Connecticut western news., 1892-08-18
BEFORE THE FIRE.


 "Pve seed some brave fellers in my time,' said Denver Bill, filling his short, black pipe with the air of man settling down to a long story; "and l don't 'zactly think myself coward But the bravest chap ever see war my pard, Dandy Jack Houlston. .. "When he fust come to us at Dog Hol- low he looked so all fired spruce, and had such fine show of Boston togs on, that we thought him reg'lar soft 'un, not worth 8 cuss; but he showed us what grit war fore he got through, you betl He had been thar two days when Gougin Jim, the ugliest man in the hull crowd, got playin it down pretty bad on poor old crippled Frencher, who kept a possible store. Up steps Jack and says, very quietly, but as if he meant it:
 "'Don't you see that mans cripple? Let him alone.'
 "Jim looked quite took aback for minute, and then he whips out his knife and hollers:
 "'Hold your cussed tongue or I'll cut it outp
 'But fore he could strike Jack had him by the wrist, and give him the neat est little wrestler's trip as ever yer seed, and down went Jim, fetchin his head sitch lick agin stone that for more than an hour he didn't know the ten O clubs from the Ten Commandments. "Wal, from that day Jack was jist like a king among us, and Gougin Jim froze to him as eff he'd been his brother, and thought nothin that cud do half good enough fer him. "Eut it's jist when yew've struck pay gravel that the water ginerally begins to soak in, and it was jist when every thin was goin right with us that suthin came aud spoilt all.
 "Old Jack and I war standin by flag gerty's grocery one mornin when the Rockville stage cum along, and all at once seed him turn pale as peanut. | looked up, and thar, inside the stage, 1 seed jist bout the puttiest gal ever sot eyes on, and beside her tall, black aired chap, who 'peared to be maxim love to her as if he were hired at five cents the word.
 "Jack jumped for'ard, quite wildlike, an hollered:
 "'Hev you got place left aboardY
 "'Guess so--jist one.' | "'All right-I'll take it. | 'And fore I acud say whisky he gev my hand grip and says to me. Take care O my traps till come back, Bill, an he war off.
 "That war the last I saw of Dandy Jack, and it warn't till good while arter that I heerd the rest O the story. But when did hear it, yew may bet yer boots I didn't forget it again, and kin tell it you jist as if I seed it all my self.
 "This gal that poor old Jack war SC sweet on war the daughter of rich old chap who'd got a ranch not far from the upper fork of the Rio Grande, and her dad had sent her to visit some folks at the east, and she war comin bacl, arter havin quite good time.
 "This black aired cuss that was with her was fellow named Granger, ar old chum of her dad, and pretty nigh as rich as he was. He had managed tc I jine her on the road hum jist as if by accident, but I reckon that air accident war done O purpose.
 "Jack went with them right on tC Rockville, but he never got show, fol this Granger was one O them smooth tongued, oil and honey cusses that don give nobody chance, and he kep' SC close to his gal that Jack cu'dn't ge sayin word to her.
 "As for the gal herself, guess sht war sorter balancin between 'em, ant hadn't quite made up her mind whicl on lem she wanted; but anyhow, whel poor Jack squeezed her hand at partil she giv him back just huff of his owl squeeze to make him feel heap better'l what he done afore.
 "Wal, at Rockville, old dad and som of his friends war waitin for the gal and they all went home together
 "One day all the folks went out for ride over the parairy, and the gal, neve thinkin no harm, put her horse to spec and sot off for good rousin gallop b. herself. But Granger had his eye ol 8 her, you bet; and he kep her in sigh till all the rest war out O sight, am . then he ranged up alongside of her an got hold of her hands and asked hel - fat out, would she marry him or not.
 w udb ollO U Setlu III duoWcI | him I can't tell yer, nor nobody else = neither, reckon, for, afore she GU open her mouth, man cum gallopi along as if old Nick war arter him wit 0 ten pronged pitchfork. They'd jis time to know him for Dandy Jack whe he lifted hissef in the saddle an : screeched out to bust his throat:
 "'Ride for your lives! The prairie on frep
 'I guess they didn't wait to be tol twice, and indeed the hosses war o full jump the minute they heered tt h shout, just as if they understood a about it. Away they went like the win
 "Hev yer ever seed 8 parairy fir S Wal, if yer hevn't I guess yer cud Ji D as soon git an idee of what it rally is { yew cud put Niagary in gals thimbl Fust thing you see is little curl as smoke far off. Then, all at once, 1t b gins to git thicker and redder bout u
 edges, and suddenly ye hear rush lii
 river comin down in full flood.
 "Then up through the smoke goes Il As~ ~sx~.,~k r,yH .~,a II 1.n1att,d Sni