Little Falls transcript. [volume] (Little Falls, Morrison County, Minn.) 1876-1894, 1883-09-07

GaIA OHsAcl HIS Syt5S.S#S Derry slAe1 E6T-
hin ideas as to the style iii which opulenee
should travel. He dashed around the
country for q few days. Every GROCERY re-.
|sceNed q new financial impetus. People
Wondered hov soon the team would run
away and the buggy become . wreck. They
wondered and waited in vain Balty, after
corus catlng abouts sTuol umne Tor fort
night, suddenI dashed OFF as d tangent
gold. mustangs buggy, and all. The es-
fablish aent was never seen or heard OF after.
Balty was Invisible for two months
and two weeks. At the end Of that period.
Ba1ty dr1pped down again on Hawkin'g bar
without . cent, and The two bottles tied to-
gether by astring one full the other emp
ty.f Receipts n full. He had been east: he
had seen his naive city, .s.s.s
It was miracia that Balty-for eighteen
years not able to get farther than twenty
miles from Hawkins' should weather all
the temptations of San francisco and go on
board the steamer, with !. sound skin and q
comparatively sound pulse as be did But
the marvel of the miracle was, that he sayed
money to buy return ticket The miracle
was at last partially explained: Balty,, in
San Francisco had deposited sufficient
money to purchase that return ticket. Com
munity had not given him enough credit for
forethought Balty knew he was to squan-
der five thousand dollars east; SO he plann-
ed not only to keep his communications
open with California, but even with Haw-
kins'. For all the way to Stockton he had paid
even the stage fare, lodging, and meals for
the return trip, two months and two weeks
in advance.
Beyond the mere fact that BaNy had been
to the States, the sparse population of the
river were not much wiser. He rambled
vaguely, at times, about sundry trips between
New York and Philadelphia, and Gladly. "
|, Gotham had intrusted him with messages
for mother and brother. Gotham had
regarded their proper delivery, being de-
pendent on Ealty, in the light of forlorn
hope. But years had passed since any one
had gone direct from the river to the States.
Balty might make good his promised con-
nections. A few stranger things had hap
pened. Balty promised. Gotham re-
ceived those promises in silence. He knew
Balty could and would promise.
4 few months after Gotham received a
letter from his brother IT saw YOUR fiend
Balty, It rsad. HE did not seem quite
himself"
''It's easy enough to know how it was
with Ba)ty," said Gotham, speaking conf
dent;ally on the subject. He met Mac in
Philadelphia. Mac, you know, was sport
here in IS. Mac says to himself: Here,
Balty will lid himself of his cash as fast as
he can. If I don't get some Of it, some
one else wilv And SO / guess they worked
Balty's lead out as quick as they could, and
whizzed him back gain to California;
Balty is now working in Doesticks Gulch.
He has struck nothing for eighteen months.
He knows he must soon. It has been Or
dained that he shall unearth certain amount
Of virgin gold before he dies. Destiny sent
him to the Tuolumne River for that purpose.
1t matters little to him whether the "strikes II
| be near together. or far apart. He was
born to develop, not to retain wealth. He
fully realizes this. It is that which impels
him doggedly, stolidly,~ to work on. Of
what use for him to speculate, Or enter on
any legitimate business?
Once he struck out and invested in hogs;
bought mother with a large litter; he sa W
himself, in fancy, q hog-droyer, and the
whole surrounding county covered with his
stock. His hogs brought only trouble; they
broke into the miners cabins, and ate their
provisions; bread, baking in Dutch ovens
by outdoor fires-the men being at work
on their claims-was polluted; Infatuated
sufferers clamored at Balty's cabin for re-
dress. His hogs disturbed his own rest
during the frosty nights; they shpt IN
pile by his door; inside of that
pile was warm the outside. cold; the exter-
nal pig wanted to be the internal: the in
ternul wished to remain so. There was the
long night, asteady squeal, grunt and strug-
gle Balty at last became disguised with
pig business. He sold out; the money was
quickly put in circulation; that was Balty' S
mission. He saw it clearly; he sees it now
clearer than ever. He holds that it is not
for him to accumulate wealth; ne is merely
! medium, in the banda of ghostly gold
seekers, to find gold, dig it. and keep up
the metallic basis of our currency.
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