The Sedalia weekly bazoo. [volume] (Sedalia, Mo.) 187?-1904, 1881-04-26
SANDY BILL,
A Typical Western Character.
and How He Played the Game to
to the End.


Did ] know Sandy Bill Well,
should say go! Smartest and uglie.t
man ever on the frontier. Knew him
first in Dead Mans Gluch. when they
found the plscers there. Bill came
down to wash dirt. but he soon got
tired of that, aud took to cards. But
cards got away with him. He wasn't
strong enough for them. He used to
say. after he got right bad, that the
black spots stained his heart and the
red ones his hands. He was sullen-
like at times, and then there was
trouble. He'd pull a gun quicker
than flash, and there would be cold
meat for the coroner in the wink of an
eve. Bad man, Bill was. They
wanted to get him out of the gulch
once. ard the camp council held a
campmeeting on it, but the under.
taksr got the council drunk and made !
EN- vote Bill should stay. He was
good far one branch of business at
least.
Bill was cross-syed, and when he
got right mad it used to make the
boys feel queer all around. They
understand exactly who he
Was mad at, for his eve would take in
all sides Of the room. which made it
sortsr awkward. He shot fellow
once and got off on the plea that it
was an accident on this account. Four
men swore that he was looking ut
them, and that his gun went Oft in
The other direction. The court allow.
ID that a man couldn't be hung be-
cause Of an in6rmi,y, out said that il
'uch An accident happened again an
,verruling Providence would rake in a ,
prominent citizen. For you see there ,
wasn't any getting away from Bills {
traight shooting, even if he had crook ,
ID eyes. When he had the drop on q ,
nan you could bet on funeral with 9
he same Christian confidence YOU !
ould on four aces. I
But Bill went under, and in q {
user way, too. 1t was after they I
ound some gold lodges Of free milling 4
uartz above the gulch aud the camp /
sd become q town. Bill was running h
bank above the Nugget saloon, and B
e made il pay big. One day a fel.
'w walked into town all rags and o
Misery, and went into the bank. Bill =
las keeping cases, and the ml,ute no (;
NV the stranger he jumped up and o
Ialked over to him. There was some I
ak and they shook hands. Then .
BILL came back to the table leading
be stranger. "Boys," said he, when
was sick this mau doctorsd me
hen l was hungry he fed me; when l
rawled out of rebel stockade in
iscon aud tried to get north ne
elped me, My friends are his friends.
lie euemiss are nay enemies. No mat
sr how the cards run. half I've got 10
is Then Bill sat down, for he
Iasn's much Of talker.
The next day the stranger came out
, better ontiit, but it didn't help
is locks much. There was something
bout his eyes that looked like the
evils trademark. He had . noisy,
lustering way about him, and nobody
,ok to Bile pet. And it wasn't
ood day for Bill when he came, either,
" after that everything seemed to 60
rong. The stranger spent an awful
yht of money. and all of it came
ON Bill. He used to cut up and
AXE bad breaks about the bank, but
Ill stood it oil and never said q word.
any Of the boys growled he'd Just =.
Ike in three angles Of the room with
IS eyes and that settled matters. If
icy talked with him he'd Just shrug pr
d shoulders and saw he was Of age. or or
One day though, Bills bank closed. dl
obody knew what it meant for q =
bile, but when "Gsorgia"-that's r
bat they called the stranger-did not Y
IN up it got whispered about that
} had gathered up all The loose scads
I'd skipped. Bill would never say
!. though. He wouldn't talk about
at all. He just soaked his watch q
ID pin and went in for another pile,
ith two different expressions in his
res, one harder than the other.
bout Georgia" he never opened his n
outh. y
He got to drinking pretty hard
ter that. but his luck was big. 1t
n hard to tell how much he won,
r he would not talk about it. but hs 6
ads q big winning. and must have
I'd q nice little pile. He never said
'ything to any one, and didn't want
y friends. Things went ON this way tt
r some time after Georgia" left, o.
ID then there was an excitement.
NO bronchos had been stolen above
Q camp and the thief was caught "
ID brought into town. 1t Was q