The prison mirror. [volume] (Stillwater, Minn.) 1887-1894, 1888-01-18
My First Batch.

My First EtaCcRs
Editor Mirror:
1t was early in the spring of 1880, that.
with two parties who for short will call
Dick and Joe started from Buena Vista,
Colorado. to form camp up Silver Creek
Gulch in the Saguache range of the Rock
les, with the intention of developing a
claim in which we were all mutually inter-
ested, and which the previous fall had
al at the depth of twelve feet.
We were we'll provided for camp life. A
good tent plenty of provisions and canned
goods, guns and ammunition. mining and
camp implements. and pair of the best
burros or mountain jacks to carry our stuff.
that could be obtained for money in the
Grand Park valley.
l was the 'tenderfoot" of the party, it
being my first experience of that kind, but
Dick had had two seasons of prospecting in
the mountains. and Joe one Like all
''tenderfeet" l was enthusiastic and full of
dreams for the future. l think | had some
vague idea of cutting out solid chunks of
silver with cold chiSel. and l was daily
making plans as to how 1 should dispose of
my pile when we had struck it rich. the
mere thought of failure being entirely re-
moved from my mind. We soon got settled,
and then went to work in earnest on the
''Red Deer" which was the name of tie
claim. We generally divided our camp
duties as evenly as we could Joe and l
cut wood, packed water and washed up the
| fbo In
| was dandy at his business and | believe
would have made palatable dish out of an
old rubber boot. Well, one day the boys
were doing some tinkering on the windlass
| which had got out of gear, and us it was
| getting toward SundOwn and l was unOccu-
| pied, proposed that | should go ahead
down to camp and get supper, so that it
would be all ready by the time they got
down from work. 1 reached the camp and
l said to myself, ''Now ! will just show
Dick that he amt the only one in the out
fit that knows how to cook" I set to
work and mixed up big batch OF buscuit
and went to work, kneading it, like prize
| fighter punching bag. l cut some good
raShers of bacon and soon had them sizzling
on the camp stove. / waited to put in the
| biscuit to bake, until should see the boys
coming down the gulch, and SO have them
UOt dllu llcSL. L tutll ludUc SOOu UOWl
of bacon grease gravy, or the ''heifer's de-
light" so dear to the cowboy, which we al
ways used in the absence of butter, laid the
table, set out the dried apple sauce. and
put in the coffee to boil. Soon l saw them
coming and put in my biscuit to bake
''Hallo, fellows" said l. 1--WE got supper
for you that's something like; hurry up and
set washed. Pm as hungry as cayote.; ;;
| Well, l was pouring out the coffee so l
said, ''Dick, pull those biscuits out of the
oven: they must be about done by this
time" He opened the oven door and pulled
out the tin and as he did so he exclaimed:
Great Scott! what in sheOl do you call
this?" l looked and there were eighteen
little dabS Of dough Drowned over, and
about half an inch thick. Something
wrong with the oven," said 1. ''Oven be
DID," said Dick "How much baking
powder did you put imp" Baking pow
der!u" 1 said, ''why none; kneaded the
dough all right" YES" said Joe who
liked his joke, land guess we shall need
the biscuits. ''Why," said 1. ''they are
regular Australian damper cakes, flat, like
they make 'em in the bush'' (this was a
bluff. as 1 had never been in Australa).
''Well," said Dick. ''for pure unadulterated
ignorance. as a ''tenderfoOt'' you take the
cake, the cake basket. and all the cold pie
on the dump. How in thunder did you ex-
pect the blamed things to rise? What do
you suppose that tin of Prices Baking
Powder is for? To clean your teeth with.
eh?" Saying which he took the whole
the chipmunkS to chew on.