The Russellville Democrat., 1881-11-17
\ STRANGE PIANIST.

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 1858 there was a little camp about ten miles from Pioche, occupied by upward of about three hundred miners; every one of whom might have packed his prospecting implements and left for more inviting fiel is any time before sun set. When the day was over these men did not rest from their labors, like the honest New England agricnlturist, but sang, danced, gambled and shot each other, as the mood seized them.
 One evening the report spread along the main street (which was the only street., that three men had been killed at Silver Reef, and that the bodies were coming in. Presently numbering old conveyance labored up the hill, drawn by a couple of horses well worn out with their pull. The cart contained a good sized box, and no sooner did its outlines become visible through the glimmer of a stray light here and there than it began to affect the idlers. Death always en- forces respect, and even though no one had caught sight of the remains the crowd gradually became subdued. and when ti1e horses came to a stand still the cart was i'm mediately surrounded. The driver however, was not in the least im- pressed with the solemnity of his com- mission.
 He began to pry up the lid, got a board off, and then pulled off some old rags A strip of something dark like rosewood presented itself
 Eastern collins, by thunder ]" said several, and the crowd looked quite as tonished.
 Presently the whole of the box cover was of, and the teamster clearing away the packing, revealed to the astonished group the top of something which pug zled all alike.
 Had a dozen dead men been in the box, their presence in the camp could not have occasioned half the excitement that the arrival of that lovely piano caused. By the next morning it was known that the instrument was to grace a hurdy-gurdy saloon owned by Tom Goskin the leading gambler in the place. It took near week to get this wonder on legs, and the owner was the proudest individual in the State. It rose gradually from recumbent to an upright position, amid a confuson of tongues, after the manner of the tower of Babel.
 Of course, everybody knew just how such an instrument should be put up. One knew where the ffhind leg should go, and another was posted on the front piece"
 Scores of men came to the place every day to assist, and took the liveliest in- terest in it. It was at last in condition for bu9iness.
 ''It has been showing its teeth all the the week. We'd like to have it spit out something"
 A 1,Es to hn nd who could play upon the instrument. Goskin began to realize that he had a losing speculation on his hands. He had a fiddler and Mexican who thummed a guitar. A pianist would have made his orchestra complete. One day a three card monte player told a friend conf- dentially that he could knock any ann ount of music out of piano, if he only had it alone a few minutes to get his hand in"
 The report spread about the camp, but on being questioned he vowed that he didn't know note of music. It was noted, however, as a suspicious circum- stance that he often hung about the in- strument, and looked upon it longingly, like a hungry man gloating over a beefsteak in a restaurant window. There was no doubt but that this man had music in his soul, perhaps in his finger ends, but did not dare to make a trial of his strength after the rules ot harmony had suffered so many years of neglect So the fidler went on with his jigs, and the greasy Mexican paved his discordant guitar, but no man had the nerve to touch that piano. There were doubtless scores of men in the camp who would have given ten ounces of gold dust to have been half an hour alone with it. but every mans nerve shrank from the ieers which the crowd would shower up on him should his first attempt prove a failure It got to be generally understood that the hand that first essayed to draw music from the keys must not slouch it's work.
 It was Christmas eve, and Goskin, ac- cording to his custom, had decorated his gambling hell with sprigs of mountain cedar and a shrub whose crimson berries did not seem a bad imitation of English holly. The piano was covered with evergreens, and all that was wanted to completely fll the gap of Goskin's con tentment was a man 10 play that piano
 "Chrstmas night and no piano pound- er," he said. This is a nice country for christian to live in"
 Getting piece of paper he scrawled the words:
 800 Reward
 To a competant piano player.