Wessington Springs herald. (Wessington Springs, Aurora County, Dakota [S.D.]) 1883-1891, 1889-10-25

1
gulch formed a series of natural ter
races, and finally went straight down
to the little stream that splashed and
fixed and chuckled along the bottom.
"Al OF sudden I heard noise like
thunder 1t was the middle of the fore
noon, and The sun was shining brightly.
The roar grew louder In an instant it
flashed upon me; il was a landslide. [
didn't know what to do. / couldn't tell
whether to go forward Or backward, /
was pretty scared for q minute. But in
that minute All idea came into my head.
l crept down as fast as L could to the
edge Of the little steep which led to the
first terrace. The cliff was perpendicu.
inclining in ii anything; it was
about twenty feet down and the ledge
below was some six or seven feet wide,
with grass and bushes on it. / was
hanging over there in another moment,
and down I pumped, pretty well shaken
Up and bruised, but all right. The APP
preaching roar became louder and
louder / lay down close to the rock
Pretty soon stones and dirt and trees
came a-whizzing and rumbling of, the
LEDGE and shot past me down into the
ravine--a regular cataract of stuff. 1t
kept up for about half an hour and then
the worst was over. But I had to snug
gle close, you better believe, after the
main body had got by, for now and then
a struggling rock would tumble leis-
urely over the ledge, and sock down too
close for comfort. i lay still till was
sure the thing was done for. Then I
got up and took q survey. I was in a
pretty pickle. The terrace narrowed in
both directions, sort of alligator shape.
1t was thirty feet down to the next ter
race, and that didn't appear to have any
outlet, either. OF course, I couldn't
shin back up that rock. | didn't know
what TO do. let off few wells, with
a faint hope that somebody might be
within hearing. l could just catch a
glimpse of Hornetsville, away down in
the valley through the opening OF the
guich so far that it looked like clus-
ter of powders beside the river. heard
no answer to my calls but the far off
echo from the other side of the gulch
and the faint clatter of the stream be-
low. sat down and thought, every
once in while giving q yell, till the
echo began to make me feel queer and
lonesome like. Then L shut up and be-
gan to smoke.
"Old 10 Seven-up told me afterwards
how it was. He and Jim Budgelow
were playing quiet little game of old
sledge at Tom Mulligan's Double Par
lors. Jim had the bind on him DO
privately rendered me his thanks after
ward, in liquid form,) when Jim sud-
denly dropped the cards and listened.
He had fortunately forgotten his plug,
and left it at his boarding house after
dinner.
Great yob!' exclaimed Jim, some
bodys in trouble no there in Red Hen
Guic'! Get out The boys and we'll go
see what's up. Hear that yell? No! of
course you didn't. You couldn't hear
the steam whistle down at the quarry
mill unless you climbed up on the roof
and laid your ear to the pipe. Don't
talk-go get the boysp
"It was beginning 10 grow dark, when
l heard faint calls away off down the
mountains. l started up, put my hands
to my mouth and roared like "a fog horn.
The shouts came nearer and nearer, and
at last they were right above NE. Pretty
soon could just make out Jim's head
peering over the ledge above. They'd
been forehanded enough to bring rope,
so l was soon out of that. But if it
hadn't been for Jim Budgelow's right
ear, probably my bones would now be
decorating that terrace in Red Her
Gulch.
"Jim didn't stay long at Hornetsville
/ e"AoSA oAi"p' LIZ SoU Ill u COul)lC VI 1lltJ6
scrapes. In the first one he had the
right of it and nobody objected.
Jim was playing down at Tom Null.
ligan's pretty late one night with sort
of dandy sport that had dropped in
from Denver. Everybody else had gone;
Tom Mulligan had fallen asleep in his
chair, and the man behind the bar was
nodaing across the counter, which was
almost directly back Of Jim. He was
losing right along in q way that made
him uncomfortable and suspicious. He
glanced around; the ba aeper was halt
lying across the bar With his head on
one arm and his face turned toward the
players. He appeared to be asleep.
However, Jim took the precaution OF
quietly taking the plug from his cal
without being observed by his oppo-
nent. Pretty soon he heard the fellow
behind him softly lift his head little,
as if afraid of being overheard, and not
with the unconscious movement of a
| Jr~