The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1895-09-01
THE STRANGER WAS QUIET.
He MOULD PERMIT NOBODY To
PUMP INFORMATION FROM HIM.
when He Went Away "A Shaking Up
of Leading Citizens Followed.


Gents" said Mai Fulton. ponderously,
rive saw hundreds, mebbe thousan's.
Of EN-, an say the feller's bogus, anil
bear right smart chance o Watchin'-
that's what I think"
Hes dead wrong" said little Ike Bull
lett, who always agreed with the major
in everything. "Of course, his actin
mysterious hain't really nothin' p'tlc'lar
agin i'm. Folks out yere-that is. they
haint nobody. hardly. th't hain't got
somethin' L be mys-that is, some O.
them ducks is mysterious an some's
noisy, like" finished Ike, lamely. real
.zing that he had almost slipped into
personalities.
Tried L talk to i'm" sighed Lazy"
Wolf. with his customary stretch. IS
!, Firm III states, 1 reckon?
Yes. s he.
Expect go intuh minin?' IS I.
Possibly says he.
AN then he gifts out Of a good, COM
ft'ble cheer an walks off,"
"Hain't nobody but my barkeep gifts no
talk out of 'im," put in Col. Hanks, the
landlord AN bout all e says t Billy is
Nice day. an Cocktail, please. But q
paws is bills, an carries a roll too;
spose that's all 1 ought L worry bout"
"Oh, yes! oh, yes" snapped little Ike.
excitedly, IAN all tn time, him layin',
most likely, FIR t jerk tn props firm IN
der yel I'm fr startin' i'm, l am, an
dam quick, too!'
Il wouldn't be too hasty, gentlemen"
counseled the mild voice of Prof. Hen
dirk, editor O. the Gold Hill Avalanche.
oil Fsa font eafe afralr
angel-that is, a 'sucker-unawares. Let
no guilty capitalist escape ere he has
been induced to invest"
He hain't no capitalist" interjected
the major, scornfully. Hes too-too
quiet. l think he'd better have tn run"
Easy, major, easy" said Hendrix, soft
ly. Now 1 would suggest that we select
committee Of say, two, to sound the
gentleman and endeavor, by peaceful
means, if possible, to cause him to give IN
account of himself. If he declines to Go
So" The editor concluded with a toll
erably graceful wave of his hand, for the
subject of the foregoing remarks-a pale,
somewhat ordinary-looking young man, in
clothes Of eastern cut-had just entered
and was passing through the barr6om.
Time was when Gold Hill had been a
thriving, busy camp, with metropolitan
aspirations. But its boom died, and the
glories Of Gold Hill were only memory
TO the 500 citizens (who remained behind
because they could not afford to leave
what little was left them of their former
possessions), and to the suckers vino
had dropped their money at the time Of
the rush. 1t was still the center of a
fairly good but steadily "petering' mining
district, and there yet remained the hope
on the part of many citizens that some
one might make another big STRIKE" and
the old times come back; in which case
they would be "in on the ground floor -
But several years had seen only a steady
decline in Gold Hill, and an increase OF
prosperity on the part of its hated rival,
new kimberly, the inhabitants of which
were wont to profess ignorance of the
existence OF the former metropolis, albeit
only twenty miles separated the two
camps
1t was in the second year after the
death OF the Gold Hill boom that the bus
mess men of that camp began to realize
that retrenchment was necessary There
was always the hope of strike" or a
chance of unloading something at a good
price on some unsophisticated tender
foot" but in the meantime it was neces-
sary to look after the leaks" The gen.
tlemen who kept the liquor dispensaries
had as lively a sense of the necessity for
retrenchment as the rest, and they went
about economizing in practical manner
Ihere was in the camp a prominent but
somewhat impecuous citizen known as
Joe Godfrey, and Mr. Godfrey had for
merly resided in the ''moonshine" dis
tricts of North Carolina. This latter fact
gave Maj. Fulton and Col Hanks an idea.
The bottom lands near by grew large
Quantities of cereals, including corn. Put
tlhS TWO and two together, JoeGodfrey and
the corn crop, and-why, it was as easy
as anything could be! In a short time Mr..
Godfrey's work made itself felt by the
Wholesale liquor men, who shook their
heads over the decadence of business. not
only in Gold HILL but in several outlying
camps as well. Revenue officers shook
their heads, too, and sought to ascertain
the cause of the unaccountable state of
things; but only one of them had found
what he sought and he mysteriously dis
appeared, failing even to call for his bag
gage or to pay his bill at the hotel, and
Messrs. Fulton, Hanks ct al. waxed fat and
prosperous in the mids of seeming advers-
lty, yet were ever circumspect, as be-
hooves gentlemen who defy the laws of
government.
There were no informers In Gold HILL
The man who gave the revenue officer who
mysteriOusly disappeared the information
that led to the finding Of the still. was
shot in 'self-defense," by henchman of
the whisky ring within a day or two after
the officer turned up missing.
Several circumstances had caused sus-
Ject of the afternoons session in the
present instance. He had been in Gold
Hill about two weeks, and had hardly
spoken to any one in the camp; he had said
nothing about his business; he took not
even a hammer with him when he walked
or road about the country presumably
prospecting); and he had been seen on sew
eral occasions after nightfall (his light col
ored clothes were conspicuous) outside the
camp talking to some one, probably a
stranger, who was as yet unidentified, in
asmuch as the two had never been seen
together by daylight or within the limits
Of the camp.
On the evening after the consultation
powers in the barrOom of the Merchants
hotel Prof. Hendrix met the strang-
er, who claimed the name of Tennison,
and tried in his most suave and diplomatic
manner, to draw him out and to learn
something of his business, but the young
man, while willing enough to discuss mat
tiers in general, became as dumb as an
oyster when it got TO personal questions,
and displayed an aptness in turning the
conversation worthy of one of twice his
years. So Hendrix tried another tack.
Er-Mr. Tennison," he began, in his
mildest manner, at what he considered an