse
up, and seeing the others approach, asked
them where they had been. Tom an
swered cheerfully, lhe was holding his
pantaloons away from his body in the
rear at the time, "Do you think we could
break camp without one more magnih-
cent swim? Not much"
At this Joe, getting up, cried: 'Not
much, you betW and dashed away toward
the spring.
AS he disappeared behind the willows,
Tom spruug for his pistol, and said to
Jake, "Get your gun quick; it will be
mean business when Joe comes back"