The Marietta journal. [volume] (Marietta, Ga.) 1866-1909, 1888-05-10
A Will AND A CONFESSION.
Tragic Sequel to a Story Told yinwa
Mining Camp.
From the Globe-Democrat


Mining Camp.
From the Gobe.Democrat
Not many years ago group of in
valids and gamblers were seated
about an.evening fire in the office Of
a Colorado hotel The institution
was in the centre Of region where
nature had launched her gifts. Heal
ing spring and invigorating noun
tain breezes, attracted invalids from
every quarter and the proprietor Of
the sanitarium was reported rich
man. He had been in that country
for thirty years. He was silent,
uncommunicatiye man, not morose
or sullen, but simply uncommunica-
tive. lie never spoke OF his family
or OF "the States" and were it not
that he was man Of evident refine
ment and education,'hc would have
passed as one born in the life-giving
valley, which he, above all men, had
developed, for anything he would ever
say Of the world outside of its pine
tringed confines.
On this particular night an old
man IN the group told, with the sim
| pie pathos Of an unlettered mind, the
story of the great grief of his life.
lie had gone to California in 10,
leaving wife and child behind him.
He prospered in the land of the Ar
gonauts and kept up.a regular com
munication with his family, sending
them sufficient sums from time to
time to keep them in comfort, but
saying nothing about the "pile" he
would have within year or So He
wanted to surprise the folks at home
with his good fortune. At last he
had accumulated $4,000 and the
longing came over HIM to 60 home.
His dust was converted into ten crisp
bank notes and he started homeward.
"You see, boys, | didn't rig up in
new toys, or anything like that. Il
fellow likes to go back home in his
old camp toys, and knock around
few days, letting on as though he had
come home, and then when every
one has about made up their minds
that you never were any good any
how, spring your fortune on them,
and give 'em the laugh that they had
been giving to you. | made the trip
overland all right, and was on the
railroad train within 800 miles Of my
wife and baby, when | dozed of for
few minutes. When awoke | had
been robbed Of my pile. | always
was a--fool about telling my busi-
ness to strangers, and there wasn't a
man on the car that didn't know that
| was a miner going home with for
tune. When | awoke and found that
| had been robbed | gave the alarm.
No one had left the train There
was great excitement and one man
proposed that everybody in the car
be searched. No one objected, and
the conductor and myself went
through every man on the car and
examined every valise and piece Of
baggage in it. | felt Just as though
my heart would break, not Tor my
self was used to hard luck but
for my wife and little gal. | couldn't
90 home and face them, so | got off
at the next city, and the next day /
was off on my way to the coast again.
| was just getting on my feet once
more when | got a letter one day
with black border. My little gal
had been taken sick with the typhoid
fever and died, and two days later
they laid her mother away with her.
That settled it. | have been good
since, and | am only waiting the
time when | can join them up there
if | can get in"
The silent partner of the sanitari-
um had listened to the sad story with
his face buried in his hands-a com
mon attitude for him. When the old
man had finished the proprietor lett
the room abruptly.
The group noticed that he was
deadly pale and one OF them remark
ed that it appeared as though Jim
had been taken bad.
Two hours later pistol shot rang
out from the hotel mans private of
fee. When the group ran into the
room Jim lay on the floor, with
bullet hole in his head. On the desk
lay two documents, freshly written.
One was marked ''my will,' the 9TH
er ''my confession" The win left
everything to the old miner who had
told the story. The confession was
to the effect that he had robbed the
returning miner as he slept. Retir-
ing to closet he had with knife
scooped out the inside of a cake of
soap and secreted the roll of bills
and replaced the cake, which show
ed no signs OF having been cut in
two pieces, in yalise.
Of the 5000 Presbyterian Minis
ters in the United States there are
| "a ,.,,,Ao eon ,,ho 40 l;co,ol;eol L..