Southern standard. (McMinnville, Tenn.) 1879-current, 1881-06-11


out of it so long as he fears God and re-
CARDS man, and tell you he gets pretty
well hardened before he can sneak
around nights with enough frozen stuff
to blow him into four different town.
ships in the wink of an eye. When
man gets so that he don't care whether
he lives or dies the next minute he goes
into moonlighting and makes q heap of
money. Oh, yes, there is lots of money
in it, but it is dearly earned cash. But
| wasn't always a moonlighter. Oh, no
| used to be as promising boy as ever
walked, and that was only short time
ago. am only twenty-six years old
now, but | have felt to be nearly fifty
for the past two years. What made
me moonlighterp I'll show you.
There, that made me moonlighter and
-a-murderer!"
1t was picture, small locket pic
ture, of beautiful young woman with
dreamy brown eyes, sweet poutng lips
and wealth of dark brown hair. A
most lovable young lady, surely, if the
picture might be taken as basis of cal
culation. The features were strangely
familiar to me, for they resembled the
features of the wife of a prominent oil
operator whom had met several times
at private receptions and small parties.
The man continued without Interrupt
ton:
"Ah, you start" he said, with fierce
laugh. "You have seen the originate
Yes? And you will see her again, too.
Four years ago was engaged to that
woman and | was as happy as the day
was long. | had bright prospects in life
then, and my father, who was in bust
ness in Philadelphia, where we lived,
was supposed to be pretty comfortably
fixed in life. But somehow or other
after he died and his affairs were
Strengthened out my mother and hadn't
a cent to give a beggar. tried clerking
and bookkeeping in Philadelphia for
awhile, but it was no 60, and to cap the
climax of my misery the young lady |
was engaged to broke off the engage
ment with the polite excuse that she
thought too much of me to hamper me
with an engagement, and that could
climb the ladder of fortune much better
if were not bound by ties of any kind.
Very tender and considerable, wasn't
shep She never cared for me as much
as she did for my money, but just wor-
SHIPPED her, and when she threw me over
in that cool way wilted right down and
left the city. landed in the lower oil
country and tried to do something
And then when saw my mistake it was
too late to get good bargains on leases
in the northern field, but | came here
all the same and tried to make my way.
had my mother to support in Philadel-
phia all the time, and it was through her
that | learned of the marriage of the
woman loved to a wealthy man from
the oil regions. | was sick for two
weeks after that, stranger, and when l
came to my senses | wasn't the same
man. | didn't care to live, and if it
hadn't been for my poor old mother l
should have killed myself. | became
rough and reckless and did the toughest
kind of work could find. drove team
for awhile and then built rigs and
dressed tools. After awhile | turned
driller and tried to save money for my
mother, but didn't make it fast enough.
The longer 1 lived in the northern field
the more reckless l became, and it
wasn't long before | was moonlighter.
| made torpedoes for shooting wells
against the law, and lived out in the
woods in little log hut and hated the
sight of man. | soon became the bold.
est and most successful moonlighter in
the country, and every cent could gel
above expenses | sent to Philadelphia
} got on the inside of lot of informa
! ton some lucky spectators had, and
took flyer on the market with splen-
: did result, | made money hand over
fist, but fortune came to late to do me
: any good, and though | was still young
Q man | looked forward to nothing thi.
world could give. A year ago this win.
+, ter | took to drinking tangle foot
. whisky, and after two or three sprees
t got to going at a terrible rate, and one
day in the early part of 1880, some time
0 in April, think, got into a row with q
man at the head of Tram Hollow and
e we had red-hot fight. We were both
q drunk, and when | found was getting
t the best of him a wild thrill ran through
;. me, the devil took full possession of my
!; actions and before l could think twice
Il had stabbed him to the heart and ny
n hands were stained with the blood of |
" fellow creature!"
, The dying man shook with agony a
" the thought of that terrible deed CAM
y upon him, and his pain distorted fac
u was lifted in prayer for mercy and for
" giveness. 1t was solemn hour for
- stranger to that rocky country-th
- death-bed confession under the moan
" ing pines and the long shadows of tn
u giant trees casting their somber form
" about in the pickering light of the gas
-" Jet. A silence fell upon us suddenly
!. the moaning of the pines sank to tn
/ faintest of whispers; while from ala
down the valley came the whirr AM
rs roar of the bull wheel as the cable of tn
~, heavy drill at the well ran with lightnin
" speed over the crown pully down int
10 the earth two thousand feet.
- clark" said the man whom deaf
=" was about to claim. "Big Jack is run
N ming the tools and is letting them slid
~, r., so that can hear. 1t is the last time
20 will ever hear that sound. | have hear
% it often and handled the bull-whet
of brake many times. never will again
n. no, never again on this earth"
ID He was silent again, and so still wa
ne the winry night that could hear tn
er thud of the walking-beam and the rattl
L. of the cable against the derrick. Th
in silence became absolutely painful, unit
@. at last the melancholy face of the dyin
Is man was raised again.