The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1892-10-06

party Of six young women inside who
were doing the west in crowd at
excursion rates.
"How do you mean"
"Why. how they'll run from cow,
and yet show more nerve in a pinch
than most any man"
'Is that the case?'
II found it so about four years ago."
he replied, as he turned round to face
me. Guess you amt looked at me
very clus or you'd be askin' what had
happened"
had not given him second look,
but now that l got a fair sight Of his
face i held up my hands in horror.
The right eye was gone, one corner OF
the mouth cut down to the chin and his
cheeks were a mass OF scars. The
flesh lay up in ridges, and there was
horrible scar across the forehead.
"Why, man, you must have got tan
gled up with buzz saw" | said, as he
opened the front of his shirt and exhib-
tied even worse scars.
"A leetle wuss nor that, strang ger"
he replied, with a shake of the head.
Il got tangled up with grizzly bar.
I'm scars from head to heel. Nobody
expected me to pull through, but the
Lord was on my side fur once"
Tell me about it."
''Thar sin't much to tell. It's mostly
in the feelin' instead of in the happen
in. You soc, l wus drivin' fur the
hotel back thar that summer-takin'
excursion parties up to the mountains
and springs and trout streams-and
about every week thar'd be women or
gals along. I'm a rough old chap,
without kith or kin, and / don't mind
sayin' I was allus down on 'tother sex
till this we're calamity happened
Sorter seemed to me that gals didn't
know nuthin' except how to giggle, and
they was the sort of critters you'd have
to treat like so much wax. l used to
run a wheel over a rock on purpose to
skeer 'em half to death, and II they
Rxed me questions, or wanted to be
friendly, bluffed 'em off. Now and
then what they calls a bridal couple
would come along. and / felt mighty
sorry fur the husband fur gittin' SIGH
baggage tied to him. Mebbe you've
felt that way?"
"Well, hardly"
That's because you wasn't fool,
while was! If anybody had told me
that one o. them gals knowed fir tree
from a cottonwood or had the nerve to
face a coyote I'd have called him liar.
One day the Lord opened my eyes In
gittin' 'em open ] got one shet forever
took a party of FIVE eals-au from
the east-who were in charge OF one OF
EMS father, up to the mountains 70
fish fur trout. AFTER awhile they got
scattered, and ! was lynn in the shade
and thinkin' how much better 1t would
be if thar was more jack rabbits an
fewer gals when sumthin' growled IN
my ear. l knowed what 1t was sfore
! jumped up TO face one of the ugliest
grizzlies you ever sot eyes On He'd
been wounded by some hunter and
thar was great patch Of blood on his
side. He'd been lynn clus in the bushes
and rocks along the creek, and the
shouts and giggles of them gals had
routed him out and got his dander up"
Were you aru1ed?" I asked, as he
paused for minute.
''Sartin'. had gun and knife. |
allus 20 heeled for scrimmage. bnt /
never had one afore or since. yelled
out when / saw what il was and went
Iur my revolver. Old Ephralm nauied
off and broke my right arm with one
cuff. Then | started 10 run. and
heard the gals screamin' and tue next
thing | knowea was down and the
3 az on top OF Eae. II vas while ! was
Ivan Oh the ground that | got oGt M
knife with iAy Jeff hand. / ne man
with the gals WAS from Boston. Or
around thar souew iar'- guess he had
gun, bat he did jist as most any other
man would-trIcd 10 run of the gals
while the bar was busy with me-
Lesstwise, never blamed him far
6ain' ne did"