Phillipsburg herald. [volume] (Phillipsburg, Kan.) 1882-1905, 1883-11-01

loose soil which they shoYeled into the
long sluice-box. They could see the
mule-trains going and coming, and the
clouds of dust far below which told
them the stage was whirling up the
valley. But Jim kept steadily on at his
work day after day Even though lack
rabbits and squirrels appeared on the
very scene. he would not leave till. like
the rest of the honest miners, he could
shoulder mis- pick and pan and 90 down
home with the setting sun.
Sometimes the men who had tried to
keep the children at school would come
that way, and, with sly smile, talk very
wisely about whether or not the new
miners would ''strike it, under the cool
oak among the flowers on the hill. But
Jim never stopped to talk much. He
dug and wrestled away, day after day,
now up to his waist in the pit.
One Saturday evening the old man
limped up the hillside to help the
young miners ''clean up"
He sat down at the head of the sluice-
box and gave directions how they should
turn off the most of the water, wash
down the ''toilings'' very low, lift up
the rifle, brush down the ''apron, .
and finally set the pan in the lower end
of the ''sluice-toil'' and pour in the
quicksilver to gather up and hold the
gold.
What for you put your hand in de
water for, papa?' querried Little
Stumps. who had left off his work,
which consisted mainly of pulling flow
ers and putting them in the sluice-box
to see them float away. He was sitting
by his fathers side, and he looked up
in his face as he spoke.
''Hush, child" said the old man,
softly, as he again dipped his thumb
and finger in his vest pocket as if about
to take snuff. But he did not take
stuff. Again his hand was reached
down to the ripping water at the head
Of the sIuice-box And this time curious
but obedient Little Stumps was silent.
Suddenly there was a shout, such a
shout from Jim as the hills had not
heard since he was a school boy.
He had the ''cOlOr." ''TWO cOlOrsi
three, four, five - dozen!' The boy
shouted like a ModOc, threw down the
brush, and scraper, and kissed his little
sister over and over, and cried as he did
so; then he whispered softly to her as
he again took up his brush and scraper,
that it was for papa; all for poor papa;
that he did not care for himself, but he
did want to help poor, tired, and
crippled papa" But papa did not seem
to be excited so very much.
The little miners were now continual
ly wild with excitement. They were up
and at work Monday morning at dawn.
The men who were in the fathers ten
der secret congratulated the children
heartily and made them presents of sew
eral small nuggets to add to their little
horde
In this way they kept steadily atwork
for half the summer. All the gold was
given to papa to keep. Papa weighed it
each week, and | suppose secretly con-
graduated himself that he was getting
back about as much as he put in.
Before quite the end of the third
month, Jim struck q thin bed of blue
gravel. The miners who had been hap
PLY chuckling and laughing among
themselves to think how they had man
aged to keep Jimsout of mischief, began
to look at each other and wonder how
in the world blue gravel ever got up
there on the hill. And in 4 few days
more there was q well-defned bed of
blue gravel, too, and not one of the
miners could make it out.
One Saturday evening shortly after,
as the old man weighed their gold he
caught his breath, started and stood up
straight; straighter than he had stood
since he crossed the Plains. Then he
hastily left the cabin. He went up the
hill to the children'S claim almost with
out Iimping. Then he took a pencil
and an old piece of letter, and wrote
out notice and tackled it up on the
big oak-tree, claiming those mining
claims, according to miners law, for
the three children. A couple of miners
laughed as they went by in the twilight,
to see what he was doing; and he
laughed with them. But as he limped
on down the hill he smiled.
That night, as they sat at supper, he
told the children that as they had been
such faithful and Industrious miners, he
was going to give them each present,
besides little gold to spend as they
pleased.
So he went up to the store and bought
Jim a red shirt, long black and bright
gum boots, broad brimmed hat and
belt He4 also bought each of the
other children some pretty trappings,
and gave each a dollars worth of gold
dust. Madge and Stumps handed their
gold back to ''pOor papa" But jim
was crazy with excitement. He put on
his new clothes and went forth to spend
his dollar. And what do yu suppose he
bought I hesitate to tell you. But
what he bought was pipe and paper
of tobacco!
That red shirt, that belt and broad
brimmed hat, together with the shiny
top boots. had been too much for Jim s
balance How could mamie spoke
of himseId as man now-how could a
man be an ''honest miner" and not
smoke pipe?
And now with his manly clothes and
his manly pipe he was to be so happy!
He had all that went to make up 1.-The
honest miner" True, he did not let
his father know about the pipe. He hid
It under his pillow at night. He meant
to have his first smoke at the sluice-bOx,
as a miner should.
Monday morning he was up with sun
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