Crawford avalanche., 1891-08-06
old STOVEPIPES DAUGHTER.

the glowing Goals. LOOK tOWafu the
Orient, and tell me the nature of that
little dark object creeping along the
crest OF the divide, movable atom sill
houetted against the blue canopy oi
heaven. Name it II you can"
"What is It, Toml A bear, or noun
tain shecpg"
"Wide Of the mark, as usual. 1t looks
more like black ait; but venture the
opinion that it will soon resolve into a
pony and man; and l will still predict
that it will turn out to be our OLD friend
'Stovepipe,' on his way to our camp,
prospecting for trilobites and bugs"
Toms keen eyes were MS good as a spy
glass. looked up TO him with the adj
miration had always felt since in our
boyhood days he had thrashed the bully
OF our village, who attacked me merely
because Nature had endowed him with
more muscle than she had allotted me.
Tom sent him home blubnering, bidding
him remember that there was no hoy so
strong but that there was another stron-
ger. Yes, we were schoolmates and
were graduated in the same class at col
lege; and when. after having become a
rising young attorney, Tom suddenly
threw up his profession and started for
the Rocky mountains, ], of course, did
the same.
never knew just how Tom came to
take this sudden notion to go West, but
rumor had it that he had been Tilted by
some silly girl; silly. say, for what
girl of sense could ever hope to find the
peer ofvTom IIamilton2 II sound mind
and sound body ever dwcit together in
harmony, they certainly did in his per-
son.
Thus we two, destined by over-san-
guine parents for future presidents, be-
came simple prospectors, and at the
time my sketch begins, after 70 ughing it
for two years over the widest and most
remote portions of the great mountain
ocean, had emerged from our tenderfoot
stage and were engaged in developing a
g5Sap Of claims yAiGh Sha 0p 0gcIssfbso KSf
High At this moment we were in
front of our cosy cabin, cooking and cat
ing our morning meal almost simulta-
ncously; for venison is not venison unless
served straight from the naked Goals.
Old Stovcpipe, our prospective visitor,
was neither very old nor yet stovepipe.
He was a famous scientist. whose devo-
tion to natures wonders often. led. him
through the most rugged and unexplorcd
regions of our continent, and whose one
eccentricity of sheltering his brains with
the regulation hat Of society, had won
for him the odd solIi luet of 'Stove-
pipe" Among the ordinary prosnectnrs
he was neId ID the same esteem as the
rest of the "bug-hunters, being looked
upon as a man of little account; but
with the more intelligent-Of whom
there were many-he passed for what he
was, brave, highly educated and pol
ished gentleman.
After breakfast took my way to our
claims, which lay to the west of our
camp, and Tom shouldered Washoe
pick and set forth to examine some prom
ising groupings several miles to the east
While skirting along the further slope OF
tary wanderer had been seen. his atten-
tion was attracted to'sohe fragments-of
paper floating towards him in the light
breeze. After little skirmishing he
secured one of them and read these start.
ling words:
Gladly hurt. Cannot speak. Find
me. SELBy HOLLAND"
''Good God Poor fellow" exclaimed
Tom.
Without a moments hesitation he be.
gan climbing the steep mountain side,
keeping as near as possible to the wind.
ward. His strong limbs soon brought
him in sight of dead pony. and little
further on lay poor Holland, badly hurt
and speechless, but with look of un.
utterable gratitude beaming from hi;
eyes: eyes:-.=..~~...u.-.-.--......
Stripping himself half naked for the
purpose, he bandaged the broken limb
so as to prevent issftom swaying, and
gently gathering the sufferer in his arms,
began the perilous descent to camp.
After hours of herculean effort he de
posted his helpless burden on bed Of
soft boughs in our cabin. The danger
signal-three rapid shots-rang echoinp
out among the wild crags, and l came
rushing into camp.
Now, as this little story is about Tom,
and not about myself, have not pre-.
viOusly mentioned that / had been
launched upon the world rs a ''medicine
man." and although l had an inherent
antipathy 10 drugs. l prided myself on
MY surgical skill. soon found that the
damage TO our scientific friend consisted
of a broken leg. fractured below the
knee, and some ugly contusions about
the neck and jaw, the latterly luckily
without fracture, but the injury was SO
severe as to cause the rapid swelling
that rendered him for time unable tO
articulate.
In short time we had the limb set
and the Inflammation reduced. and with
the volunteer aid of our fsw -bnt whole
soulvd neighbors comfortable,o 'm was
added to our restricted quarters for the
accommodation OF the invalid. 1t did
oar hearts good to hear the offers OF as
sistance and sec the tokens of sympathy
and good will that poured in from the
scattered camps. Vcnison, elk meat,
grouse and trout were almost daily re-
ceived. while newspapers (often OF re-
mote datc), and even an iucOngruous col
lection of books were among the dona-
tions, including Gullivcr's Travels. the
New Testament aud Hayden's Reports.
Thanks to the healthful surrounding:
and the absence of drugs, our patient
progressed as rapidly as possible to con
valescence. and we felt more than com
pensated for our care. in listening to his
wonderfully intelligent and instructive
conversation.
One Sunday, few weeks later, while
sitting in front of our cabin, Holland
having so far recovered us to be able to
recline in rustic armchair constructed
by the combined talent and executive
ability of the tHrm, we were greatly