McCook weekly tribune. (McCook, Neb.) 188?-1886, 1885-05-07
AN the vilIsge i'm Jail.


Peasants county. in this stale, is one
of the most dead alive places that could
well be imagined. 1t resembles one OF
the away back old Vire inny counties,
without any of the I. I. V. flavor
about it. 1t is strange that such should
be the case. for on the south it is
bounded by Wood county, one of the
wealthiest and most progressive in
the state, and furthermore it is right
on the bank of that great channel of
commerce and civilization, the Ohio
river. But the fact remains that its
people are away behind the times. A
little over a year ago the first railroad
was run through the county, Senator
Comden's Ohio river road. 1t has
been the talk of the county ever since.
Farmers walk or ride miles once or
twice week to see the trains whiZ
along, and at st. Mary's, the county
seat. the entire town turns out morn
ing and night, no matter what the
weather may be, to see the trains pass.
The engineers, conductors, and train
hands are to the people heroes of no
ordinary type, and the passengers are
eazed on with ill-concealed envy.
In fact, the admiration for the train
hands has grown so strong IN the
breasts of the younger fair ones of st.
Mary's, and this feeling has been so
encouraged by the train-hands them
selves, that about ten days ago the
town council met to consider the evil,
and, finally, to abate it, passed an
ordinance making it an offense punish
able by fine of So for train employee
to wave his handkerchief or in any
other way cheer up any maiden whose
heart was probably yearning for the
unattainable or anything else. This
ordinance tore the town up fearfuily.
The train-hands laid in an extra sup
ply of handkerchiefs, and now there is
a continual flutter of white from the
train as it passes through st. Mary's.
This bold defiance of the law has, of
course, only increased the mad pas
sion in the hearts of the fair. This
town of st. Mary's, by the way, is a
curiosity. The funniest thing perhaps
is the Jail. 1t is built of logs and, out
side of the windows, which are in
differently barred, the jailer has built
little pens of barbed wire so that in
case prisoner should happen to get
outside the window he gets into a
barbed-w Enclosure that would hold
him possibly a minute.
St. Mary's has no roller-skating
rink, and in its stead the people, when
not watching the trains, have been
wildly revealing in the festive game of
dominoes, and it has been reported
that the editor of the county paper
was nearly ruined by losing II cents
at one sitting. The town sometime
since was divided as to the merits of
the spider and the block game. The
spider game carried the day, however,
and the bloch game is now almost a
thing of the past. Recently 4 COM
mercial traveller introduced to the
residents the game of studhorse poker,
showing how it could be played with
the dominoes, and here is where the
trouble began.
The ccnservators of the peace could
stand dominoes as long as the name
poker was not connected with them,
but there the line had to be drawn,
and last week the country was para
lived bv an avalanch of indictments
from the grand jury against persons
for playing dominoes. The postoffice
was great rendezvous for the play
ers, and every one of them was caught.
The minister of the town, Rev. r. H.
Blouse, prominent lumber-dealer,
two young ladies from Parkerburg who
were visiting there, and all the lead
ing people of the town were captured.
There is an old law in that county
that forbids the playing of any game
except cribbage, backgammon chess,
and bowls, and under this the arrest
was made. What the result will be
when the cases come to trial remaiHs
to be seen-- Wheeling, W. "a, Cor.
NcW York World.