News and citizen. [volume] (Morrisville, Vt. ;) 1881-current, 1888-08-16

Blli, blt1n his teeth together hard
Well, L Crack an Bill hit hin
one on the jaw, so we could all hear it.
sayin' at the same time: What is it you
know9' Big Smith fell like q log an lay
there for most minute, Bill all the
time waitin' for an answer. Pretty soon
Big Smith got so he coald kinder roll a
mentionin'' Then Bill whistled to his
mules an went on.
Nothing but fights for Bill jerks
after that. He had to stop an lick the
man that KEEP the Red Corral fore he
got out O. town, and he pounded two
wei9hters at Willow Creek, an at Bad
River he an the man that run the road
ranch there fit twenty minutes, an Bill
finally got him up to the bank of the
stream an showed him in an that settled
him. He would meet q man, the man
would say something bout Pearl or go
to GRIMM, an Bill would stop, an step
up an whale him, come back, kinder
mop off the thickest of the blood with
his sleeve, swear at the mules an go on,
while Pearl reached down an patted him
on the shoulder an cheered him up.
pearl stayed with him right along.
She didn't ride on the mule so much
after the first trip, 'cept when they were
! goin' into town, when Bill always had
her ride it, so that if there was anybody
round that wanted to make any remarks,
that she would tract their tention and
| they would make 'em, an Bill could
stop and have it out with em. But it
wasn't long fore folks got over sayin'
much in Bills hearin unhealthy
practice. One day when they was pullin'
into Rapid City one of these pictur' men
tried to take their pictur' with Pearl on
the mule, but Bill caught him at it an
went over an kicked one of the legs off
bis outfit, an as that only eft two on it,
it didn't stand very steady an the cuss
looked kinder sheepish, put it under his
arm an made sneak.
''Bill alays fixed her up a nice place
to ride in the trail-wagon, an when she
wasn't there or on the mule she would
walk long by his side. s'pose it was
very pleasant for her to hear Bill swear
in at the mules all day, cause she
thought heap of him. When one o.
the lest of us camps, of course we alays
have to rustic round an cook our own
bacon, but she done his cookin' right
along, an good cookin' it was too, cause
Bill asked me to eat with them sev'ral
times. Biscuits wy she used to make
biscuits that tasted, wy, durn itall, they
tasted most like they used to at home
Bill an Pearl al'ays got along powerful
fine together. They wasn't married
reg'lar, you know-Bill said he didn't
believe in any such monkey business,
an reckon she didn't neither. but Bill
told me it was going to be a stea ~ thinGj
an it was.
''Well, it was hard life for the girl,
aPays on the road-cold an stormy
through the winter an hot and dusty
when summer come-never sleepin' in a
house an not hardly ever being in one
at all, .cept occasionally mebby store,
or freight depot, or something. But she
seemed to stand it first-rate an not want |
nothin' else. Bill was mighty careful |
bout her stayin' in the wagon an keep
in warm in cold or rainy weather, SO 1 |
dunno, mebby the life was bout as easy
as any she was used to. Her'n' Bill |
was al'ays happy anyhow, an I s'pose
that's q better record than some folks |
that live finer an are more soldier mar
ried can show.
"Well, reckon there amt 80 very
much more to tell, though it's kinder
hard work to tell it at all. One night, !
way long this summer, 1 camped back
here, near Sturgis. / got up early and |
pulled out for Deadwood, not thinkin |
bout anything. I'd gone six or seven
mile an was gittin' long fine, when I
come round q bend in the road right !
'mong the biggest of the mountains,
when what should / see but Bill Jenks's |
outfit camped ahead ways. 1t want |
no reg'lar campin' place, and I couldn't
make it out at first, but then 1 saw Bill
a-walkin' BACKYARD n for'ards side O.
the wagon with something white in his
arms, an then, says L, L know what's
up. Git you mules' An clim' on the
near one an hit each of 'em crack with !
the whip, an I'll be hanged if L didn't |
come up to where he was on the trot!
stopped an was goin' to yell, an then l
thought I hadn't better cause it
might not be the thing for such
an occasion. Then Twas glad I didn't
cause as Bill come over 1 saw
tears in his eyes. First I thought
he felt bad, then lowed he was glad,
then l didn' tknOw; but Bill steps up
side the mule an I'll be teetotally |
blanked-yes, sir, will-if he didn't
turn back some soft kind O. cloth on the
bundle an showed me the all-fredest,
blankest, smallest, little cuss-b baby, you
know-that you ever seen! That's what
he done, an my eyes stuck out foot,
though | knowed, soon as / seen Bill
walkin' what was comm too. Then says
Bill: Gene, that's my boy. Don't he
look jes' like me?' / was stuck for a min
ute cause couldn't sees it looked like
anything 'cept jes' baby, butt braced up
an says L: Bill, he's the pictur' of you
'cept his eyes-he's got his mothers
eyes. Yes, says Bill, his mothers
eyes an mebbe her hair, too, only it's
awful short Then 1 started to say
something, but Bill stopped me, an
says he: Pearl is awful sick, an want
you to get onto one O. my mules an ride
on to Deadwood, an git doctor to
come down.
80 1 done SO, goin' bout as
quick as anybody ever did with a mule
that was kinder set agin' goin' anyhow,
an got back way ahead O. the doctor
When l come up there was nobody in
sight. waited a minute an didn't
hear nothin'. Then l tapped little on
the trail wagon, an Bill said, come in
sorter choked like, an L put my hand
under the canvas at the back end.
"There sat Bill at the bottom of the
wagon-box, with the baby ON one arm,
WHlle he WIS tOOhln down at Hearl-
her head was a-layin' in his lap an her
face was so white that it scarf me. Then
she opened her eyes, an at first they
was big an wild like, but they got softer
an she looked at me, an said awful
weak, so / could jes' hear it: Gene
says she, look after Bill little an
cheer him up when I'm gone An then
she looked at the baby with her big eyes
an up at Bill, an tried to raise
her hands, an Bill saw what she
wanted an pnt one of her arms round
the baby, an the other up round his
own neck an leaned over, an 1 come
away quick's / could an went round to
the mules, an tried to make b'lieve L
was fix n the harness or something. A
mule is very cheerin' on such 'casion.
An after few minutes Bill come out |
with the baby still on his arm-the little
feller never whimpered-an he set |
down on the wagon tongue an his head !
kinder dropped on his hand AN says he:
Gene, there amt nobody to take care
O. me n the boy nOw'
eve waited a while an then [ got
feller that came along to drive my out