The Cambria freeman. [volume] (Ebensburg, Pa.) 1867-1938, 1894-09-07
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married and settled down like a sen
sible man; and she agreed to il if il
could Toe done without making her con
dition any worse 1 then began de-
vising ways and means OF getting the
poor woman ont of this hell on earth.
and by night / had my plans ready for
trial When jackson came in that
evening he was in better humor. hav-
ing won some money on a horse race.
and he was not quite 50 ugly drunk a.
he had been lie was drunl1er. per
haps. but ii was not such a mean drunk
as before After supper l engaged him
in talk. and along about nine o'clock
l proposed a game of poker. Ii struck
him just right, and we adjourned TO a
room upstairs with a couple of law
yers and Judge who were stopping
there over night, and the game began.
At first jackson won right along. and
as he won he drank. calling every now
and then for his wife To bring him
more liquor, and whenever she came
INTO the room ana saw me the look
she gave me almost made me. kick over
the Ia bic and fight the whole crowd
However. that was not my game. and
let on 10 her and the rest OF them
that | was about as drunk as jackson
was; but | wasn't
At midnight we had reached the
climax The two lawyers and the
judge had been raised out and jackson
and We're left for the finish had four
mines, not a bad hand as hands went in
those days. and | had an idea that
jackson hadn't anything To beat it
aH.
son hadn't. and / had FIVE thousand
dollars IN my pocket, which jackson
hadn't L I had been bluffing like tbt.
mischief all through the game and
jackson had caught me for a good lot
on my recklessness. but all hc had WAS
on the table when the other three
passed out That Is all the money he
had, but he owned three good horses
1t was a game without a limit. as il
often was in those DAYS. and when |
put down two hundred ne saw me to
the extent of one horse. Then / went
five hundred more and he went an
other horse: then l went another five
hundred and he went the third horse.
OF course the man was wild now with
liquor and the excitement of the game.
and when | laid down a thousand
more he was dazen for a minute just
then his wife came in, and with a
curse he ordered her out and was
about To throw bottle at her She.
hurried away with an appealing look
at me, and jackson sat stupidity raz-
ing at his hand and at the pill. Of
money and contracts for horses On th,.
table. ana hc was sure / was bluffiuu
/ could see that, but he didn't like II
take too much Of a chance. Then an
at once new thought seemed 10 come
To him and he looked squarely into mv
face.
Iiy the way he said. You used to
know my wife, didn't you?~
i nodded coally. though somewhat
ratified at this unexpected recognition.
And You used TO Toe in love with
her hc went On
Again l nodded.
d" You wanted her once. he ventured
slowly, and I nodded again.
by heavens he exclaimed, III put
her against what you have there. Is
II Eo?'
Once more l nodded.
" 'Gentlemen. / said to the Judge
and the lawyers. make a note of that
If l win, the woman II mine To do a.
please with. Is that agreed2'
jackson assented with a string of
oaths, and the lawyers got his sigma
ture 10 a contract todeliver his wife to
me if the game went against hlIn. or
words To that effect
81. Now he said in tone Of sup
pressed feeling. what have You rot@'
Very quietly. but with some little
fear that / might miss IL at last. I laid
INV four mines down on the table
jackson looked At the cards a sec
ond. then. with hoarse scream. he
slung his own hand all over the room
and dashed through the door. Fearing
that he might mean harm To has wife
we went pell-mell after him, but he did
not stop anywhere On he went ont
into the night. and we lost him in the
darkness l thought we might find
him next morning dead somewhere.
but we didn't. When we got back To
the room We gathered up his hand and
found that IL consisted of three aces
and PAIR of tens. one OF those hands
the gamblers OF those days. a "A mat
ter of sentiment. would bet everything
they had on. and. bV the way. not a
bad hand as hands go. i an ace full
Il never saw jackson again. He did
not return To the place for two or
three days. and when lac did come back
/ had gone. and with me his wife. To
whom | had explained the situation
| made arrangements with the 5udre
and the lawyers To restore to jackson
his horses, but | kept what money l
had won and gave II to his wife She
went home with me. and in a wear or
50 had secured a position. and always
as a kind aunty to nv children She
was the jewel Of the family; and the
queer part OF IL was that. notwith-
standing l had once courted her. and
might Toe charged with saving her ON
account of the old love, there was not
a bit Of that in IL all. and she acted
always in such = manner that | could
no more have flirted with her than l
could have fiirtcd with my own sister
She Just wouldn't have II, that was all
As l said, concluded the old gentle
man. Il never saw Jackson again. but
| heard that with the money he got
for the horses which I returned TO him
he went to New Orleans and was killed
there in a fight over the card table -
w J. Hampton. in Detroit + rec Press
About American Feet
Several London newspapers have
been entertaining their readers 10y a
lively controversy over the respective
size and beauty of the feet of English
and American women Some editors,