Thomas County cat. [volume] (Colby, Kan.) 1885-1891, 1886-03-11
GAIN AND LOSS.
The Burial Place Of Jake Hollis
Little Girl.

My first night at Hustletown promised
to be dull enough. The Metropolitan
Hotel, at which l am stopping, was al
together barren of metropolitan at
fractions. A hard rainstorm had set in
about dark, and the heavy drops clat-
tered against the window panes and ran
down them in shining streams. l
strolled into the bar and billiard room,
in which at western hotels there is
usually abundant life and animation
The only inmate was the bartender.
who, seated on low stool and leaning
against the beer refrigerator, was read
ing an illustrated paper. The single
billiard table, covered with what looked
like faded old bed quilt, wore very
distressed and woe-begone look. as if at
that moment it might be suffering from
nightmare consisting of all the ex-
ecrable shots to which during its life
time it had been made an unwilling
party. Several rows of shining pool
balls in the rack against the wall winked
in the dim light of the dingy kerosene
lamps. Eight or ten cues, stained with
the grasp of many dirty palms, stood up
stiff and prim in line in the cuc-rack,
and at the end of the bar stood large
box Spittoon, the fresh sawdust in which
showed the effects of recent center
shot
shook my head ut the barkeeper. who
had raised his eyes inquiringlv, to signi-
fy that | wanted no bar-rOOm refresh
ments, then glancing out the dripping
window and seeing a bri ght light across
the street. | turned down the brim of nv
SLOUGH hat. buttoned my coat around my
throat and scurried over to the little sa-
loon which is. rs had learned during
the day. the favOrite retreat of the vii
lagc tipplefs. A rough-looking man sat
at table slipping gin and water, and
slipping it. too. with deliberation indi-
eating either IN absence of ardent thirst
or a desire to make the most of the
drink.
..Gineral,'' said to him one of the
three or four like-looking men gathered
around the stove, this hOwlin' bad
night
The GENERAL whether so-called in a
spirit of compliment for military serv-
ices. perhaps duly recorded somewhere
in the war annals of his country. or in
the way of facetiouS allusion to his
marked propensity for gin and water. l
shall not attempt to say-pOised his
spoon long enough in the air midway
from his glass to his lips to reply that it
was. indeed. " a tough I'm, and gettin'
wus and WIS" And as if to corrobor-
ate this unfavorable opinion of the
weather. the rain beat against the door
and windows with increased fury. the
wind tore headlong through the street
hitting the swinging signs Il blow that
made them shrek with pain and rage.
and the rising creek roared in the gulch
below.
That boomin' creek down there
resumed 1.-The gincral," after a little
pause, '.makeS me think of the terrible
night when old Jake Hollis little gal
was carried away in the big spring rise.
1t was nineteen years ago the comm
spring. Yes, it started in just like this.
a-rainin' and BLOWN and the creek
howHn' itself hoarse. What an awful
night it was, and what deal of bad
luck and what deal o good it brought
to old Jake Holt Jake, We see. was
allus Just the poorest. Seediest, good-for-
nothincst cuSS anywhere round here.
But he was rich man almost from the
fust hour that big storm burst over the
holler. YES. sir. sure'S YOU re born.
eff it hadn't been for the drOwnin' of
of that pootv little gal down in the run
there Jake might o been vet the poor.
shitlcss coot he was them days, instead
o the richest man in these parts, which
he is now.
We'll. i don't mind tellin We the
story. stranger. though it's an old un to
folks hercaboutS.
The weather all that spring was Just
little the wuSt YOU ever see. The
snow melted and ran down the noun
tains. lcavin' their brown sides bare Il
sight sooner than Id ever seen it do be-
fore The drizzlin rain never missed
a day. 1t rancd Just all the time. some
times slow and sometimes harder. The
sun didn't shine. and for days and
days together we didn't see Il
patch o blue sky. Great banks o.
mist went Sailin' slowly along the
sides of the mountains. hidin' EN- from
the sight of everybody on this side the
run. 4 shower OF rain drops fell out o
the pines with every breath of the wind.
Rain. rain. rain. The snow KEEP meltin
and the mountains was checkered with
cuts in the red clay down which
streamed the rain and melted snow.
Everything WAS damp and drilling.
everybody felt blue enough to take
pizcn.
'.All this time the run had KEEP creep
in mp the banks. From 4 little stream that
YOU almost could stand and Jump across
in dry times. i: got before long to rushin
ami ragin' Ike the old Missouri river on
a bender.
Jake lived III little shantv half way
up the bluff on t'o,her side o the creek.
1t was a mean. tumbie-down sort o
place. for Jake, Just As sad. was a no
account feller-a silif,leSs kind o cuss.
who never had the knack o rcttin' along
like other folks. Ii he ever tried to 10
anything it ne' or panned out as it wcsi'd