Devils Lake inter-ocean. (Devils Lake, Ramsey Co., Dakota [N.D.]) 1884-1905, 1886-04-24

I0ulhIks 0S VIC ACAV Jus S~oSSA l
II think he's had a shootin' scrape with some
body"
Broener returned. lfelt that I could now
,hift a part of the business to other shout
iers
He heard my story. At Its conclusion
he settled back and laughed.
Irregular dime novel, isn't itT said he.
"Write It, print 1t, sell 1t. Well, young man,
you're improving rapidly: l congratulate
I couldn't have wished you anything
through. You needed it. You're the kind
that must be put In very hot water to draw
anything out Of you"
'sBut won't this put all Bull Bal on the
scent of the 'Bank'T' I asked.
ssFirst, let's compound some whisky with
sugar, lemons and nutmeg. Before we ak
business let's fix things so as to make bust
ness a pleasure, not by pouring the stuff
down raw as the fools do at the store yonder,
but dress. up the fluid decently and taste
fully before we put it down. There would
be far less drunkards il every man was com
PEELED by law to dress up and trim up his
drinks in this way before he swallowed
them" He continued as he slipped his punch:
make yourself easy, Holder, about the
claim. You have fixed that all right, or the
Fates have for you. Pratt won't go up
there for a while, now that his wits are
knocked out Of his head, which for our pur-
pose Is better far than knocking them out Of
his body. Because I'm fool enough to be-
lieve that If his wits were out Of his body
they'd be in much better shape to
come back and reveal our secret
than as they now are chained to a
cracked skull, and therefore in bad work
ing order. Hillyear, from what you say, ia,
I Judge, only an ~appendage of Pratt's, and
not able to do anything without him. At all
events, I'll find out soon. As for the Bank
I think I've got the cream out of it already:
It's only a feeder to some bigger vein in the
mountain. That can lay for awhile. I've
got four OF five caches of quartz up there
that I haven't shown you. Well get it all
down this week and hush up things for the
present. There's, I think, your fair share Of
divvy, 80 far as we've gone" and he put in
my hands a mint certificate Of deposit for
ga, 900. IF the rock that's mined out gives
down as I think it will, you'll have a much
more coming to you. Are you satisfied"
Satisfied Less than a year from home and
the possessor of what in Eastport was deemed
a "sman fortune" In the well-worn phrase,
I wanted to ''pour forth my thanks"
I said: II wish I could fifty express my
feeling and gratitude to you"
I'm glad you can't" said Broener, inter
rupting me. "It's a good thing for you
that you can't. I hate effusiveness. You
may In part thank your reticence and u
demonstrativeness for what you call your
luck. I don't want any gushcrs about me.
Besides, you've earned what you got-every
cent Of it. Fate put you and me together,
and with that put it in your way. There's
no thanks nor gratitude in the matter. !
hate people always overwhelmed with graft
tude. They're the sort who, If ever they
do you what's called a favor, never forget 1t,
and, in effect, want to be paid for it forever
afterward. Let's change the subject. There's
a travelling theatre company at Chinese
Camp tonight. Let's go and see the show.
You need a change from the CHASTITY buzz
gard spying and body hunting business. Get
Rankin's horse, I'll take mine, and we'll
gallop over there"
On applying, Mr.. Rankin said he would
gladly hire me his horse. The animal, he
added, was vicious, SHE'D at his " shadow,
''bucked' frequently and had been the death
Of two men. As W. were leaving he called
out to Broener: 1.-THE coroner lives at one
end Of the camp and Is Eighteenth on an in
quest when sober. The undertaken lives al
the other. You'd better take the cloth FOL
the young mans shroud along with you
They know that horse up there and alweyi
put an extra ten cents a yard on white nnel
when they see him comm"
riding by night. The suns hot glare wa.
gone. The air after nightfall was Away
cool and refreshing, for it came off the NOW
Il horl,, ~, <ho H;orrro ,,,vn,nits (,,r ho,Aeo
were full of life and apparently as glad II
make the trip as ourselves. The life of tn
horse seems to add life to the rider, provid
ing he il a 'horsemap." Distance at nigh
seems unnoticed. It is more like a dream
One travels forward without so much Of the
mental straining to reach one point afte
another as do so often u u%nhappily const
tuted hmrrying minds in the day time.
So galloped Broener a.ld l, regarding thos
myriad shining wonders Of all ages-th
stars.
"Lot's of 'em, aren't there's" said he.
1.-THE stars7 Yes"
"Small potatoes we are under then
Smaller than ants in comparison, and movin
about on this planet for these shining atom
we call gold. I wonder, now, of what In
portance poor Pratt, if he had his sense
would consider that biggest star alongside {
o pan full of dust. Pratt would trade Ven,
for q quartz claim"
"sta,s. sneculation. immortalitv ctr. " sai
Broener, as we rode on. h three seem
90 topether: or. at ali events. stars alwa,
start one Oh those topics. I wonder what v
are. anyway-who we are. where we can
from, aud all the rest. l am O certain amou,
Of life and intelligence in a body. Body
i only n DQrmANf. n W1,An. a machine Hit
a part Of the body hard enough, lust OF
blow, and in one second life,s all gone, an
with it the seumption' I've been storing u