Alma record. (Alma, Mich.) 1878-1928, 1897-12-24
"PYRITES SAM. 4"
BY E. E. BOWLES.
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until the night he came in with his
| pockets full of pyrites of iron, and, TAX
ing each man aside, privately informed
him, with many injunctions as to Sc
crecy, that he had discovered and To-
Gated brass mine. AS a rule, we had
| grown very tired of initiating every
| tenderfoot that came along into the
| mysteries of quartz mining, showing
I them the difference between gold-bear-
ing quartz and country rock; between
| true assure and contact vein; between
granite, Porphyry, schist. spar serpen-
tine, quartzite, ETC.; of trends, dips,
| spurs, angles, ETC.; OF shafts, tunnels.
| slopes, wines and drifts; of the manip-
ulation OF the horn spoon or gold pan;
how to distinguish the resultant sedi-
ment, il gold, from mica, pyrites or sui
phurets; in a word, teaching them In
An hour or two all we had learned after
years OF toll and privation. We had
reached this stage OF the tired feel
ing" when Sam brought in his -brass"
| specimens, and not q man Of us would
tell him what 1t was. "Uh-huh," we
said. as he carefully exhibited his de-
ceptive-looking find. What did we
think Of it? Why, it was a great find.
and very high-grade ore-if It was
| brass. "If'-why of course IL was
brass; look at it; anybody could see
what it was. We admitted that they
could; yes, anybody that knew any
thing at all. SO we permitted Sam to
work away In ignorance Of his claim
| for two weeks-until he received re-
turns from the samples sent to Los
Angeles for assay. Then the Brass
Monkey" as Sam called il, shut down,
and he went TO prospecting again.
He was so persistent and industrious
| IN his determination TO strike il rich"
| that we finally began to have fellow
| feeling for him and to appreciate his
| pluck; sympathy he did not need. He
was jolly and good-natured, and did not
| drink to excess, and was never known TO
| turn a card for money. In friendly
game in his tent the suggestion of
| draw" at only a dollar limit was al
ways met by the quiet statement that
he never played for money, that he was
raised differently, and, besides, his
money "came so hard" that he knew he
| would be bad loser. He was always
ready with his sympathy when an
| others ledge "pinched," "petered" or
"broke off" and encouraged him oil he
| could; always had song or a story for
a bad night, and in the event of sickness
or injury had some simple remedy in
the way of poultice that his mother
used 10 use" In fact, he was one of
those happy-go-lucky, light-hearted
fellows, handy about camp, and friend
| to everybody, but one could not get
| rid of the impression that he didn't
| have any more sense than the law al
| lowed" Therefore, it was accepted as
a matter of course, when u tenderfoot
| struck camp one day in the first stages
of desert fever, that Sam should take
| entire charge of him and dose him
with wild sage and 'squaw" tea and
concoct appetizing dishes with bacon,
| beans rice and flour.
| AS "stayer," malarial or chagres fe-
yer is not TO be compared TO desert fe-
yer. The latter drags along and hangs
on day after day, week after week, and,
although the patient may be able tn
| crawl about, he Is weak, debilitated and
| nerveless, and don't care a rattle out
of the box" whether he lives or dies.
| This was the condition of that tender
| foot. During the middle of the day
| he dragged himself about the camp
in the sun, but the remainder OF the
time he spent in his bunk in his tent.
| One night, when most of the boys were
| assembled in the Bedrock" Sam came
in, and, going up to the bar, drank
alone, contrary TO his usual custom,
| then turned his back on the crowd,
| leaned his elbow on the bar and gazed
| out into darkness, at the same time
| twisting his mustache fiercely as if
worrying over something.
whats wrong, sam? Patient deadY'
some one asked.
| No" said Sam, ''but he's layin' up
there wishin' he was. l tell you, pard-
ners," he continued, turning 10 the
crowd, I've been in hard luck myself
-so've all of us, guess-an' seen 9th
ers in hard luck, but that poor cuss up
there's in the hardest streak of lucl,
l ever see. He's plum down to bedrock
an nary color"
That's nothin', Sam; we've all been
there many a time. What's the matter
out Of grub?"
Nav, he amt out of grub, an won't
be as longs Sans got any; but its
somebody else. l got a letter for him
to-day on the stage an took it down
/ TO him. After he read it he jest turned
over with his back TO me an laid quiet
but purity soon l shifted to where
could see his face, an I'll be derned il
he wasn't cryin', yes, sir, cryin' like a
baby, he's that weak. you know. ! says
to him easy like What's the matter,
pard"
'Nothn',' he says, only more hard
luck
Girl gone rback on your l said
thinkin' to be cheerful an maxim VI
my mind TO josh him.
NO he says; 1T nd a-been better
for her if she had long go. Read that,
he says, an handed me this" concluded
Sam, and he drew letter from his