The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1897-09-19
AN ADVENTURES ETHICS.
CROOK ED WORK DOESN'T PAYS THE
CONCLUSION HE REACHED.

AbsconderH with BiE Rolls, but Afraid OF ThetP
Own shndowa-Even shotEuunins" =
Gold Wine for = british syndicate Not worth
whiie-A Trick PinJe on t~hinamen.
YES" said the ticket seller, as he leaned
back in his chair to rest during n lull In the line
Of excursionists, there arc different standards
Of morality and all of that, but let me tell you
one thing: 1t is never worth while for a man to
steal small sums, and I've come to the conclu-
sion that even the big lifts never pan out 40
ono wants them to. Now, I'm no preacher;
you Know that, so don't think you've got into q
Sunday school.
"What made me think Of that Well, I
don't know. You sec, / sit here for hours
sometimes without doing much, and then 1 have
20 think. Perhaps those brass bars in front of me
suggest thoughts of morality and such thingn.
AT any rate, as l was going to say, it is hardly
worth while 10 do any crooked work. I've been
all over the world-Mexico. Cuba, Texas. Cali.
fornia, South America, and all around-and
Two come across moro shippers and crooks
than you could shake q stick at, and every one
Of 'em is a miserable cuss. I've seen EN- haul
out their rolls OF big bills like nabobs, but
there's always something lacking in EN-. I
never saw one that wasn't scared Of his own
shadow. Why. only last year / ran across
Blank down in Buenos Ayres. You know he
left this city with a couple Of hundred thousand.
and a good many knew 1t. ! had known him
from away back. and his son was my chum for
n while. He was standing in front Of q cheap
saloon down there, and 1 looked at him for
some time before I went up to him. Say. when
1 struck that chaps shoulder with my hand he
gssped and looked as frightened and white a.
II he had seen a ghost.
Oh said 1, 1 know you, my man, and he
tried to put on a bold front and act as II he
was offended. But 1 didn't take his bluff at all,
and he soon auailed. Then I asked him In TO
have q drink to steady his nerves and to give
some rest to those restless. hunted-like eyes Of
his. Then no offered to pay for the drinks, and
/ came near kicking him out into the hot street.
Why, l could no more have drunk of his money
than nothing. Poor, miserable. deluded fool.
He came back here and gave himself up q few
months after-couldn't stand it any LONGER.
Pardner, that's no life for me-.
Oh, I'm no angel. i told you. that before.
I've done some crooked things before this, but
biggest deal l ever made brought me in some
thing up in the thousands, and although it was
done in what they call business tell you al
ISOLATION 1 have is the fact that the job wasn't
put up on am; one man, but on a blasted British
that 1t was some fun in seeing them get fooled Qua
Of 9dx their na money; X. Il Was out sd in tine gold mines tnG
just where. My two pardners and i had worked
our blamed old claim until we had got sick OF the
out. because the ground had ali been worked
out. You see. most of the claims were old dis.
q F;Dli Spanish mis- on SGes ns and mighty Gso1 few sa%e there:
dead nowIthopght Of a plan TO line our pockets
Britishers' syndicate had an agent looking
around and snoopin' around for o good bargain.
We put our heads together. and that night we
oh. you don't know what to shotgun .
claim meansi III tell you. It's simple. You
and tight and then ram some Of the fines, gold
dust you can procure down the barrel. Then
few yards from the walls, and let her 60. Why.
man. take that decomposed. quartz and you can
blow the dust in so as to fool the best Of experts.
t;stic shape. knew the trick. and ] did the
shotgun !, act to BeEfeGtion; The upshot Of it
Good jingo! he stood no more chance of living
on that claim than a SNOWFALL in hades-thats
on the road the next day with our pocSe,s
hlled up with British gold. His money was as
drunk on part Of it for about two weeks.
That was a common trick. 1t wasn't halt
chi sS1a as down eSe 0 near : t hsa1e j 1nss as pi ae s.f 9h (
the diggIng: There were several old China
10000. 4 man named Hawkins had a Claim
near the C~hinaman,s quarters. ana he resolved
soil on the sly, and the way he sprinkled bought
dust around there was a%caution. Then he
kept working as much as they could. By and
by the Chinamsn came over to look on, and as
soon AS ne asked 1aWklns Uettee mQCDeti
the two miners glared at him so that he almost
thought he had struck it sure. and when he
saw the dust which those fellows pulled out 10
pay for his. c~ahhages he thought they wcre
making a big haul. So he asked around a
friend of his who was an expert placer for q
Chinee. and they kept their eyes on the claim.
Finally Hawkins's pardner he out and left one
down the valley with another man. Hawkins
told the Chinaman that he, too. was going very
soon; and that he Was going to leave MS claim
Tor his brother. The next morning Hawkins
packed up on his mule and left.
The Cinnamon rushed over on the sly and
took a good look. but Hawkins, who was just
pigtails at his claim. He swore at EN-, called en-
everything bad, and this made EN- all the moro
anxious. The next day Hawkins was standing
there and the two Cinnamon came up and
finally offered $23. 600 for the claim. Hawkins
held off for a while, and then snapped EN- MP.
You can bet he didn't waste any time getting
away then. Ny partner and l got two hundred
afraid OF a hold-up. That was kind OF leGtti-
mate. you see, and we never cared about il.
NO. II isn't worth your while to lit any
miserable. Now. 1 could lift money almost
every day. and I could get away with II, TOO.
but l wouldn't DO it on my life. want To en-
what i often think, and then / say to myself
TINT perhaps this conscience whacking and mo-
rality are one nni the same thing. Yes. I'm q
wild one. l live on excitement.
why Am ] here behind these ticket-office
barsi Oh. that's Just temporary. I'm off FOR
Mexico. ls!a dc Cuba, or in about
two weeks. The seasons about over here now.
south OF there seven months ago on n topo-
graphical survey. and l made money. too.
well, here they come again., Two sinsie
ti Sssss Thirty lnTsyy cents en-, MADAM 3HaIT The next boat
hdsfd Hdhdno nochc.."