San Antonio daily light. [volume] (San Antonio, Tex.) 1886-1907, 1892-02-17
EXIT FULANO.

and California irrepressibility.
Winter chased us close. Often we
woke at night and found our bivouac
sheeted with cold snow-a cool sheet,
but luckily outside our warm blankets.
1t was full December when the plains
left us, fell back and beached us upon
the outer edge of civilization, at indie
pendence, Missouri
The muddy Missouri was running
dregs. Steamboats, were tired of skip
ping from sandbar to sandbar. We
must travel by land to st. Louis and
railroads.
We could go with our horses as fast
as the stagecoaches. So we sold our
pack beasts and started to continue our
gallop of three across Missouri.
Half way across we stopped one even
ing at the mean best tavern in mean
town-a frowsy country town, with a
dusty public square, boxy church and
spittley court house.
Fit entertainment for beast the tavern
offered. We saw our horses stabbed and
had our supper.
Two and half beds, one broken
backed chair, a washstand, decked with
an ancient fringed towel, and an aban-
doned toothbrush, one torn slipper and
stovepipe hole furnished our bed
chamber.
We were about to cast lots for the
half bed when we heard two men enter
the next room. The partition was only
paper pasted over lath and cut up as if a
border ruffian member of congress had
practiced at it with bowie knife before
street fight. Every word of our neigh
bors came to us. They were talking OF
slave bargain. l eliminate their oaths,
though such filtration does them injus-
tice.
Eight hundred dollars" said the first
speaker, and his voice startled us as if
dead man we knew had spoken. Eight
hundred-that's the top of my pile fur
that boy. Eff he warn't so old and hadn't
one eye poked out / agree he'd be with
heap more"
"Waal, trades trade. I'll take yer
stump"
"That ares wut call screechin good
price fur an old one eyed niger. Four
teen hundred dollars-an all fired price"
Eight hundred, you mean"
"No; fourteen. You see, you're not up
ter tame on the niger question. l know
'em like church steeple. When /
bought that ar boy, now comm three
i year, seed he wuz sprightly niger,
one er yer ambitious sort, what would be
mighty apt to git fractions an be maxim
tracks onless got holt on him. So seq
to him, Ham, you're sprightly mig
ger, one of the raal ambitious sort, now
aincherY He allowed he warnt nothin
else, 'Waal,' SEE l, Ham how'd you like
to buy yourself, an, be free niger, an
hev house of yer own, an woman of
yer own, all jess like white folks? 'Lor,
seq he, 'Massa, I'd like tia heap 'Waal,'
SEE /, you jess scrabble round an raise
me seven hundred dollars an I'll sell you
to yerself, an cheap at that WAL, he
picked up the bits and quarters right
smart He's ben at it, lammin ahead
raal ambitious, for bout three year. Last
Sunday after church, he pinted up the
last ten of the six hundred. So l al
lowed t wuz come time to sell him. He
wuz gettin is head drawed an his idees
sot on freedom very unhealthy didn't
like to disapp'int him to Their last, so
allowed 'twuz Jest as well to let you hev
him cheap to go down river. That's
how to work them fractions runaway
niggers. That ares my patent. You
ken hev it for nothin. Hawl haw"
"Haw, haw, haw! You are one er
&Lo. bou, IT,, 5,,, corru fbot trick
can't be did twicet on the same niger.
reckon he knows too much for that.
WAL, s'pose we walk round to the Gala
boose fore we go to bed an see eff he's
chained up all right"
They went out.
Biddulph poke first.
What arc we going to do now?"
"Try to abolish slavery in Hams case.
Come; we'll go buy him file."
We bought our files and made for the
calaboose. 1t was stout log structure,
with grated windows. At one of these,
by the low moonlight, we saw negro.
1t was cold and late. Nobody was near.
We hailed the man:
"Ham."
"That's me, massa."
"You are sold to go south tomorrow
morning. If you want to get free,
catchp
Brent tossed him up the files.
"Catch againr' said Biddulph, and up
went a rafting purse, Englands sub
sidy.
Hams Write teeth and genteel man.
ners appeared at once: He grinned ano