Walker Lake bulletin. (Hawthorne, Nev.) 1883-1926, 1897-02-24

~ tiiN J''SNf Nho
ned. 'Old friend, eh? William, the
officer says you We're drunk and disor-
derby, Saturday night. How about it,"
Guilty, judge" said Bill, cheerfully.
"M-hm. Ever been here before,
William?"
Not as many times s l ought t.
BEEN
Coming again? No? Discharged
Your friend here wishes to see you.
William"
Bill was entirely unabashed when |
met him at the door, and seemed great
ly amused as my suggestion that he
ought to be ashamed of himself. Il
never thought you'd come to this, Bill"
said, severely.
"Fiddiede-dee, boyi Likewise.
'Rats'.' replied Bill, with coarse disre
gard for theealignity of my orficial star.
''Ef had two bits f'r ey'ry time that's
happened. | wouldn't be tryin' t bor
row a dollar now," he continued.
adroitly
lie got the dollar, and on the way up
town unfolded to me one of the best
derned plots" for story he had ever
evolved; but it was not good enough to
consider, and my manner told him so.
I'll leave we here" he said abrupt
ly, as we came to Van Buren, street. II
look too tough t go uptown with ye
But looky, sonny, mex time | see ye.
I'm sure goin' t give we a plot that'll
a VIZ N II nd
We parted and Bill made bee-line
for tho nearest place to get an eye
opener" That was the last | saw of
him for two years.
or all the ubiquitous individuals
ever ran across In all sorts of out-of-t the
way places and elsewhere, Bill Ijams
was the one oftenest In evidence The
next time l saw him he was in New
York. next, | found him officiating as
foreman in little newspaper office in
Nebraska prairie town; and year
later he turned up in San Francisco,
and stumbled across my path. On
each and every occasion he had "the
best derned plot" all ready to give me;
and, quite as regularly, nothing came
of 1t.
A few months after seeing him In
San Francisco, while chatting with the
editor of a paper In Southern New
Mexico, heard familiar voice from
the door of the composing asking
some question about lob" Behold
our old friend Bill, stick in hand. with
the same old familiar one-eyed leer on
his grizzled countenance After he
went out l told the editor about him.
why don't you take the old villain
out to the mine, and straighten him
out, If you're going to be there
awhile?" asked Sherman Hes good
for years If you can keep him sober;
but he nearly died after his last jam
boree, a few weeks ago. He's about
due again, by now"
Just then Bill's head emerged from
the doorway. Say, sonny" he remark
ed, I've got somethin' t tell ye eff
y're round t'night. It's corker, sure,
this time"
''All right, Bill. Come over and take
Bill readily accepted the proposition
! held out to him to go out to our camp
and work. He liked the prospect of n
change of employment, and also that of
being out of reach of his old enemy
when one of his spells came on. So
when l drove out next day, was ac-
companied by this cheerful old repro
bate, who seemed happy as boy over
the outlook He had one or two pilots"
TO unfold too; but he did not seem
hurt when | failed to enthuse over
them.
Bill had been with us at White Hawk
about three months, and during that
time had succeeded not only in stand
ing off 1.-THE enemy" but in making
himself the most popular man in camp,
besides. So it was with genuine re-
gret that everybody heard that he was
about to pull up stakes and move on.
But the rowing fever had him. and
nothing we could say or do would in
duce him to reconsider.
Without his knowledge. "the boys"
bestirred themselves in his behalf, and
on the eve of his departure he was de-
coyed up to Higgins boarding house,
where grand ball'' was being held in
his honor And when they presented
the old fellow with 4 handsome watch:
This is addin' insult t injury" said
Bill, with grateful tears in his bleary
old eyes.
About midnight, when the baile was
at its height, came startling news,
brought in by late arrival from the
Arizona line. The notorious Kid and
his cut-throat band of reds We're out
on the war-path, and it behooved those
present-the men. at least-to get to
their respective ranches and look after
their buildings and stock
A week later found us, mere hand
full of men, hampered by the presence