The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1897-03-07

ties from time to time in the most serene
indifference to the fact that there were
other human beings around. And these
others--that is, the unmarried men-lived
at the tavern, or hotel as we preferred TO
call it. equally Indifferent to the occur
renee of social functions to which we were
not hidden. If. as occasionally happened,
one of the married men broke loose for
night or two, and spent his spare time
and money at the hotel, he was tolerated,
but no more. We felt sorry for him when
we thought of his return home but we
had no yearnings toward reciprocity in
his effort to break down the barriers
In our set there was, 1t is true, one
married woman. but she did not count.
At least we thought so till the trouble
came. She was the landlords wife. Old
Stein, as we called him, though he was
not over 40, was placid, easy-going Ger
man, Who kept the hotel fairly up to
the standard of the country, and I think
a triae above it, but he hadn't energy
enough apparently to make any strenu-
GUS effort to improve things. What was
good enough for his boarders was good
enough for him, and we were demoraliz-
ed enough by the climate, or whatever 1t
is that tends to the deterioration of man.
kind thereabout, to make no demand for
unusal luxuary. AS far as we ever no.
ticed he had no remarkable affection for
his wife. but seemed rather too indiffer,
ent to her very pronounced hunger for
admiration.
"She was a born flirt, but though she
carried her flirtations with anybody who
would flirt with her much nearer to the
danger line than would be tolerated in a
more straight-laced community, 1t was
the general opinion among the boardars
that there was no real evil in her, and,
moreover, that she was fully capabale of
4aI~t H. q L .lE
gency. So, though she would not have
been recognized as respectable by any
other married woman In town, a fact that
troubled her not, she was considered all
right by our set, and we looked upon her
as a good fellow rather than as a woman
bound by the ordinary rules of propriety.
She was a German by descent, and Stein
was German by birth, but Lena was per-
haps too thoroughly Americanized in a
poor school.
Naturally. trouble came of IT, We
were accustomed, as the people In most
small western towns were accustomed
some years ago, to receiving occasionally
a visit from what we used to call
crossroads gambler These worthless
are perhaps the least useful and most
'ornery specimens of humanity to be
found in North America They are pro-
fessionals without the skill or nerve they
among other professionals Knowing
just enough to cheat. but not enough to
cheat deity, they travel about the coun-
try. usually alone, but sometimes In
pairs stopping in the smallest settle
ments for a day or a week at a time,
looking for victims No game Is too
small for them, though they viii play
heavily at times. but they manage 10 live
on their little skill by worming their way
into friendly games OF poker. such as are
played all over the country. but perhaps
more openly in the west than In the east.
when Dick Bradley happened along
our way and stopped over at our town,
we had. though we did not realize 1t inn
mediately all the elements OF a drama
right at hand. 1t was not long before
the drama WAS enacted, and perhaps It
was just as well that We were not lit
tie farther west, for there might have
been considerable shooting In the last
act. AS IL was we had duel, but that
was fought with the paste board instead
OF revolvers, and the difference was sup
posed to be settled by freeze-out IN the
great American game.
bradley was an ordinary crossroads
gambler. and nothing more. He was a
little handsomer than the usual run OF
mem and he dressed rather better than
custom demanded in that part Of the
country. Moreover. he had a free-and-
easy way with HINT was n part of his
stock In trade-that was attractive 20
anybody. and ! suppose especially so 70
a woman like Lena. At all events he
hadn't been with us twenty-four hours
before there was a violent Irritation go-
ing on between the two. We all consid-
cred that natural enough. and Knowing
the woman as well as We thought we
ala. we thought no harm OF Il az first.
Stein took no notice OF II apparently. and
as It was a matter that concerned no Que