Iron County register. [volume] (Ironton, Iron County, Mo.) 1867-1965, 1888-03-29
A HEART TROUBLE.
That Was What Allied the Cook OF
the Phoenix.

The boys at Camp Hilarity were
having what they called a ''high old
time" They sat. or lay at full length,
on the rocky, barren ground around a
roaring camp fire, for the air was
keen, although the month was June.
The day that had just closed had been
the regular monthly payday. The
mine in which they worked, the
Phoenix. had yielded an enormous and
wholly unexpected amount ofrich ore,
and the superintendent and part
owner, Jared Hale, had generously
given to each man employed at the
pay roll called for.
'Ill make it fifty. boys he said,
'if you'll make the old Phoenix turn
out as much ore next month as she has
this"
''We'n do it. boss, if she has it in
her," replied Scotty Sharp land be-
lieve she has, and more, too"
The Phoenix mine was almost ut the
summit of a barren mountain in the
Rocky range. Its discovery hal been
the last half-hopeful. half-despairing
effort of Jared Hale's ten years of al
most ceaseless and altogether I'M
availing prospecting in many a
mountain gulch and on many a
mountain slope and summit.
With the frs discovery of mineral
in the Phoenix he had sold half his
CLAIM for trifing sum, that he mi ght
go on developing the mine. the real
IS he 1;t+Ja n-naafo1
And now he knew that the Phe nix
was one of the richest in the range, so
rich that he did not care much if he
had sold half of it for five hundred
dollars.
Its got enough mineral in it for
half-a-dozen men," he said, land halt
of good thing like this is enough for
a fellow that hasn't known what ii
was to have decent suit of clothes to
his back. and hardly decent meal s
victuals for ten years.
So he and his partner were on the
best of terms. Hale stayed up on the
mountain and superintendent the work
at the mine, while Tom Logan, his
partner, lived with his family Mt D..
a small mountain town fifty miles dis
tant, to which the ore from the
Phoenix was sent to the reduction
works there located.
Camp Hilarity was fifteen miles
from the nearest store or post Off ce.
The camp itself consisted of one long
low log cabin, general boarding
house, and three or four smaller log
cabins, all occupied by the forty OIL
more men employed at the Php nix
mine.
All of the men took their meals in
the long low. log cabin, down the
center of which there ran a rough
table of unplaned pine boards, with
its worn aud stained cover of white
oil-cloth.
The men were very hilarious thai
June night. They laughed and joked
and told stories and sang songs.
Jared Hale himself was the merriest
man among them. He sang louder
and longer, and told the best stories
of them all; but in the midst of hi:
hilarity he stopped suddenly and said,
with shade of annoyance in hi:
tone:
But it's too bad about the cool
pulling out for Denver to-day anC
leaving us in the lurch. OF course
the fellow had to 60, his family being
sick, but it leaves us in a bad fix al
the same. You boys want good food,
hard as you work. Any of you know
how to cook"
No one replied for moment, ther
from the gloom and the shadow of the
pines in the rear of the lounging men,
q strange voice said quietly:
81 do. boss; I'm purity considabel o.
a cook, if lido say it myself. "
Every face was turned in the direc
ton from whence the voice came
Most of the men rose 10 their feet
Jared Hale started quickly up ane
cried out:
''Well, who are you. and where are
your" A man came slowly forward
and stood with his hat off in the full
light of the flaming fire. None of the
men had ever seen him before. He
was tall and grizzled and uncouth; his
beard and hair had long been un-
combed and uncut, and were of un
usual length He stopped q little a:
he walked; he had a care-worr. sober
face. and great dull dark eyes thai