The Ottawa free trader. [volume] (Ottawa, Ill.) 1843-1916, 1881-05-07

tent of their head man, and . Thousand dollars
worth of dust and nuggets was weighed on
into a bag; Zeph put his mark to kim
OF dockyment in Chinee; and half an hou
alter we went back to camp, leavin' the smilin
Chimes 10 their purchase.
"'lts darned shame to cheat the poor, in
nocent babies like that sez.
"Not it, SCI Zeph. Its only like playin
poker with them and winnin'. Lets go ant
liquor
had to keep very quiet for fear of bein' sen
off and Icph said they'd put up with thei
loss, clear out and 60 to some other gulcb.
But they didn't; for the next day Tom
who went uD to see what they was a,d0in', SCI
they'd moved their camp up around the hole
and were wOrkin' away like a swarm Of bees
| THAT night, as we were slttn' smokin a
Bills store, some chaps strOlled IN, and one o.
them says, IN a bit OF u temper;
"Call this here free Country?'
eyes, stranger, dew SEE Zeph, rafting
come nuggets IN his pocket; who says il
aintt'
81 do said the new conner Here are we
workin' like slaves fur a few dollars worth OF
dust, and pack of heather cusses comes and
"'Dew they! seq Zeph, winkin' at us.
eyes, he seq, they dew. There's that pack
of Chinese moved up higher In the gulch, and
they've hit on big pocket. They got two
pound nugget out on it this very afternoon
".Whatr roared Zeph, with his eyes staring
out of his head like q Holsters.
"a tw0-pOund nugget, and the stuff 3 pan
nlng out awful. say it's shame, and the
government ought to stop it,
"'Soldr groand Zeph.
Next day 1t was the talk Of the place. The
Chinese were pann!n' out gold at tremend.
yus rate from the claim, and there was threats
among the rowdies Of drivin' the heathcns
away; but the party of order was too strong,
and they knew If rowdes was allowed to get
tho upper ham, here they'd be just as likely
to seize anybody else's claim; so it WAS decid,
ed to temporize with the heather and try to
buy the claim
"Thcy were 200 strong up there; and when
we went up to see the place which we did in
a kind of desperate ieelin'-the fat chap
smiled and Clapped his hands and gave Zeph
a little round nugget as big as a pea.
"A mectin' was held, and we concluded to
make a company and buy back the claim
Twenty thousand dollars was the most as was
to be offered.
"Twenty thousand dollarsr groaned Zeph
oh, boys, what fools we was But | did
want to hold out fur $4,000
"lt's no use to grOwl,' seL Tom. How
much have we got nows
"'Beout 1900, guess sex Zeph.
"'Wal, then SEE Tom, lets go in for shares
rs far as our money goes
1.-THE money was nearly all subscribed, but
we got on for $500, and could ha' sold our
shares the next hour for 81 600
Next mornln' the party selected to do the
business went to the Chimes camp, but they
wouldn't take the money. They said they had
begun TO work, and meant To have the proceeds
of the day; but the boys looked dangerous, SO
the heathens finally said they'd settle up that
night, take the money, and give possession.
This made the gulch worse than ever, and
shares changed hands at fine rate, men sclin'
theirs and then gett'n' so excited that they
bought back again
".l shall never forgive myself, boys seq
.."Dh the next mornIn', as we sat over the fried
bacon and biscuit; 4 throwed away a fortune
"Whats the row. seq |, jumping up.
"There was suthin' atioat outside for there
was heap Of excitement, but no one seemed
TO know what 1t was.
"Arter while we got to know that there
wasn't single eeleft IN the gulch they'd
gone Oft, no one knew where, In the night
"'Theyre darncd artiul,' SEE Zeph; and he
was rign;. for we soon kDowcd just what mad
happened
we BY nad cheated the Chinese by retail
they'd cheated US by wholesale, Tor there wasn't
and never had been grain of gold IN that
claim that wasn't put there first. 1t was only
a small show that We made; but the heathens
had dubbed together their aust and nugge .
to make a big show. That day they packed I
al up again, and when they'd got the twenty
thousand dollars they sncaked out from the
camp. guess the gulch would ha' massacre
ed them; but the hcathens hadn't lett behind IS
much as a trail.
Eyes gents, yu've got to get up airly to take
in Chinec. Waiter! whisky and sel,zer-
and ice