The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1888-05-05
A COWBOY REPORTER
Tells of His Thrilling Exp eriences
While Gathering News for a Sensa-
tional Western Paper.

Tells of His Thrilling Exp eriences
While Gathering News for a Sensa-
tional Western Paper.
From the Omaha Herald.
"You talk about funny snaps and
fakes" said the Cowboy reporter to a
Herald man, 'but you fellows don't know
what experiences are unless you've rustled
for paper in some mining camp or other
'whoop-up' town, on the frontiers. There
fellows got to be little of everything, usu-
ally more everything, if he wants to hold
his job and not get the head scooped clear
off his shoulders, for the old timers are fly,
you bet, and know blind lead from pay
streak every time when it comes to hunt
ing up items and knowing what pleaseS
their readers. AS a general thing, people
in that country don't care so much for
grammar and flowing language as they do
for red-hot sensational matter. stuff such as
your fellows in the effete East wouldn't
dare to publish OF course, once in a
VIII lie you stir up some bad man who'll
round you up with a gun, but this only
makes it interesting. Just casually let it
be known that you're no tenderfoot your
self, and when one of these roarers strikes
you, don't weaken but get your gun out
and tell him that you're shooter yourself,
and nine times out of ten the fellow'll
weaken and let you alone afterward. One
or two such experiences and you have es-
tablished a reputation for yourself, and if
anybody troubles you afterwarG you cap
bet your chips that he isn't onto you, and
if he makes any breaks you'll have plenty
of friends that'll take the trouble off your
hands and see that you won't get the worst
of it.
"rll never forget little matinee had in
79 with one of these terrors. He was
gambler, professional witness and a mine
jumper, and had downed' his man ON sew
eral occasions, and, as is unusual with such
fellows, was dead on the shoot, and had
plenty of sand to back him up. Well, he
got into row with rounder. In the row
he
GOT THE WORST OFF 1T,
and attempted to make a gun play, but
the other fellow was too quick for him and
took the gun away from him and licked
him. This was just a picnic for me, and
you bet my account of the affair, which
published the next day, was rooster, and
didn't rebound much to the credit of Jim
Levy-that was his name. When the Times
came out everybody was paralyZed, and
my friends told me to look out, as Jim was
hunting me- To tell the truth | felt a
little squeaky, but made up my mind that
If | fiunked my name would be mud, and
would have to pull my freight and hit the
flats, as there would not be room enough in
the gulch for me.
"A day or two passed, and although saw
Jim dozen times each day, he never said
word, and began to feel a little easier and
thought the thing had blown over. But
was mistaken. The fellow didn't know me,
and he was looking for another fellow
whom he mistook for me, as | found out
one afternoon about three days after the
thing had been published. was walking
down Main street and was within about 200
yards of the Creedmoor armory, a gun
shop. when | saw Jim coming up the street,
horseback, and motioning to me. You bet,
didn't fool away any time, but legged it
for the gun shop, thinking / would get
there first and nail a shotgun which
knew was always kept loaded for an emer-
gency. forgot about him being on horse
back, and there's where | got fooled. Be-
fore l could get to the shop Mr. Levy was
there ahead of me, standing with six
shooter in his hand and yelling to me stop.
You see, he was
ONTO MY RACKET
81 stopped Keeping me covered, he
walked toward me- and, gentlemen, If any
body ever spoke plain English, it was Jim
Levy when he told me what he thought of
me- All the time he was talking to me he
Kept that gun pointed at my head and
mOnkoyou Will Juo IIlBB0I. IL was Il soll-
cocker, and l was scared. He finally told
me that If it wasn't for the fear he had of
the vigilantes he would shoot the whole
topsof my head off, but he knew that if he
did so he would be hanged in five minutes,
as everybody was down on him. He said
that he would let me go. but if didn't re-
tract every word the next morning he
would shoot me anyway, and take his
chances With the vigllantes; that he was a
gentleman and was bound to be treated as
such.
81 wasn't working on a retracting paper,
and in ten minutes after our little scene
everybody in the camp knew of it, and the
boys told me not to weaken, but to see it
through; that they would stand by me.
That was all | wanted, and the way | roast
ed that fellow the next day was a terror
The 'emperor'-that is what We called the
editor of the paper-thought it was not sew
ere enough, and he gave Jim touch on the
side About noon | crawled out of my
cabin and started down town, and the first
man | saw was Jim Levy, reading the
Times. 1t didn't take me over a couple of
hours to get out a self-cocking Colts As that
had provided myself with, and walked to-
ward Jim He never stirred, but kept on
reading, and neither one of us spoke a
word, but we watched each other mighty
close. | afterward got to boon pretty fair
terms with him, especially when he was
drinking. He afterward went to Arizona
and got killed in a row. AS soon as I heard of
it, went and took good big hack at the
sheep dip, in fact. | took two drinks, one
for myself and the other to speed Jim's soul
on its way to the great home ranch, where,
they say, fellows have no use for guns, and
where there are no Mavericks, but all bear
the brand recorded on the big book that is