Frostburg mining journal. [volume] (Frostburg, Md.) 1871-1913, 1890-05-24

s,""py, and there We're cracks in the par
titlun SO that had no Difficulty in find
in out what was going on next door.
Tie moonlight streamed in, show ing
bo,h men in bed. BY the head of each
w@s a stack of IDEALLY weapons, but the
ruumuales were evidently getting ac-
qUHntrd amicaby enough. The cap
tam was telling some story illustrative
Of Ills proves with "A bowie Then Joe
took MS turn, and related the CORY
deals of ii little affair of honor settled
with a>ei and funeral
50 alters prefers axes, sir / heard
Joe say. They never misses. Now you
can hit a man with a knife and button
may turn the point, but axes, sir, did
you ever hear OF a button turning an
axe. SIR
"iut the Captain was ready with an
inc dent in which tie knife figured most
prominently, and IT, n branChed off into
IN account of a journey of his INTO
Louisiana, which had been attended wI,h
considerable miscellaneous slaughter.
Joe Countcred with tale of an en- 10y
able visit he had to California, where ne
lad III one day shot z; miller, gour, d
the eve, out of a miner and broken The
neck of a tenderfoot with a blow Of
course the captain responded in kind,
hut he was erceptiblv weakening, and
the difficulty he described had led to but
'wo homiCid"s. Joe was beginning an
other novelette, which promised we'll,
L.. IL hi, Nv
rising up from the bed, pulling his trous-
ers from a chair, and fumbling in one Of
the pockets. Then he began to bewail
his luck. 1t was his invariable custom,
he explained, to dig out the bullets from
the bodies of Sdch victims us he shot and
keep them in a certain pocket. This
should now contain eight, but as he
could find only seven. one had ev 4dentlv
been lost. However he was somewhat
comfortad by the remembrance that the
MORROW promised toreplace his treasure,
Rs he had prom i-e some mercantile
friends of his to coffee little debt or
make their claim one against an estate.
"'What:, gasped the captain, amt
you sheriff."
No sir, quoth Joe, I'm going to call
on party sir, they call Captain jim,
they say he love, sport, and if you'll
come with me you'll see some fun. By
the way, if you know this ere captain,
lust tell me what kind of a lookin' chap
'1e is, will you:'
Il did not hear the reply, for Just then
the landlord rushel in to tell me that
NV horse had hurt himself in the barn
and was in bad way. Half an hour
pas ed before | returned, and Il en- all
was quiet i'll the next room, while both
of its occupants were al parently sleep
ing. | awoke the next h.orning to find
Joe by my bedside, with the broadest of
smiles on hi, face.
But the captam| | asked.
"On, hr'S all right He slppe out Of
bed al out 1 ocIpci This morning, woke
the landlord to t II him that he had
business in the next county. and then de-
parted, after leaving this envelope for
me.
",Icc handed me the envelope 1t con-
t'i.e,l money enough to meet our claim
in fail.
The next time ! saw the captain he
called at our store. Joe WAS then in
. uth Carolina, we told him a he bought
a i'll Of goo IS.
But he's coming back? the visitor
asked, in a thoughtful way.
"'Oh, yes, he'll be here next month.
81 may as we'll pay cash, the cap ain
rpmarlei, AMI as he did so he drew me
60 one side AMI whispered in my ear ::
'Tncrr'S one thing been bothering my
memory lately Was it six OF seven men
lie killed in Cali .urniaT"