The Topeka state journal., 1897-12-21
APEACEMAKER. A

specially when he wore his velvet coat
his Mexican sombrero with the silver
braid, his buckskin ridin breeches an
his gilt spurs On them 'casions Mrs.
Jenkins useter foller him roun till salts
fed thet he wuz safe 'mongst us boys an
way frum the ladies. None of us he'd ever
seen mother velvet coat like thet ono
within 100 miles of Boomopolis. So when
Mr.. C1'b Perkins, hailin straight frum
Boston, ez claimed ter be an artist hunt
in ''local COLOR fer his sketches, dropped
inter Doc Morey's place with mother vel
vet coat an a sOmbrero, an him Jenkins
size ter an inch-why, us boys all fairly
gasped fer breath, an Mr.. Perkins found
jest what he wuz a-lookin fer.
'TWuz the eVenin of the day when the
Chinese bunkhouse at the Golden Wedge
mine wuz blOwed up with dynamite Who
bIowed her up nobody knew, but we all
sespicioned Badly BoWers-big man, bad
man. Never havin did lick of work in
his life, it materially guv Baldy pain ter
see a Chinaman a-workin SO quiet an pa
tientlike, same's a burro, never sayin
nothin, 'oept a leetle geehawin oncet in
awhile 'mongst his own kind, an never
standin treat. Badly probably lit the fuse
ter thet charge of dynamite out of pure
oil roun cussedness, jest ter make a row
an hurt somebody. But in this last he
wuz disapp intcd, fer, barrin broken leg
or two, the Cinnamon got off alive Seems
like a Chinaman hez ez many lives ez a
cat anyway.
We wuz all discussin this event thet
evenin in Doc Morey's place, an Cap'n
Jenkins remarked thet 'twuz low down,
cowardly trick. He wuz no friend of the
imported Chinese hirelin, but he blieycd
in fair play. He wouldn't shoot a dog with
a rope roun its neck or murder a cat in
it's sleep. The man thet he'd done this
thing wuz no gentleman, an if the cap'n
only knew fer certain who 'twuz he'd
i L L L.
of his wuthlesS life. We could see Baldy
Bowers eyes flame up, like a coal when
you blow it to light your pipe, but he
didn't say nothin-not in words. By an
by the boys cummenced ter deal fer seven
up, an Badly invited the cap'n ter play a
game of cribbage. 'Twuz a queer invite
at sech q time, but the cap'n consented,
an they sot down at table by themselves
an cummenced ter play.
Cap'n Jenkins insisted 'twuz fair ter
count one way an Baldy swore the rule
wuz t'other way. 1 don't know which
wuz right, an don't care. But pretty
soon Badly ses: "Cap'n Jenkins, you're
a-cOuntin wrong ag'i in. Your a-tryin ter
cheat ag i'm
You re a liar, - sed the cap'n, turnin a
shade whittier, like he wuz gettin hot.
Then Baldy made leetle play thet he'd
often took the starch out of bigger men
than Jenkins He riz up to his 6 feet an
sleeves, shown the muscles on his arm,
bout ez big ez a keg of beer, an he ses,
"Cap'n Jenkins, you 1eetle whifet, I'm
a-goin ter lick you right now"
You're a liar" sed the cap'n, an he
slowly riz up on ter his feet.
Nobody rig htly knowed jest how it hap
pened, but when Badly drew his big
sledge hammer fist back the leetle table
thet they'd been a-playin on few up be-
/ tween 'em, an Baldy' s fist come smash
ag in it. As it tumbled ter the floor with
! u clatter Cap'n Jenkins sorter riz up in
| the air an brung his left fist like a streak
! of lightnin ag'in the pint of Baldy's chin.
! The big feller jest elapsed. His whole
! body stiffened. He gripped the floor a sec
| Ond or two with his heels an then he went
smash full length on ter his back with a
! jar thet shook the buildin. 'Twuz full
| five minits by the watch afore he moved a
| muscle.
Ez soon's Baldy could stan up an take a
| glass of whisky he went out of the back
| door, an Cap'n Jenkins went out of the
| front door. We all knowed thet the mex
! thing ter come long would be leetle gun
| play, an while the two principals wuz gone
! fer their tools we all took a drink, an
! three or four as wuz sensitive ter the sight
| of gore slipped out spread the news of
| what WuZ a-cOmin.
| Thet wuz how C'I'b Perkins happened
ter pear on the scene. Havin come ter town
erter dark, he wuz eatin his supper at the
| Transcontinental when be heered the
! news, an he rushed over ter Morey's think
| in he might swipe a sketch off n the Incl
dent. You could hev knocked us fellers
down with feather when he sprung inter
| the room like he wuz shot out of a gun
an looked roun sorter dazed by the lights
an the queer look on our faces. Skeered a
! little, too, 1 reckon, fer his voice sorter
trembled as he sed, Gentlemen, viii you
hev drink with me?''
| Perkins poured out bout a finger of
whisky in a glass wuz jest a-raisin it
ter his lips when the back door flung open
! It I'd which Perkins back Wuz turned
an big gun come in, follered by Badly
Bowers. 'Thout waitin second he pulled
the trigger, amin right at the center of
| thet velvet cOat-the back of it. But
| Tony Moore, the barkeep, wuz too quick
fer him all the same. He knocked the
| muzzle of the gun down with an empty
bottle, an the bullet nipped the heel off of
| Perkins boot an the blood ran out on ter
the floor OF course Perkins wuz s'prised
| He catched up the heel in his han an stood
an hollered. Jest then the sheriff. who'd d
been a-waitin outside till arter the shoot
| in ter arrest the survivor, if any, come in
an nabbed Badly.
Cap'n Jenkins wuz the ca NEST man of
the lot in the confusion thet follered. Sech
| a shout as went up when he 'peared on
! the scene. He he'd a six shooter in each
! han when he stepped inter the front door,
but he dropped one inter each pocket of
his velvet coat an stood smilin, first at
| CIb Perkins, artist still a-howlin with
| pain, then at Badly Bowers, who wuz
| a-sulkin in the grasp of the law.
Mex day the sheriff tried to git some.
body to swear out a cmplaint ag in Badly.
But the capn sed he wuz satisfied an
hadn't no c'mplaint to make. Badly he'd
insulted him an he he'd licked him good
| thet wuz all right An Perkins sore heel
didn't hurt him nOne-nO fault at all to
find with thet. He blieved in brethren