The new North-west. [volume] (Deer Lodge, Mont.) 1869-1897, 1893-02-04

signs, cried:
"Get hold of his rope, boys, and stop
him!"
A moment more laughing, rolling
mass Of men hilariously tunbled over
each other in their efforts to seize the
rope, like lot of frolicking boys, and
an instant later the giant mass swayed
and tossed a few feet from the ground
in front of "Keenan's joint"
The aeronaut, leaning from his basket
car, directed them to draw him down.
and alighted among them with CRATE
full word of thanks. He was man of
about forty-fve, brown bearded, pale
and serious, but there WAS firm look
in his blue eyes that showed pluck and
skill, and his mouth, clean cut, trife
thin, but graceful. gave evidence Of de-
termination and perseverance.
The first words Of the aerial visitor
after thanking "the boys" We're earthly
and feshly.
"Can get anything to eat here, gem
tlemenT instinctively addressing Gale
Whitley.
''The best in the land!" readily replied
| Gale. "Anything in reason from soda
crackers to canvasback ham. We're
out of whisky, but there's lots of beer in
camp yet. Come in, stranger, while we
| tie your hoss."
This proceeding, however, the stranger
directed and assisted in explaining that
he feared lest Impractical hands might
cause the loss Of precious gas. He then
entered the building, Il one story struc-
ture, with very wide doorway, where
the faro table, in full view of the street,
occupied the central space, with many
stools and narrow chairs scattered about.
The lean boy who had first espied the
balloon had been dispatched TO procure
the guest some lunch, and he made such
haste that he returned with it by the
time the stranger had seated himself.
Surrounded by the crowd of rough, long
haired and bearded men he presented q
| striking contrast to them in his neat at
tire. Had he walked into Evans Gulch
in a Norfolk jacket, knee breeches and
ia cork helmet it is highly probable that
he would have met with a far different
reception and been treated with the
scorn and contempt of the entire popu-
lace in their own wild western way
But his attire was befitting his advent
the first of the kind that the Gulch had
been treated to. and the Gulchers SAW
nothing inappropriate in his costume.
Balloons We're unique. SO We're bal
loonists' clothes, was the natural yer
dict, unspoken, almost unthought Yet
all eyed him curiously, while kindly, anG
waited impatiently the completion of his
modest repast
His eyes were busy, too, roaming
frankly from face to face in a way that
somehow told them he was ''sizing then
up" as Gale expressed it afterward
glancing at the faro table, the specimens
of quartz, porphyry, lead ores and car
Donates upon the narrow shelf on the
wall and the big broken roulette whee
in the corner, tilted up on its side to af
ford more room to eager gamblers around
the faro table.
When he had finished Gale tossed the
paper in which the lunch had beer
brought into the street and said: "Now
stranger, let's hear your story. This il
the first time we've had balloon III
here, and we're naturally interested"
The stranger, with a good naturet
smile, looked around at the eager, toi
hardened and sin hardened faces-man,
of them-and began:
my name is Pierce-H. R. Pierce, o
San Francisco. left Denver the da,
before yesterdayin the balloon, and wa
carried south till near Colorado Springs
where the current changed and carrie,
me northwest. was compelled to re
main in the car, the nature of the coun
try rot permitting all easy landing.
am making an attempt to cross the con
tinent in balloon. That is my story
gentlemen, all there is of it, and thanl
you for your kindness.
Finding SO tame All explanation Of tn
phenomenon, most Of the crowd soon dis
persed.
Gale Whitley and the sheriff somehow
felt themselves to be in a measur
Pierce's hosts, and felt the impropriety O
indulging in Evans Gulch's only amuse
ment while their guest refrained there
from.
When Pierce inquired for the hote
they both ''s,niled loudly" and state
that the place had not risen to that dig
nifty yet-fourteen saloons, nine far
banks, a postofice, a provision store GALS
saloon) and tlockup" constituted
apart from sundry quartz crushers, tn
entire borough; but they wished to sex
tend to him the hospitality of their owl
'shanty'-the best in the place too
Thither they conducted him at once
seeing therein a way out of their dj
lemma, for they both felt the agony 0
} witnessing the game while being pre-
vented from playing.
A long, rambling conversation ensued
during which the characters of the tw
men unfolded themselves to Pierce
eyes, and he recognized their thorough
J practical American worth. The sheriff
} was transparent; simply a big, goo,
natured Jerseyman by birth, who ha'
lived in various parts of the west sine
boyhood, having made several small for
tunes, spent them and expected to max
! another-a type frequently to be foun'
all over the continent. Gale White,
was not SO easily read. He was NOR
, beneath the surface and was harder t.
get at, but Pierce had seen too many mel
|, of learning and refinement adriftin thes
), western wilds to probe too deeply int
J any mystery he might imagine in Gale
J, past. He was content to find in then
both materials that he might use. I
was nearly ten o'clock when he said:
81 am here for q purpose in which 20,
!. might, if you are inclined, aid me ma
! terially. It's rather q long story, but ]