Mexico weekly ledger., 1879-11-13
Zeph Parker's Stratagem.

lieve they're 'beout born with all
their eye teeth cut in their celestial
jaws; and yew've got to get up airly,
sir, if you want to take in Chinee!'
The speaker was hard-faced, hol-
low-jawed gentleman, in glossy
black suit, which fitted him very bad
ly, and the remark was made in the
smoking-rOom of the Continental"
There he was to be seen daily, and
he was supposed to have ''given the
speckylators fits in iles;'' III other
words, he was believed to have made
fortune in petroleum. At all events
he had plenty of money, and was
very generous in the spending of it.
The conversation had turned on
the vexed Chinese question, and he
had struck into the discussion.
81 reck' lect," he said, ''ther was
Zeph Parker. He was q deep 'un,
was Zeph! He was long o me and
few more up to Nevada, JUS 'beout
the time of silver craze. The boys
had been washing for gold; honest
like, meow gittin' it out o pockets,
meow outer the stream; and when
they'd done with bit o wash dirt,
and gone off tn another CLAIM, Mister
Washee Washee Chinee would come
and 90 over the dirt after them, and
be satisfied with what he got. Then
comes the silver craze. All on lis
goes off and loses all we'd made in
gold, gits no silver, and comes back
disappointed to try after the gold
again.
Guess we might try and try
again, but no gold could We get; and
all 'beout us was them smooth faced,
pig-tailed Cinnamon, gittin' on pros
/ porous and cOntented.
"'I tell yew, said Zeph, i shall
90 and murder one o them smllln'
teapots. | can't stand it much lon
ger
THIS here was in our bit Of tent,
where we was trying to make our
selves happy, playing poker on cred
ii and kecpin no account.
w hat for: sez.
/ '''What for;' cries Zeph. Dew
vew think that /, IN enlightened Sit
terzen OF a free country, am gwlnc to
set down and be robbed O. my mess
o golden pottagc by pack o smiI-
in, washer faced, opium smo-
kin celestial Jacobs! No, Stree,
this dogs gwime to bite
"'But | don't kinder see what this
dogs gwine to bite fur, | sez. Tea
pot amt done nuthin' to you
" 'Mateys,' scz Zeph, getting on the
barrel as had been his seat, things
has come to a purity pass with us,
heven't they
Right, old hoss,' sez some one,
hammerin' the chest lid as had been
our table.
''Haz any man here got any tobac-
coz" SEE Zeph.
" MOP
''EIaz any man here got any old
BnrbCn whisky
'.yon
" 'IIaz any man got any dust"
:" MOI
And flour, or pork, or boots, OF
new baskets"
4" No, no, no, no.
-. Then them Chinees has con
tinued Zcph; and what sez is this
as it is a sin and n shame to let {
pack of heathenish cusscs like them
teapots, as never goes to churches
. nor listens To paTSOUS-
81 say, Zcph,' scz some one
when did you 90 to mcetin' LAST
+" Never you mine, SEE Zeph, 'anC
don't interrupt man as wants t
give you suthin' 10 eat. A set o
cusses, scZ, as never gees TO meet
in, and b lieves in nuthin but joss
houses. l say, it's sin to let zen
be gittin' fat on our land, while we /,
AS thin and starved -lookin' as-as-
AS
LAS ole Zeph Parker himself,
sez Tom Paggins.
"'Wal. ez thin ez l am, if y0'
like sez Zcph.
. This is all very purity l sez
'hut we can't go and take claim
from the tcapots, Zeph; nor We can
rush 'em and annex the dust an(
nuggets they've washed out
NO said Zeph, winkin' on,
eye; 'hut we kin stratc gise EN-
d" How | scz. Don't kindeI
see it, They're too deep 20 be done
- YAH sez Ieph, they're 'beou
ez deep ez two-cant plate. Civ
me the means, and I'll sell the 10
and put good pocketful O. dollar
or dust in every mans pocket-si.
on us!'
"'But what means dyer want !
/ sez.
. 'One handful O. dust, sez Zeph
" And where are we to get it!
: sez Tom Paggins.
d" "'This how says Zeph. Nor
row mornin', every man hyar's 90
to 90 round the camp and cadgc
Tell the boys we're hard up, tu
we've got good thing on. They'll
subscribe little all reound. IeV
see if they don't
ven, VIC IL LiNs SCH We, XIV
we went to sleep hungry and got u
ravenouS.
''There was nothin' for it but to g
to work, and off we went, gettini
back to our tent about IL O'Clock
, when five out of six had got a iittl
gold dust. / was the anlucky one
bein' bad beggar, and had GO
none.
&" Now then!' sez Tom paggins
as soon as the dust was all put to
gether--about big spoonful of gilt
term stuff; let's go up to the stor
and get drink
/" That you jest won't sez Zeph
GRIMM. Pm kinder gwine to thro'
all this here dust away-Im gwin
to SOW it, boys, for a crop to com
up
"We all grumbled, for we wer
almighty hungry but we all had
kind of trust in Zeph, and gave way
" 81 Lool1ee hyar, lads he sez; 'it'
Jest II o'clock now, so let's go roun
- and git mouthful where we can
II fo PnIl Ilu'