, 1897-10-07
AN ADVENTURES ETHICS.
Crooked Word Doesn't Pay is the Con,
clusion He Reached.

leaned back in his chair to rest during
a lull IN uhe line Of excursionists, There
are different standards OF morality and
all OK that, hi. !si me tell you one
thing. it is a2over wcr,h while for a man
to steal small sums, and I've come to
the conclusion that even the big Lifts
never pan out as one wants them to.
Now. I'm no preacher; you know that,
80 don't think you've got itno a Sunday
school.
What made me think Of that? Well.
| don't know. You see, l sit here for
hours sometimes without doing much,
and rhen l have to think. Perhaps those
brass liars in front Of me suggest
Thoughts Of morality and such things.
At amy rate, as l was going to say, 1t is
hardly worth while Il do any crooked
work. I've been ell over the world
Mexico, Cuba, Texas, California, South
America, and all around-and I've come
across more shippers and crooks than
YOU could shake a 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
wasn't scared OF his own shadow. Why.
only last year | ran across Bank down
in Buenos Ayres. You know he left
This city with a couple CT hundred thou,
sand. and a good many knew it. | had
known him from away back, and his
son was my chum for awhile. He was
standing in front of a cheap saloon down
there, and | looked at him FOR some time
before l wen up to him. Say, when
l struck that chaps shoulders with my
hand he gasped and locked as frightened
and white as if he had seen a ghost.
"tOh.' said I. 4 know you. my man.
and he tried to put on a bod front and
act as il ne was offended. But I didn't
take his bluff at all. and he soon qu:et-
ed. ten | asked him in to have a
drink 10 steady his nerves and to give
some rest to those restless, hunted-likA
eyes of his. Then he offered to pay for
drinks, and l came near kicking him
out INFO the hot street. Why, | could
no more have drunk off his money than
nc1hjne Poor. miserable. deluded fool.
He came back here and gave himself
IN a few months after-could NOT stand
1t any longer. Pardner. that's no lie
for me.
"Oh I'm no angel. 7 tod you that
before, I've done some crooked things
before this, but I tell YOU hat I've been
sorry every time. The biggest deal |
I'M in the thousands. and although it
was done in what they call business, I
tell Won 7 ALWAYS remember II with re,
gre5. The only consolation | have ia
the fact that the lob wasn't nut M or
any one man. hui on a blasted British
syndicate and besides we did the work
IN we'll that IT was some fuu in SEEING
them get fooled out of their money. 1t
was on, in the gold mines. down near
the Mexican torder-neyer mind iust
where. NV Two pardners and I had
worked our blamed Old claim until We
had got sick of fine business. and We
had sbout decided 10 clear ont. because
1be ground had all been worked out,
You see. most of he claims were old.
disused Sranrs ones. and mighty Few
came there Finally my old parduer.
Ce,rpe Nesbit-he's desd now-thouehf
of a plan TO line our pockets for awhile.
He had learned that his blamed Brit.
ishers' syndicate had an agent l1,kina
,ronn5 and snoonin' arrund FOR a gooa
bargain We nnt our heads tosether
and th,. nigh, we sbo.puned rba claim
..Oh va, don,t kn,w what n shotpun
a claim meansq ri fell you. IFS sim,
ne Won, pet a mnzzle-,oader and had
her nm nre. NV far and light and the,
ram some RI the finest po,d dust Won
can procure dow the barrel. Then
.amn ,he who,a thinp down hard stanA
off a fsw wards from .ba walls and Lob
nor o, WHY man take that dacom,
n,sed o,artz and vo,, c,p hlow the dus,
in q, u q IN fool rho hos. q, axnerts n,
co,rsa vo,, H., va GOT, n do the thing in
.ras,,o shons Lrov ,r,e trick and \
d,d tho sbo,o,,n or, IN nersectio, TbA
mn ,,,, y, n oil w.s thas no Rr;tiSbe,
an AIMED nm an offer Good iingo, no
STOOD M mora cb,nce NJ living IN, th,,