San Marcos free press. [volume] (San Marcos, Tex.) 1877-1892, 1883-07-19
.,ryyING HIM OUT OF TOWN.
.c.,.,sip' jim Was "Fired" Dat Of Mars.
y" willie.

.o...,.ir jim Wa. "Fir.d" Dat Of Mars.
!" Vile.
.c,saking of an old bum" remarked
,tsv blackburn, "did ever tell you
en s we ran Cocktail Jim out Of Mays
nov g'a Cal, in 80? Cocktail Jim was
WI hardest case ] ever saw. During
1I !" ,he time ! was in Marysville never
s"sv him to eat meal or do minutes
h nr He Just loafed around Boston
wsrry's monte saloon and drank, and
INK. and drank-always cocktails.
,Msr ioafing around the town for a
aasr he got to be great nuisance, and
,ts boys tried various ways to freeze
I'm ont. But he never lost control of
himself, no matter how much he drank,
and there appeared to be no method of
msking him tired of Boston Harry's
SWell. one day I arrived in town,
having been down to Sacramento for o
lad Of supplies, when I saw from the
distance q big crowd of men in the
middle of the street, with Cocktail Jim
IN charge. Just week before they
bsd elected me justice of the peace.
IsI drove up one of the boys says:
.Ah. here comes the judge. Now we
can try him at once. Il
"I asked what was the trouble. 1t
didn't take more than two minutes to
And out. It seems Cocktail Jim had
been fired out of Boston Harry's early
tbe night before, and slept in an open
lot Early in the morning he got up,
famishing for drink. The first man
he met was Pete Warner "Pete, says
he. Il haint had bit to eat for three
bull days. Let ME have dollar Pete
didt like to do it. After talking some
time Pete took out counterfeit Mexi-
can dollar and handed it to Jim. There,
hesays, get something to eat but no
whisky Jim promised, thanked him,
and they parted. Pete at once rushed
ND to Boston Harry's, knowing Jim
would merely walk around little and
then step in there to get cocktail, and
told Harry that when Jim attempted to
pass the dollar to arrest him for shov-
ing counterfeit coin. ... D.. "a
"In about ten minutes, sure enough,
Jim came in, ordered cocktail, and
unconcerned like tipped the dollar up
and let it fall on the counter. The
cocktail was made in the best style,
and Jim drank it down. But said the
barkeeper, give me some other money.
I hear from the sound of this that it's
no good Jim confessed at once that
the dollar was all the coin he had,
lot of the boys gathered around, tho
Sheriff was sent for and he was placed
under arrest.
"When I arrived Jim was about
scared to death. The boys had been
talking of hanging him right there.
well, we'll try him. said I. The jury
found him guilty without leaving their
seats.
81 then addressed the prisoner, tell
ing him how clearly he had been caught
passing bad dollar, something against
the peace and dignity of the state; but
presuming he mad mother living, who
had thought of him sometime, or a
loving sister, or law-abiding brother,
I would be merciful and give him the
lightest penalty the law allowed. L
then sentenced him to twenty lone years
in the state prison.
"When he heard this Jim fairly
howled. His red, swelled eyes oozed
tears. But it was no use; the
Sheriff snatched him and began to move
through the crowd. Igot down off the
dry goods box and edged up to Jim.
Can you run?' I whispered. Run?
he whispered back. Il can run like
quarter horse WELL says l., there is
some doubt about this, but l couldn't
help it, you know. The law says so and
so, and we judges have to follow the
law. Now, I'll tell you what I'll do
says I, still whispering. I'll call the
Sheriff off, as if to speak to him, and
when the coast is clear you run for the
river as though the devil was after you.
The boys will shoot some, probably,
but don't mind that-iust climb
so called the Sheriff to one side,
and Jim gave jump. I swear, gentle
men, that man went like as II he had
wings. The road was knee-deep with
dust and the Yuba 500 yards away,
but he cleared the whole distance, with
hundred men yelling, hollering, and
shooting in the air, and in five seconds,
when the dust cleared off, he was no.
where's in sight. We never saw him
afterwards"
When the laugh had subsidized some
one asked what became of the counter
felt dollar. "Oh," added Charley,
shat was paid into court. The foreman
of the jury, the Sheriff, the District
Attorney, and we went down the street
and passed it off to the first barkeeper
We met"