Sun River sun. [volume] (Sun River, Mont.) 1884-1885, 1884-05-22
"STUMPY WlCKS."
Flow the Ceur d'Alene Eoys Started
Him Upon His Last, Long Stam-
pcde "Over the Range"


s;tumpy Wicks was dead. The
fever killed him. A few
days before he had started off into
the hills. telling the boys he would
find something rich, or never go out
again. He did not find anything rich,
and he never went out again. Tho
fever laid its grip upon him, and in
three days he was dead. He had
"gonc over the range" the boys said.
1t became necessary to bury Stun
by Wicks. And how was he buried
BY his relatives? He had no relatives.
BY tho town' There was no town.
BY his pard7 He had no pard. Forty
years ago Stumpy Wicks had left his
homo no ono knew where--and his
people no one knew whom-to wan
der alone in the west. He died alone.
His wife. his mother, his sister, il he
had one will never know where he
died, or what hands laid him in his
grave.
It was tho boys. They got together
and made a coffin out Of n box or two,
and covered it with black cloth. They
put Stumpy into it, with clean flour
sack aver his poor, dead face. They
Clipped in and hired an cx-parsop,
who for years had abandoned his
profession, to give 'Stumpy send Of
They dug grave to good and hon
est depth in the tough red earth.
They went out and found fiat rock
for headstonc, and on it, with an
engineers graver. they scratched the
brief cpitaph, "Stumpy Wicks." They
then followed the cofiin-wagon to the
grave, walking through the mud and
rain.
There were forty men in that fu-
neral procession and not ono woman.
Very few were drunk, und nearly all
had taken off their six-shooters.
There were forty men who stood
around that open grave, and not one
woman to drop tear, as the ex-par-
son read brief portion. Of the Epis-
copal burial service and offered a
short prayer for tho safe journey Of
Stumpy's soul across tho range.
There was no history Of Stumpy's
life. No ono know that history. 1t
was doubtless Il sad enough one, full
Of stops and stumbles; full OF hope
perhaps, before he ''lost his grip"
They found II woman's picture, very
old and quite worn, in Stumpy's
pocket and this was buried with him.
This was probably his history.
There was not Il tcar she'd ut Stun
pys funeral. Not sob was heard.
But neither was there any oaths OF
laughter.
When the time came to fill up the
grave, ready hearts assisted ready
hands, and the experienced miners
quickly did the work. They rounded
up the mound and fitted up the head
stone. When the ex-parson stepped
back from the grave he stumbled ovel
the head-stone of Billy Robbins, the
gambler, whom Antoine Sanche2
knitted. There are good many OF
the boys resting there The bullet
the knife, and the mountain fever
had finished them, except those whom
the committee assisted. 1t was the
committee who put Antoine Sanchc2
ut the foot of Billy Robbins grave.
There was no green thing in this
grave yard, no little flowers. 1t lay
red and bare, upon red and bare
hillside. There were no white stones
to mark the home Of the slcepcls
those used were of the rough, rcd
granite.
The boys were quiet. They wcrf
thinking, perhaps. They looked III
ut the sky, which, strangely enough
had in it no tint of blue, and the sky
in pity that no tear was shed, wcpI
some upon them.
AS tho procession broke up and
moved back to the saloons, one was
heard to say that it was the ''d-desi
mournfulest plantin' he ever had ,
hand in" In fact tho camp did moi
get back to its normal condition
until the next day. There was some
thing too sad even for those rough
soul. in the lonely, unwept death Of
Stumpy Wicks. 1t made them think
and / wonder il some of them did
not reach out their arms from thei,
blankets that night and hold them NJ
and call ont softly, "Oh, Stumpy
Stumpy! What is it you see over the
range? After u broken, wretched
life, what is there for man over tho
range. Occur dAlene Eagle.
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Good Men and True in Texas.
A rather cute sort Of q fellow camt