The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1888-03-13

started Off down the road. AS he passed
by me | turned in my saddle and KEPT
him covered with the pistol until he had
disappeared around a bend in the road.
Even then l waited for some minutes for
fear he would turn back, but finally being
convinced he had no intention of coming
! back | got off my horse, clutched NV
prize, and having mounted went on as
fast as the steepneSs of the grade would
permit; not that 1 was running away,
gentlemen-oh, no, not at all. But you
see was carrying the United States mail
on schedule and l was making up for lost
time'
Here Mr.. Smith paused and medita-
! lively smoked his cigar.
Il suppose you never saw your bene
| factor again" remarked one of the COM
| pany.
''Oh, yes, did, only few days after
wards, and that is the best part of the
story. When l got back to the home
ranch from that trip the first thing that
did after stabling my horse and putting
away my arsenal with the mail bag in the
pOstoftice was to stroll down to the store
to lay in supply of tobacco The store,
you know, is the one resort for every
body in small settlement It was 80
in California; it it so yet in every village in
the United States, where, as a rule, there
is only one store and that deals in every
thing Well, l went down to the store.
1t was full of men, as it always was.
edged my way up to the counter and
asked for tobacco. A tall man who had
his back to me turned around at the
sound of my voice. 1t was my friend of
the mountain. 1 recognized him in an
instant, but hoped he did not know me.
But he did, and remarked:
" 'Youngster, we've met before
81 knew from his tone it was useless
to deny the fact and admitted it, while I
was preparing to dodge his first bullet,
with the hope of e5ceping altogether in
the fusilade that would be sure to sue
coed it. But to my intense surprise, he
showed no intention of drawing a weapon
On the contrary, he thrust out his hand
with the remark:
Y OungSter, your name. You'll do.
Shaker
HE had the grip of a wise and the
of an OK. l would rather have
taken my chances with his bullets than
have endured his friendly grasp again.
But, happily, L was not called upon to do |
it. The stranger extended genial invi- |
tation to everybody to liquor up and
gave the crowd a minute account of our
first meeting, ending with the compIi-
ment: 'YOungster here Is game, you bet
With the words he had paid his score
and, striding out, mounted his horse and
rode away
''You got we'll out of that scrape, Chi
Iuito,' remarked one of his hearers.
You never heard of him again, sup
poser"
eyes, did. A few days afterward his
IDENTITY was established, when he was
hanged in the next settlement by vigil
lnce committee for horse stealing. Then
t came out he was one of the most noted
ind daring desperadOes in the country.
He had committed several murders and
vas suspected Of others, but they had been
lone in remote places, and as he had never
'een in our settlement before the time I
encountered him it is not strange nobody
here knew him. When it became known
Who he was there was much marveling as
o how had escaped. 1 fully shared in
t. 1 suppose it is hardly necessary to
ay that if l had known who he was /
hould not have ventured to request him
o share his tobacco with me. New
FORK World