The herald., 1895-09-15
HOW EB JONES DISCOVERED
TARANfULA GULCH
BY ]. GEO. HILZINGER

just then and ventured to ask bin
how Eb got back his pants, but he cnoked
me off rather roughly.
who in Halifax is telling this story
vaou or me? Didn't you ever near oil
dogs pants? Then what's the matter
with kyotes having pants, and only one
atween two of 'em? This yarn amt about
pants anyhow; It's about Eb Jones dis
covering Tarantula gulch, and that {
where Pm aheading. Them other things
is extry - Then John continued:
'When Eb woke up next morning he
thought he was petrified. He was SO
heavy he cudn't lift hisself. The clay
had friz on to him.
after while he got boost to himself
and rolled over; then be drew hisself up
a bank for rnore'n two hours until he
was kinder perpendikler, tiggerlng to fall
back and break hisself upl
st was risky thing to throw hisself
down, as he cud as lief as not break his
back as well as the mud, but he was des-
pirate and hadn't no time to lose. P'raps
if he he'd thought rael hard on the sub
iec he might We started a crack some-
where-probly in his head.
He swung hlsself little SOS to fall
even-and then let go!
He kinder rattled9inside as he touched
the bottom. and was hopeful of gettin'
out; more so as he felt thar wus some
seams opened long the front. He wrustled
hard to open up, and after awhile the
sweat kinder moistens the clay long his
backssand he wus able to step out like a
clam from its she'll.
after he'd shook hisself som, he closed
I'D the mud casing so that 1t looked, for
all creation, like petriied human. 1t
wus so materially shaped taat Eb felt as
he oughter give it decent plantin' for
his own sake. So he scraped out hole
nd Re int nd hQ ia
rock for a tom bstone and writ on it as
follers. gee whiz. as the lawyers say:
Within this shell of clay
Dwelt EbineZer Jones!
But Jones is gone away
To kinder rest his bones.
Several yeara after some tenderfoot un.
covered that c)rpse and wanted to toat il
over the country as d petrified Hassyam
pan. but when Eb knew on it he stopped
their foolin'. 1t looked so like hisself
even to the creases in his pants, that il
seemed that they wus trying to tote him
self. H. got 1T away from 'em, and sole
it east for $500.
latter he d got out of his shell he kin.
der rested. The sun wus hot an he won
dered what in Halifax kept his head sc
cool. He put his hand up an took G
jump of about twenty feet, for his hail
wus gone-every timber OF tan 1T,
bald yet! The deIned mud had friz tt
it an it had come out without his know
ing. He was some troubled about losing
his hair, but it wasn't his style to cry
over burnt beans, and then he fggereC
that he'd save somethin' on hair cuttin
an other things. When he'd got ovel
bein' bald he took survey of the looa
ton, an found that he was in a narrow
gulch about half mile long an more OF
less broad. What struck him most wu
IN h,
ever seen, an he calkerlated to sample
'em before he struck the river an go
bearins for somewheres. Just as he go
movin' he hearn whirr an spat lik,
as if a mountain lyin wus around, an h,
clumb up a boulder an waited fer thu
/ lyin.
at wus a lyin, sure enough. about tn
size of heifer or ayther larger. 1t WI
bigger elephant, Eb says, but Eb WI
] down below Wickeberg a spell, an j
/ spilled mis- morals.
| THE lyin he crouched just below tn
rock, with his eyes fixed on Eb tryin' t.
| ebonise him."
"Hypnotise him, yon mean"
| "Yes, that's it. Well, the hipotomis
! ing didn't work worth cent, SO he stoo'
| up an swung his tail till he'd got goo'
! ready on, an then he pulled the trigger
! Eb saw him comm an stuck his toe
into the rock an hung head down till til
| cyclone passed. The lynn he SWlshed III
tail agen swlsher than ever an it struc
agen a rock. an he got mad at the roc
au' tried to claw it to pieces. but
wasn't pullin' stakes for no lyin!
Then he tiggered to take a fier at f
| agen, who wus sittin' up latin at tn
trick he'd played him. but he dove dow
agen purity sucdint when the cyclon
come back.
This racket continued half an hour c
less-Eb says six hours-an his toes WI
about givin' out, when he got ne
deal.
'Jest as the glitter was goin' to max
another spring tarantula about two fee
high come out to sun hisself, an tn
lyin's tail caught him right in the ia
before he cud put up his hands,
"A tarantula two feet hIgh?'
"Well, it's jes as easy to call it six, al
l remember sein' one six feet high !"
''For the Lords sake! When"'
"On shelf. But to continer.
"The tarantula was SO mad he cudn
speak. but he laid hisself out to get ever
and he bit on to that tail SOS he cudn
be shook off, and praps he cudn't let c
mis- grip nohow.
"Now, the lyin had been jun pin SO fir
quent over Eds rock that it had becon
second mater to him, and he cudn't kee
from doin' il if ne tried, so he jes contil
nered to spring backards and forart