Brookings weekly register. (Brookings, Brookings County, S.D.) 1898-1903, 1899-06-29

| known to be ruffied before, proved un.
equa! to the strain of SO extraordinary an
occasion. He fairly screamed out the final
words, emphasizing them with q swipe OF
his big felt hat across the top Of bench,
illustrative of the clean sweep be proposed
making of the viands Of the luckless pic
nickers at the Gap. His mastery diplo.
macy wns at once recognized by ehouts
and cheers Of approval, In which the
voices Of Ike Bledsoe and Easy Bill sound
cd loudest and longest. Pot Luck was
ready to act as one man. Johnscn's
strategy. Bnl's executive ability and Ike's
ussory bad been the brilliant features oi
many victory In the bitter rivalry long
waged between Pot Luck and the Gap,
and not Pot Lucker ever hesitated where
this trio led the way.
The committee went directly into ex-
ecutive session and laid all necessary plans
60 gather the largest crowd of men ever
collected In Pot Luck and march In body
down to the Gap on the morning Of the
Fourth, now ten days away.
| The ditch and flume long contemplated
by the Pot Luck miners was suddenly
found to be an immediate necessity, and
word was sent down 10 the valleys and to
neighboring camps that 200 extra men
Il Il
Not a tramp came TO town but was offer
ed chance to do light work for his board
until after the Fourth, a move which Of
itself almost doubled the population of
the town, the news spreading with such
mysterious rapidity that every Weary
Watkins within its reach quickly turned
| his face toward Pot Luck rs the Mecca he
long had sought. Pot Luck knew the Gap
| never figured upon entertaining more
than 500 or 600 people at the most and
determined TO muster at least that number
in its invading host.
Less than week before the Fourth,
that the Gapers might not have time to
| discover the trap set for them, Pot Luck
| sent this reply to their invitation, an epis-
tie upon which 'Ceptin johnson and the
| whole committee expended much time
| and ingenuity:
To the Chairman and Members of the Fourth
of July Committee Of Dutch Bills Gap:
GENTLEMEN AND TELLER CITIZENs-In ac-
ceptin the invitation so cordially extended Us
to participate in the good time you intend
| havin on the Fourth, allow us, on behalf Of the
citizens of Pot Luck, to thank the good people
| Of the Gap fer courtesy which is doubly ap-
preciated on account Of our present boom
havin upset our own preparations fer cele-
bratin. We assure you that every Pot Lucker
who can afford to knock of work will be down
to see you on our nations glorious birthday.
THE FOURTH OF July COMMITTEE OF POT
LUCK.
This reply had the precise effect intend.
ed-namely, IL assured the Gapers that
the Pot Luckers were as good as them
selves at bluffing, and big Jake Tohmer's
fat sides shook with laughter when as
their chairman he read It to the committee.
e&,I hot rhay Dat
Luck had accepted the invitation In good
faith.
Jake roared again. Good faith moth
in" said he. "They want us to think SO
and go ahead and prepare for 'em, and
then not a Pot Lucker come near our cele-
bration. That's their game. We wasn't
born yesterday; not all of us. The idee
of a boom at Pot Lucki That's too
good.
And so things went on, the Gapers
making preparations for their usual
crowd only, while Pot Luck strained it
self to add men enough to its population
to "eat the Gap out of house and home"
as Ike Bledsoe put 1t.
Two days before the Fourth Jake Toh-
mer's boys, Fritz and Jake junior, went
fishing far up the creek toward Pot Luck
and came home almost bursting with ex-
element.
Dad" said the breathless Fritz, dash
ing into his fathers grocery, 1.-THE Pot
Luckers are goin to bust our Fourth wide
open"
"Go long, you young rascal" said his
father. What you tryin to play on your
old dad nowS They amt goin to cele-
brate at all up there"
''That's just it, dad, and say, the
woods is plumb full of men up that way
never saw such droves of 'em, an me an
Jakey heard 'em talkin, an they're every
one of 'em gcin TO march down ON us
Fourth of July mornin an eat an drink
up everything in sight, run all the Gapers
off the dancin floor an of the groun's an
just par'lyze us gen rally. Them's the
very words they said, amt they, Jakeyf"
A great light suddenly flashed upon the
mind Of Jake senior Not waiting to hear
Fritz's news confirmed, he spread big
sheet of wrapping paper on his counter,
hastily penciled call for meeting that
night not only of the Fourth of July com
mittee, but all good citizens of she Gap,
and tackled IL up outside his door.
Jake's grocery store wouldn't begin TO
hold the Gapers who answered the call,
and the public pulse ran so high that 1t
SScfIleu mourning OUT DiOousIcO cOulu reSult.
Some Of the more impetuous Gapers were
for arming every man and going TO meet
the Pot Luckers half way. This was given
up as too hazardous. Pot Luckers were
known to be fighters 20 man and would
doubtless greatly outnumber the Gapers.
Others suggested moving to a grove a
dozen miles down the river early In the
day and thus escaping the ravaging horde
from Pot Luck. But this smacked of
cowartiice and could not be considered for
a moment.
The chagrined Gapers blamed their
committee for getting them into such q
dilemma, while accusations of bungling
and stupidity passed freely between the
committee members themselves. Big
Jake Tohmer was almost the only man
present who did not lose his temper, and
when the meeting seemed about to break
up In free fight he banged loudly upon
his grocery counter with o sugar scoop and
as chairman Of the meeting commanded
order
What 'Ceptin johnson was TO Pot Luck
Jake Tohmer was TO the Gap, and the