Deseret evening news. [volume] (Great Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1867-1920, 1898-01-03
TAKE A PARTNER ALoNs2 NO.


. b
said The Pilgrim to the Old Timer.
suppose you always traVei III p''''
when you cam" ..
The Old Timer reflected notnsn.
as IL trying to shape his thousnlsf,
''Yes. 1 suppose IL Is lonely ne snl"
finally, but you get so you e non !, n satet
Il. and after n while you hnu IL suie'
TO 20 1t alone"
"Safer?" echoed the Pilgrim.
"ycs. safer." The Old Timer pause0
TO note the effect OF his statement. IL
was satisfactory. for the Pilgrim ihce
EXPRESSED wonderment.
,'I'm no novel writer went on me
Old Timer, eff | was | would explain
-iust what I meant by that, nave
never seen II in pint except IN an IN,
teryieyy one Of the newspapers .lhu
with Joe LalDuc the Alaska miner
and he Just hlntcd ut It, The Reporter
evidently did not know what Lal'uc
meant hut he put down what ne ha,4
You remember whom LaDue came uAeh
the last time on his way East he gave
away the trick ne played ON Marcus
pnlv. He also told NJ the great ant
Guilty men have In making prospect
ing trip together. II n big party goes
1t always divides into factions. II three
men go II is always two against oqe'
and 1t is rarely that two men 50 TO-
gether for long without falling out'
"NNeu. Lapue fpoke the truth, hut as
I snid. he only hinted at the story It
makes, You can find In every city men
who have been partners Tor many yeaiH
and never had n quarrel You take Two
such men and start them out on pros
porting trip to be gone a year. Whtre
they will not be able to find other assoc
cIates. and ten to one they WIN never
finish the trip together. Why! Well
cannot tell exactly but IT'S In the
nature Of the brute, guess.
"One would think the great noun
taina and CANYONS would make mans
mind big and he wouldn't brother about
little things. The effect Is Just the con-
trary. He grows irritable and sua-
picious. Little things look as big hs
the mountains about him. ! guess a
mans mind can't stand the strain
That's about MI there is to IT,
when they start out they're all
right. After a while each begins TO
notice the little ways and manners OF
the other. II In winter it's worse than
in summer. they have to lie close To
each other In the same blankets to
keep from freezing 10 death Then each
will think the other takes more than
his sharc of the clothes. Perhaps they
will note each one in the other, de-
liberate intention OF getting on the
windwnrd aide of the bed so the other
will serve az n shield. Perhaps one
Will find n rock under the blankets just
where his back comes. and in the morn
Ing he will Investigate and find the 9TH
err fellows bed has none. He puts
down another grievance ON the list.
''In the morning somebody must
get up first and light the fire or leave
it's friendly circle Mt night and gather
fire wood, and each gets to think he ~
doning most Of the work One man
grows to hate the other He sees the
other fellow always talk ing the biggest
piece OF bacon out OF the frying pan
and drinking the last cup of coffee
from the pot They sit and glover Mt
the fire. each nursing his wrath and
broodng over his wrongs. wondering
why they were so unfortunate MS to be
thrown in with such u miserable petty
specimen of humanity as the one be-
fore him. These things sound small,
but size In relative, and they are the
most unfortunate things In the pros
pectors life. aside from his hunt for
gold
last for long, though 1t does sometimes
for n wonderful length of time. Short
words or none at all become frequent.
and violent quarrels mark the passage
OF time Each grows to hate the other
with fierce lust for his life. which has
many time ended In murder. The
overland trails of the West and the
great mineral belt are dotted with the
bones of men who have died because
their society became uncomfortable to n
man no better, perhaps warse. than they
were.
Tragedy II sometimes averted by
return to some mining camp where the
outfit Is divided between them. Never
by themselves, however. for II referee
has to called in. You remember how
Joe LaDue tells of his experience In
such u capacity many times. How on
one occasion everything had been
divided except boat and neither man
was content until II was cut In two. In
another case a single gun was left and
one man took the stock and the other
the barrel and each went his way salts
fled the other fellow had NOT bested
him In the division. These things
sound like the doings of insane men.
and, to tell the truth, 1t Is insanity.
IT is not the insanity of solitude, but 1
guess the constant and intimate COM
partnership OF one man with the other
is like the torture Of the ancicnts where
the dropping of water finally drove the
victim into madness. These things
LaDue tells of sound ridiculous. but
they are not: they are terribly tragic
in their truth. Every man who has
lived under similar circumstances
knows they are true, for he has felt
them himself. / have several tlmes.'
The Pilgrim looked In surprise into
the face of the man who sat opposite
him. 1t was a face full of strength and
purpose. withal good-natured. A high,
bronzed forehead, and great width be-
tween the eyes seemed to preclude such
petty emotions as the owner has lust
confessed to. Noting the Pilgrims look
OF credulity, the Old Timer smiled and
said:
Yes, my boy, you may not think IL
possible. but / have lifted my rifle to
my shoulder when | was little way
from camp and thought how easy |
could put an end 60 the man who sat
by the fire, the only human being be-
sides myself In all the hundreds Of
miles around, Then l have hated my
self for the thought, and yet It would
come again and again, as though l
was fighting devil within me The
cold sweat would stand out on my body
as | went through those fights. II WINS
nll so real, so terribly rcnl."
The Old Timer shook his shoulders as
II to cast of some unwelcomo burden
and the Pilgrim kept respectful silence
in the presence Of this man who has
struggled hand I'm hand with murder
for which there would have been no
punishment except that which comes to
the murderer's soul
These things have always made me
believe mon We're intended to live I'm
communities for again, you take those
who live alone for any length OF time
and they become insunc The asylums
OF the western states are full of sheen
herders, nrospectors and men who
have lived hermits lives. Then from
my own experience l should say that
one man for continual company was
worse Than none, for upon him win be
vented all TIE littleness OF human
limitations.