Claiborne guardian. [volume] (Homer, La.) 1877-188?, 1879-09-10

every card to win an if he zoe,
through the deal as be orter do
when he lays down to die, an the
last case is ready to slide from the
box, lie can call the turn every
time.
81 was readin' in the Bible to day
that yarn about the Prodigal Son,
an l want to tell yer the story.
The book don't give no dates, but
it happened long, long ago. This
Prodigal Son had an old man that
put up the coin every time the kid
struck him for a stake, an never
kicked at the size of the pile either.
l reckon the old man was purity
well fixed, an when he died he in.
tended to give all his wealth to
this kid an his brother. Prod give
the old man a little game O talk
one day, and injuiced him to whack
up in advance O. the death racket.
He'd no sooner got his dizzy in his
fist than be shook the old man an
struck ont to take in some o. the
other camps. He he'd a way.up
time fur while, an slung his cash
to the front like he owned the best
payin' lead on airth; but hard luck
hit him lick at last an left him
Fat. The book don't state what he
went broke on, but l reckon he got
steered up agin some brace game.
But, anyhow, he got left without a
chip, or a four-bit piece to 60 an
eat on. An old granger then tux
him home an set him to herdin'
hogs, an here he got 80 hard up an
hungry that he piped off the swine
while they were feedin', and he
stood in with 'em on a husk lunch.
He soon weakened on such plain
provender an says to himself, SAYS
he: Even the old mans hired
hands are living on square grub,
while Fm worrying along here on
corn husks straight. I'll jist take
a grand tumble TO myself and chop
on this racket at once. I'll skip
back to the governor and try to fix
things mp, and call fur a new dcal,'
so of he started.
The old man seed the kid a com.
ing and what do We reckon he donei
Did he pull bis gun and lag for
him, intending to wipe him as soon
as he got into rangei Did he call
the dogs to chase him off the
ranchi Did he hustle around for
club and give him a stand. off at
the front gatei Eli Not to any
extent he didn't. No, sir!
The Scripture book says he waltzed
out TO meet him, and frOze to him
on the spot, and kissed him, and
then marched him off to a clothing
store and fitted him ont in the mob.
best rig to be had fur coin. Then
the old gent invited all the neigh.
bors and killed fat calf, and give
the biggest blowout the camp had
ever seed
At the conclusion of the nara.
tive the speaker paused, evidently
framing in his mind proper appli.
cation of the story. Before he
could resume, a tall, blear eyed
gambler, with a fierce moustache,
arose and said:
'Taint me as would try ter break
up a meeting, or do anything dis.
religious. No, sir; am not that
sort of citizen. But in all public
hoo docs it is parliamentary rule
for anybody as wants to AK ques.
tiOns to rise up and fire them of.
| do not want ter fool away time
a questioning the workings of re.
ligion; oh, no. AS long as it is
kept in proper bounds, and does not
interfere with the boys in their
games, l do not see as it can do
harm. l just want to Ak the hon.
orable speaker if he has not give
dead awayf Does it stand
ter reason that bloke would feed
npon corn husks when there was
hash factories in the campi Would
anybody hev refused him the price
of square meal if he had q struck
them fur iti Would any of the
dealers that beat him out of his
coin see him starvei AS | remark.
ed afOre, l do not want ter make
any disrespectable breaks, but
must say that l have got it put up
that the speaker has been a trying
to feed us on cussed thin taffy, aud
no one but silly would take it in.'
Bill glared upon the speaker and
fairly hissed-
DO you mean to say that am a
|iarf
wal, You can take it just as you
choose. Some folks would swallow
IL in that shape
Bill pulled his revolver, and in an