Mineral Point tribune. (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1869-1938, 1888-03-08

lace, ana carried winchester on his
arm. | had little stick that / slipped
into the windlass handle near the axle to
keep 1t from turning backward, and leav.
ing the bucket inst where it was, suspend
ed half way up, started toward the cabin
to get my arms. He covered me with his
repeating rifle, and ordered me to halt.
What are you doing on my claim 81 he
SAID.
"I reckon you can see,' replied, put.
ting as good face on it as possibly
could.
"'You mean you've jumped it, you
cursed thiefp
"'No. L don't There wasn't enough
work on it to hold it, and it was as much
mine as anybody's.'
"'You lie!'
she looked at me over the sights with
his wicked, greenish eyes for full min
ute. Then ne said:
Did you ever pray?
eyes Ifaltered.
"'fhen pray now. I'll give you two
minutes to do it,
"By that time my mind was clear
enough to take in the whole situation,
and | had no doubt but he intended TO
murder me then and there. With me out
of the way, there would be no one to test
ify to the insufficient work and | would
simply be regarded, if the story of my
death was ever told, as a claim jumper
who had been justly dealt with. | felt
my knees begin to tremble and tried an
other rock.
" If you kill me- said, my partner
vpfIl ha kualr 10 6
it,
"'I'll fix yer partner the same way, you
claim jumping cur.
"Trpe enough. Nothing would be
easier than to assasinate Burke on his re-
turn, and we had so jealousy guarded
the secret of our trip that no one would
know where TO search for US. We
would simply disappear, as hundreds Of
prospectors do, never to be seen by men
again, and speedily to be forgotten. [
had no hope of mercy from the instant
| looked into that mans cruel face.
felt with sickening qualm and wild
drumming in my ears that my time had
come.
oh, for heavens sake don't murder
mel l cried. 4 will CO..
ment my head swan, aud then, with a
sudden return of vision that was exeruoi.
ating in its clearness, / saw him stOop
slightly, rest the gun barrel over the
windlass handle and marked even that
slight contraction of the eyelid that just
precedes a shot. The next instant there
was a crash, an explosion and cry all
mingled into one. saw the man turning
head over heels down the embankment,
the Winchester flying through a cloud of
smoke up into the air, ana all the while
heard loud, monotenous whirring noise
that was like some gigantic clock run
ming down
81 aid not realize it at the time, but
this is what happened: When he rested
his gun across the windlass ne dropped
the barrel right against the little stick /
had thrust in to prevent its turning, and
knocked it out. / suppose the bucket of
ore weighed $50 pounds and the great
iron handle, swinging clear around,
gained such terrific momentum that when
1t struck him fair in the face, which it
did, it lifted him OFF his feet like q can
non ball. The gun was discharged by
the shock, but the bullet was nowhere
near me. Before [ could regain my
senses / heard the bucket strike the bot
tom with a smash.
"When picked up the man he was I'M
conscious, but moaning little and the
blood trucking out of his ear. His gun
was broken. He lay at the cabin for a
week or two, and after Charley got back
we managed to get him to Silver City.
There the doctors put his face in a sort
of plaster of paris cast, bat although the
wound healed, he was out of his head and
eventually died The night before he
passed away he motioned for little slate
he used to write on, for lie couldn't speak.
He was very weak, and it took him some
time, but at last he scrawled:
who hit met?
"But before we could tell him he tainted
away. The mine? Oh, the mine pinched
out after a while and disappointed Us.
sold my interest to BURKE, and l think
after working IL year he gave it up in
disgust and moved away."-El Paso In
ter-Republics.