The Dakota chief. (Gann Valley, Buffalo County, S.D.) 18??-1913, 1893-12-28
This Scott was a sort O butt among

"oo UGVU 14lOAS
the men of Arizona, for he was so
sort o. quiet and simple like.
at happened in Simpsons bar.
Alabama Joe and one Of the other
rowdies were dead on the Britishers
IN those days. and they spoke their
opinions pretty free. That particular
night Joe was fghtin drunk and
staggered about the town with his
six-shooter, lOOkin' out fer d chance.
Then he turned into the bar, where
he kEowed he'd find some of the En-
glish as ready as he was h::sself. Sure
enough, there was half a dozen
loungin' ABOUT and Tom Scout stand
IN alone before the stove. Joe sat
down by the table and put his revolt
yer and bowie down in front Of him.
Theirs my arguments, jeff he says
10 me. If any white.livered Britisher
dares give me the lie | tried to
stop bin. but he weren't Il man as
you could easily turn. and he began
to speak III a way as no chap could
stand. Why, even q Greaser would
flare ny il You said as much about
Greaserland' There was a colnmo-
ton at the bar and every man laid
his hands Oh his wepins: but afore
they could draw we heard a quiet
voice from the stove: Say your pray
ers, Joe Hawkins: for you're a dead
man
joe turned around ana looked like
graobin' for his iron. But it weren't
no use. Tom Scott was standing up.
covering HIM with his Derringer: a
smile On his white face, but the very
devil shining in his eyes. / 1t amt
that the old country has served me
over-well,' he says, but no man shall
insult it before me and live" For a
second his finger frightened round the
trigger. and then he gave a laugh,
and threw the pistol on the floor.
NO, he says: i can't shoot a half.
drunken man Take your dirty life,
Joe. an use it better nor you have
done" He swung contemptuously
round. and relit his half-smoked pipe
from the stove: while Alabama SUNK
out o the bar, with the laughs Of the
Brittishers ringing in his ears. |
saw his face as he passed me, and on
IL saw murder, sirS-murder, as
plain as ever | seed anything in my
life.
II stayed in the bar after the row,
and watched Tom Scott as he shook
hands with the men about. 1t seemed
kinder queer 10 me to sec him smil n
and cheertul-like: for ! knew JOe's
hlOodthirsty mind, and that the Eng
liShnan had small chance of ever
seeing The morning. He lived in an
out-of-thc-way sort OF place, you see,
clean or the trail, ami had to pass
through the Hytrap Gulch to get to
it. This here gulch was "a marshy.
gloomy place, lonely enough during
the day even-f0r il were always "a
creepy sort O thing to see the great
eight and ten.f0Ot leaves Swapping up
if aught touched them: but at night
there was never a soul near. Some
parts OF the marsh, too, were soft
and deep, and a body thrown in
would be gone by the morning. ]
could see Alabama Joe crouchin'
under the leaves of the great flytrap
in the darkest part Of the gulch,
with Il scowl on mis- face and a re-
volver in his hand. / could see it,,
sirs, as plain as with my two eyes.
Bout midnight, Simpson shuts up
his bar, so out we had to go. Tom
Scott started of for his three-miie
walk at a slashing pace. l just
dropped him a hint as he passed me,
for | kinder liked the chap. keep
your Derringer there or about it, l
says, for you might chance to need
it He looked round at me with his
quiet smile, and then l lost sight Of
him in the gloom. / never thought
to see him again. He'd hardly gone
atOre Simpson come up to me and
says: 'There'll be old hell in the
Flytrap Gulch tonight, JEFF. The
boys say that Hawkins started half
an hour ago to wait for Scott and
shoot him On sight l calc'late the
Coroner II be wanted to morrow"
"What passed in the gulch that
night? 1t was a question as were
asked pretty free next morning. n
half-lreed was in ~Ferguson's store
after d%ayhreak, and he said as he'd
CHANGED to be near the gulch bout
! in the morning. 1t warn't easy to
get at his story, he seemed SO uncom-
mon scared but he told US, at last, as
he'd heard the fcarfullest screams in
the stiffness Of the night. There
weren't no shots. he said, but scream
after scream, kinder mutfied, like a
man with 4 serape owe his head, an
in immorta! pain. Abner Brandon
aud me, and Il few more, was in the
store at the time: SO we mounted and
rode out to SCOTS house, passing
through the gulck on The way. There
weren't nothing particular to be seen
there-no blood nor marks Of a fight,
nor nothing. and when we gets up to
SCOTS house, out he comes to meet
AZ "