The herald., 1893-09-03
LOST ON THE TURN Of A CARD,
A Story of Old-Time Life at
Gold Hill.
Dick Creighton, and How He Lost
Fortune and Sweetheart
A Waif in . Saloon Evokes . Story of
Esrly Days-A Man Whose Luck
Could Not Keep Up With
His Gambling.
[BY W. c. HoeABooM.l

BY W. G. HoGABooM.l
In one of the basement saloons on
Geary street in San Francisco the other
evening an old, white haired man sat at
q small table in the back corner shut
fling pack OF cards. He sat alone at tho
table. A small group of loungers stood
before the bar. on top OF which a row
of glasses was arranged, the glasses COR
responding in number with the group
and each glass containing the favorite
drink of its corresponding lounger. The
attention OF the party had several times
been attracted to the solitary figure at
the card table by series of unintelligi-
BILE mutterings, but it was not until the
surly German proprietor of the place
left his station behind the bar and,
going over to where the old man sat,
roughly dragged the gaunt, bent form
from the chair and precipitated it into
the street, that any particular notice
was paid to it.
pretty rough way to handle an old
man, Dutch" said one OF the group.
"He appeared to be harmless enough" !"
HE was CRAZY" replied the saloon
keeper.
"Crazy, Ell? What makes you think
soP"
"vell, he coomes NIT der saloons
efery day unit plays NIT der cards like
dot, unit talks NIT himself yust like he
don't mean nottings at all. He will
coome back tomorrow some MORE"
Nothing more was said about the old
| man then and the conversation OF the
group had gradually drifted back into
the old channel. They were about to
leave the place when one OF the party,
who had been rather silent since the
occurrence, said: "Boys, I've an idea
awhile ago. He had a familiar look
about him somehow. I'll 60 my pile
| it's Dick Creighton-Gold Hill Dick ?"
"Well, who is Gold Hill Dick?" some
one asked.
Probably you've all heard OF Gold
Hill up in Nevada county, whore the
fret quartz gold was struck in Califor-
MIA. Dick Creighton was the man who
located the first claim on Gold Hill.
Gold Hill Dick was the name he always
went BY after that, and there Is some
there's something about that old man
for ell world like Gold Hill Dick. No.
BODY ever knew what became of him |;
he appeared to have vanished off the
face OF the earth. If he should turn up
now he could tell wonderful story,
guess. 1t was pretty good story any
way, even if this should happen to be
the wrong man."
Take another drink, Jim, and give
us the story" exclaimed one OF the
group.
"Oh, there isn't much of it can tell.
The Gold Hill discovery was along in
the fifties, if remember rightly. l was
lust out from the states then myself,
and along with everybody else who was
foot-loose, hesded for the camp.
--Dich Creighton was tha naass f~-nnra
man in the west then. Everybody
knew him by sight, or reputation, az
least. Nobody knew what Gold Hill
was going to pan out, but there was
enough in sight on Creighton's claim to
big man about the biggest man in the
camps. for it was the size of q mans
pile that made him those days.
"But Gold Hill Dick never got to han
die any of his wealth. He lost 1t all.
almost before he had realized what it
was to be millionaire. He wandered
away from the camp short time after
that and I guess mas never been heard
OF since" -,
"How did he come to lose the CLAIM p
"Well, that's part of the story, and
its easily told, too, but it will be hard to
understand unless you happen to nave
lived in California in those days.
"Cards! That tells it about all. Staked
the claim on the turn OF O card. Lost
it.
SIT was monte, and he was going
against another mans game. you see.
What set me thinking of Dick Creighton
tonight was seeing the old man there at
the table sorting out the cards as they
do in a monte game. That was Creigh.
.. toms wav after he lost the claim until
he up and skipped. That and the re-
semblance put this in my head.
''Now think of 1t, there was another
part OF the story; a pathetic part
There was a woman in it,. I'll have te
20 back little bit.
"Creiehton was a '49er. He was pan.
: ming out gravel along the South Yubs
and down on the Feather long before
such thing as quartz mining wat
dreamed OF in California. Luck didn't
seem to come his way at fret, though
I I've heard it said that nobody evel
worked harder than he did for year o.
I, two. He came from good family II
the east, and was college-bred man.
: 1.-THE story was that he wanted to mar
! ry a poor girl in the east. but his ricl
relations wouldn't hear OF it and SEN
: him away to college. He stayed ther
8 a while, then ran away and came acros
7 the plains. He was going to make hi
II fortune and then go back and make tn
girl happy. !,
a "He kept away from the boys Will
: and saved up his dust, but it was har
o thing TO do, and he gradually fell in tn
J. way of stalking his pile on the cards
J. He played high for the dust he had
e Steady playing wasn't his style; n
u staked all he had on the turn OF caro-
} and when he lost, up the river he wen
" hunting for another stake.
"One night he came into camp with
n lump OF quartz rock as large as your tw
fsts and streaked all through with pure
fiakey gold. 1t was different from an
v. nugget that ever came out OF grave
e. pocket. It looked as II it might, hav
,e been hacked off from q much large
IT piece OF tho same kind.
-A.uod avoupd the cQmO Ia