The morning call., 1893-02-07
A NEVADA MINER.

Among the old time prospectors who
haunt the borders of the desert during the
summer and venture into it to look for the
Gun Sight and the Breyfogle leads when
ever the weather will permit, is Jimmie
Morrison. who makes Columbus New, his
headquarters. Jimmie is lucky lrishman.
He never struck it rich according TO Nevada
ideas. but be has had the luck to find mar
ketable claims now and then and get the
money for spree cit to make mans hair
curl.
The last adventure that Jimmie made,
however, PANIED out so much better than
usual that instead of limiting his dOings by
the boundaries of the State. he determined
to 90 to San Francisco and do the town in
style. He had sold a claim for 5000 in
coin, and with the draft on a San Francisco
bank slowed in his shirt pocket he boarded
the train at Candelaria and away he went,
dressed just as he came from the desert.
He was pretty well loaded with such drinks
as may be had on the desert when he
started, and In consequence Tell asleep ana
scarcely woke up. except when he changed
cars for Carson. But when he neared the
capital city he began to realize that he had
head on which the hair stood the wrong
way and theTeup0n he determined to re-
form and get drunk no more.
Jimmie had often made that resolution
without staying by it very long. but he is
confident that on this occasion he would
have remained perfectly sober but for the
malice and hardness of heart Of a fireman
on the Southern Pacific train at Reno. JIM
ME reached Reno in the evening. and had
TO remain there for about two hours wait
ing for the train going west. During all
that time ne sturdly resisted all desires to
step into the row of brilliantly lighted sa-
looms that face the Union deDot and lat
form there. iustead of drinking ne ate
meal in the one restaurant there which
does not deal IN liquors, and then walked
to and fro on the platform.
Now it happened that when the train for
tile West arrived Jimmie was not far from
the big tank where the locomotives are sup
piled with water, and so, instead OF board
ing the train at once, Jimmie out OF idle
curiosity went forward to the engine and
stood there looking at the water-pipe and
the fireman who handled 1t. Finally, to get
a better view, he started TO climb up on the
tender The fireman had apparently eX-
pected him TO do that and had sized him up
as a tramp because OF his ragged and dirty
clothes. In any event, Jimmie bad scarcely
begun TO climb when the frman slowed
around the pipe and several barrels Of cold
Truckee River water were emptied over the
unfortunate pr0spector before he could
draw a second breath.
The flood knocked him fiat on the ground
beside the track, and he only escaped by
crawling away on his hands and knees. By
the time lie had crawled out Of the water
the train was moving away. aud Jimmie con-
cluded that under the ciTcumstanH es some
thing hot aud strong was needed by his
system. and he straightway supplied the
need.
He reached San Francisco a day later
than he had expected to do, bnt he still had
nearly all Of his money, and he says ha
aimed to make it last him just year. He
was sure that by careful management he
could live high for that length Of time on
his wealth. He was thinking Of this the
next day as lie walked along Montgomery
street, intending to go around TO the Stock
Exchange, when a well-dressed young man
approached him, stopped suddenly, held out
both hands and SAID:
mir Morrison, how are you? When did
you come down from Columbus? How's
everybody? How's the Northern Belle?
Let's go take something"
"What 0'ye thiuk?' asks Jimmie. as be
relates his story. "Bunc0? That's what it
was. But. saw, Oh was onto him and told
him so, but he jist give me The laugh an
said he was the cousin of Zlbriskie, the
banker in Candelaris, an he'd a letter from
tie bank sayn' Oh was comm an to make
me comfortable Then surrendered.
| though tiiyl letter d id be show me-"
After Jimmie took drink the hunco man
| brought out novel scheme. He was an
| inventor and needed $500 TO flush flying
machine, and he'd give Jimmie a fourth In
! terest in it fo- that sum. Would Jimmie
! like to 20 and see the machine? He would
| They vent aud Jimmie was convinced.
That was fun-lOving fakir, for after get
! ting The $500 he proposed that Jimmie make
a trial trip in the machine next day, to
| which Jimmie was nothing averse
Accordingly next morning the papers an
! nounced that Mr.. James Morrison of CO.
| luu bus. New, would make an experimental
| trip with new flying machine from the
roef Of a house ont on the sandl0ts, where
Denis kearney Used to talk 10 his follow
ers. jimmie has 40 very clear IDEA CT what
tie machine was like save that there were
great canvas wings strapped TO his arms and
legs. A mob gathered about the house, and
when he appeared on the corner of the roof
arrayed for the flight with the fakir beside
him. there was a great call Tor a speech.
This Jimmie started in to make, but in the
midst of it gust of wind made him stag
ger, the fakir told him TO jump and gave
MIN push. so Jimmie leaped wildly f0rth,
and down he tumbled.
That was a sorry jump for Jimmie, for he
sprained his ankle so that he was laid up
for week. AT the end OF that time, as he
was hObbling out for the first time, he
passed a big stable where a man was selling
pair of horses and a carriage. When jim
ME stopped to look on The man invited him
TO bid, and Jimmie was soon convinced
tilaL no DcIkeT investment imam LiidL IlE aL
$3.50 could be had, SO he took it, As he
tells the story the rig was pro badly pretty
fair one.
Sure it was" he says. Didn't OF 60
drvin' Wild me best girl livery day for three
weeks wild 1t? Oh did. but Oh niver got
that far as the Cliff House but vance, for
the bloody police arrestin' HE for furious
drivn'."
Jimmie had started in to live high for
year. AT the end of five weeks he walked
out OF San Francisco, fgurativelY speaking.
He had barely enough money 30 pay his way
across the ferry. Nevertheless he was de-
stined to have one more adventure quite a.
surprising as any Of the rest TO one of his
experience. He had arrived in the vicinity
OF Stockton, and had taken refuge in a big
stack of grain for the night when he saw
gang OF fourteen men approaching. The
gang invaded the straw as jimmie had done,
but, instead OF going to sleep as Jimmie
wanted to do, they were quarreling aud
fighting all night long.
Having made very bad night of ii, jim
ME got out at the break of day and was
going to leave when four men. who looked
as though they might be mounted police,
rode up, and In the tones of those accus-
toned to command ordered The gang into
line. Jimmie observed that the most bOls-
ferrous of the fighters were the first to obey,
and he was chucking over the fact, when
one OF the borsemen ordered him 10 join
the line also.
"An' what til - should Oh do that for?"
asked Jimmie.
AN with that he fetched me crack on
the nut-do yous see that scar? Jimmie
says as he tells of the adventure, and points
TO a scar on his head where the man struck
him with club. There was nothing for it
but to obey, and away he went with the
rest Ito house as big as the Grand Pacific,
with a wall around It, Oi though il mOight
be tn pen, but phat could O do? So | jst
marched in, an they nut me in q ell that
was padded with leather that soft that you
couldn't feel Of the wall at all. Phas do
yous thiDk2 Twas in the insane asylum
An thin comes M ould gray-haired bloke
with glasses on his nose an an ugly mug,
carryin' a club beside him. He axes me
PLAT Oi run away for, an Oh tells him Oh
nfver was there before, an how could OF
run away, an all he says was to Shave his
head an, viva him O shnwnr-hath & n,