Great Falls tribune. [volume] (Great Falls, Mont.) 1885-1890, 1886-10-23


mo, SIR" he roared, I'm Mormon from
Idaho, my six wives and forty eight chill
dren have been driven from Utah to Ne
vada, from Nevada to Idaho and now |
seek home and habitation in Montana
no railroad shall ever again have right-of-
way through my homestead, no railroader
shall ever more disturb my serenity and
peace of mind. Prepare to meet your
DOOM"
s'At this awful avowal of his murderous
intention expected to see my owner fee
for safety but not he.'
s.Say, now Mr. Bear I'll make you fair
offer; you see those calves down there,
well every morning when | drive up the
mules you shall have one of them for
breakfast Mart Mitchell can spare few
and by next winter you will be so fat that
the earth will shake nnder you at every
step. The bears answer was short and
| decisive.
"Prepare,' and with bound he landed
just in front of the contractor who instead
of making any attempt at retreat smiled
and thrust forward his head almost into the
open mouth of his assai1ant. Exasperated
| by this act of bravado he snarled and with
at the contractors head. The man of the
mules and scrapers tiinched not, and the
bear to my amazement giving vent to a
| howl of disappointed rage turned tail and
soon disappeared from view. With tiend-
ish laugh of exultation my owner sprang
| into the saddle and | cantered off for Hell
ena, he in the meanwhile urging me on
with heels and promises Of extra feed. 1t
was after night-fall when we arrived and
| at livery stable door he dismounted. Call
ing on the hostler and rafting the door he
| uneeremoniously left me; no hostler ap-
pearing and being at liberty [ started out
ON tour of inspection for fodder. While
| nosing around a rubbish box on one of the
streets | was startled by seeing Mr.. Bruin
| descending the back stairs of large brick
| building while from above a gentleman
who proved to be Doctor Den was bidding
him fond adieu. Greeting his bearship
l enquired the object of his visit to the civ
iliZed haunts of man."
| "Been to have some tooth pullin' DONE"
he answered shortly.
''you with the tooth ache, what in the
| world could have caused you the tooth
ache
"Pshaw," he replied 'syou saw it,
''Saw what" replied. .
My accident with that internal contrac-
tor
Il saw you quit just q. the time when it
seemed certain his head wonld be Off"
was my reply.
Il will enlighten your ignorance said the
bear: known now and for all time that |. a
chief of the Grizzlies shall 20 down to my
grave prematurely deprived of my valu-
able adiuncts called teeth. TO my sad sur
prise when | intended to tear his head
from his shoulders, his cheek, his petrifed,
stony cheek confronted my worries and
they were broken off in my foaming mouth
like pipestems."
The mule looked at me wistfully and
then il plaintive whisper murmured the
monosyllable.-
Goats
[ understood him at once and a heaped
up measure full behind the stable door was
the willingly given reward for his surpris-
ing revelation.
Fastening over to the house with eager
steps, intent on inparting to others my Gu
rlously obtained and no less wonderful ro-
nance of mule and bear I was disappoint-
ed in finding no one to whom to contide
the tale. After lettering about [ returned
to the stable just in time to observe a gray
mule emerge from behind the door and
sneak off with a guilty look, while with
bland face of mulish innocence my guam
dam friend stood munching the last mouth
full of oats.
"Hello! you've had company / said.
sMy mate,' the veteran hybred replied.
"Y ou see" he continued I'm an honest
mule and must be truthful, so to you I
shall confess
Wondering what new revelation was in
store for me listened as he proceeded
''This morning when breakfast at camp
was over, | asked my owner for my allow
ance of grain; mo work today, no grain.'
was his answer. / moved off moodily
when he called to me; say I'll put you on
to scheme to get some grain Pricking
up my ears and listening attentively he
went on. You see that big barn over there. |
we'll, there's some fellows there who are
stuck on stories, yarns, We know; go down |
there, tell them good story and yon'll get |
all the grain you want Yes, but the |
grain don't belong to the fellows was my
answer; for I'm moral mule and will not |
stoop to deception. In every community |
of beings it is necessary, in fact impera-
tive, that some should assume the respon- |
sibility and duty of moral practice and ex-
ample. In a railroad camp by common
consent morality is consigned to the mules |
and | as the eldest of our family must ad-
here rigidly to conscientious fidelity and
The mules disquisition on morality near
" took my breath, but the mule continued:
ssHe answered oh, that's all right, after