Essex County herald. [volume] (Guildhall, Vt.) 1873-1964, 1884-03-07
AN UNKNOWN FRIEND.

Halt-MOon was new mining camp in
deep canon at the head waters of the
Gunnison. One of that adventurous
class known as prospectors had, in
the fall of 1881, wandered through that
country, following a burro which bore
upon its back all his worldly wealth,
and had brought into winter quarters in
the valley OF the Arkansas such promis-
ing specimens Of brittle and ruby silver
that many, seeing them, were induced to
go IN the spring to spy out the land.
And so it happened, on a March night in
1882, that a dozen camp-fres were
brightly burning, dozen tents were
dlmly outlined in the shadows and open
lngs OF the stunted pines, and forty or
h1ty men, in groups of from three to six,
their evening pipes and relating their ex-
periences and wonderful finds of the year
before.
Among fifty men brought together
from every part of the world, in wild
country, by purpose born, to some ex-
tent a. least, of selfshhess and greed,
some are likely to be found in whom
brutishness predominates. There were
several such in the camp at Half-Moon.
Bill Lewis had seen nature in all her
majesty, moods and aspects for more
than thirty years; had traversed the
country from the Missouri to the Pacific
shore; lunched on the highest SUBMITS
and camped in the deepest gorges. And
yet his depravity was immense! He had
been convicted of dozen crimes, and
committed an hundred others without
conviction.
There was another manor rather boy
in that camp; but he could not be seen
that evening around any of the fires. He
had come into the guleh in a crowd of
seven, who had been on the trail some
twenty days together, and Bill Lewis was
another of the seven. His name was
Zeno Brown. His comrades had failed
to catch or comprehend his first name,
and he had come to be called 'Little
| John.n
He would have been remarked any
where in mining region as one wholly
out of place. He was light, delicate and
fragile-though seemingly in good health
before coming to the gulch--and was lilly
fitted to meet the vicissitudes of noun
tain life. He might have been born fol
an artist OF poet, or both; he certainly
was never intended for miner.
In coming into the gulch the party had
an unusually serious trip. The trial was
lily defined; the snow was deep and soft,
they had been compelled to unpack thell
animals a score of times, and to sleep il
wet clothes and wet snow For all this
however, most of them cared but little
They were not invalid tourists, and they
had crossed the range too many times il
bad weather to be much troubled by ont
trip more.
But with Little John the case was diff
fcrcnt. He had never before been thu
exposed, and was evidently not sustained
to any considerable extent by a hopeful
spirit, and he had succumbed. He la,
in his tent in his rough blanket bed, sick
prostrated, exhausted.
They had been talking Of him arounC
the fire when some one, coming from
tent in grove near by said:
Z" l think Little John'll go up tonight
He's crazy now, an thinks he's in Ohio
an keeps tallIin' of his mother.n
] Bill Lewis, before silent and sullen
started up at once. "Pll go see the kid,
he said.
He went, and all followed in wonder
The bed was warm enough, and sol
enough. But it and its surrounding
were terribly rough for one like him i
his condition. The pale face amid th
= shaggy blankets, lit up by tallow candl
!. burning in can; the saddles, rope.
kettles and tools scattered around anon
the bushes upon the earth foor-all t.
gether formed a scene weird and impre,
sive.
"Pardsl that yer kid must be saved,
said Bill Lewis 'If you fellers have
mind to turn in an help-well an goot
D but anyhow, that kids going to be save
fNr his mother9"
1t was thirteen miles east over IL
nnge to the nearest cabin. The SUNNI
al vas nearly fourteen thousand feet
/ height, and upon it storm was raginl
rhe spurs to the north and west were
erly impossible The only way out w
down the gulch by the same route oy
4. ..LsaI 4I,oHy bnd vnoontly rnfna in