The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1892-10-20

shrieked frightfulIy, and peace and quiet
and some sort OF understanding were not
established till about daylight, When every
body crawied out OF bed, dressed, gazed
suspiciously at everybody else; the men
went and got sundFy aud various drinks,
the women crepg fearfully to the dining
room, and later all went their respective
ways, convinced that they had narrowly
ESCAPED with their lives.
Later there was the hotel at Panhandle
City, with the cheesecloth partitions tackled
upon the studding, which gave such pleas
ing aud diESrtng silhOustteS OF the fa5 old
Inau and the stubborn collar button" and
where about the only way 10 uBdress in Sc
clusion was TO crawl under bed and do 1t
there. .-,...
The first hotel in Tascosa long before
the days Of quanah and Panhandle Clty
was
1.-THE WAGON TIRE HOUSE,"
owing its name to the proprietor's custom
of hammerInZ on an old wagon tire to init
mate to hungry souls that hash was ready.
Later it moved its quarters across the
street and became the Cattle Exchange"
The exchange, ike ali the buildings in Tas-
cosa, was adobe, with dirt floor aud roof.
1t was long single string of rooms, in the
shape Of an l., and having no inside con-
Meeting doors, 80 that you had TO 60 out
on the street to get from any one room
TO any other. Curious rooms they
would have seemed to eastern eyes,
with Brussels carpets on the dirt floors, and
lace curtains at the little windows. OF
course there were no locks on any Of the
doors, and the coBb boys used to stroll IN, In
their artless, ohildlike way, and go TO bed
without disturbing any one to announce
their presence or ask permission, and 1t was
a regular part of the hotel bushes to go
round with a lantern about - or l O'Clock,
II hos s4aN
cowboys, and make them pay or "pul their
freight"
Braok Thomas Jim East, Frosty and some
other efferYescen5 spirits among the board
ers used to lure the pet Durro into the din
ing room after Mrs. Russell had 1t swept,
garnished and the table laid out in festal
trim, with ginger snaps and cakes galore,
which were the burros fayorite "wanlty,"
end which he would circle gravely around
the table 70 eat from the various plates, till
he WAS discovered and an effort made to
eject him, when earthquakes, eruptions.
war, famine, pestilenoe and all forms OF
bloody violence would break loose in that
dining room iustanter.
It-sYas here at the old Exchange that
striking picture was presented to the eye OF
the beholder only about year ago, after
the Graham boys had ''shot up" Claiming
and Dave Graham had been terribly
wounded by the citi2e9s who captured them.
He was lying Ia oneof the rooms, white and
wretched and hstless, and when the people
began to 20 past to grand bali he asked TO
have his bed pulled up TO the door so he
could LOOK out and see them. Aud as they
went past he lay aud looked at them with
child-like interest," making a strangH plcs-
ure, with his guard sitting beside him.
HOTEL PROPRIEToB's VARIED TALENTS.
Old SQUIRE. Russell was the proprietor,
A. a .-F. of lar
scope as q country parsons or a frontier
editors He married the folks, tried the
boys for all sorts Of Irregularities and mis-
demeanOrs, drank and rejOiced with the
flush and joyial consoled the afflicted, the
"bustedn and disappointed, nursed and SYM
pathized with the SICK, aud closed many,
many dying eyes, that had looked their
last on familiar faces and scenes years ago,
and thousands Of miles Rway--besldes walt
ing upon table.
Yes. the old man was much more than "A
hotelkeeper. To many forlorn and stranded
ones who only just made his friendly port;
to new ones who came from the east to meet
some one who never, never appeared, or 20
find q country and conditions that did NOT
exist, aud were dismayed and overwhelmed
by those thar actually did exist; TO such he
W as guide, philosopher and friend, or as
poor fellow who died there after losing his
eaHGsa nd feet Ia a.rblfERsFa Que on the
fS4Ss9ap tain put, ''sc9h5sE' Guide and inter
prefer no
0,is- Yves a variegated, picturesque, in-
terestlng, rafting, ab50F hidg busine5s-run-
ming o hotel in the Panhandle in those days.
The qualifications necessary 60 render it suo-
cess5ul were numerous Help was hard 20
get and hard to hold; and the hotel man
must be able at moments notice to per-
form any of the duties about the place from
compromising the biscuits and hash to eject
ing an inebrieted tough or taking charge OF
babies and small children. He was liable
to be called upon In the capacity Of peace
maker, counselor, referee, nurse, leeoh and
confessor, to see the end of many losing
game, many an unequal race, the last OF
many futile struggle, pay the funeral ex-
penses, and write back TO the folks" and
only the man VINO could do all these things
was q good all round Panhandle hotel man.