The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1899-01-01
HE BORROWED A SHIRT
MARK TWAIN BEFRIENDED GEORGE
HEARST ON THE COSISTOCK.
He Loaned Him a White Shirt, and So
ciety Was Shocked When the Trans
action Became Public.
New York Times.

New York Times
IF you want a story, it must be a story
of the Comstock That's the only place
know, and l reckon it's just about as IN
teresting as any other place"
The man who spoke was William f.
Bailey, of Dayton, Nevada, one of the old
est of the old-time miners of the West He
went to Virginia City, Nevada, with James
G. Fair; he knew John w. Mackay and
James Flood and all the men of millions
who found fortunes on the Comstock. This
is the first time that he has been away
from Nevada in thirty years, and it is his
opinion that New York is too big, too noisy,
and too stylish. Mr.. Bailey is a guest at
the Hoffman House.
"Those were the days." he said, "the CO.'S
and 70s. Those were the days when money
was like water. and a man with 100000 was
considered broke. No one would trouble
about carrying nickels and dimes then, and
if man asked for a loan of 800 he was
looked upon as a tramp. If he had asked for
$4,000 he would have got it in a minute,
for no man liked to see another starve. But
all that is past and gone. From sixty thou
sand people, the population of the Com
stock has dwindled down to eight thou
sand, and a nickel is as welcome to the
average man nowadays as an old sombrero
to a goat.
I'm those days, when Mark Twain was
reporting for the Virginia City Chronicle,
when Sam Davis was printers devil, and
Curly Bill the stage driver, and old man
George Hearst, the great prospector and
Mark Twains partner were the ruling
spirits of c street, there used to be some
hot old times. There was a great rivalry be-
tween Hearst and Mark Twain whenever
any social function came off, and it was
hard race between them to see which
would dress the best.
"One night Curly Bins' niece was get
ting married to young fellow who washed
tailings at the Empire mine, on the Carson
river and it was swell affair. Every
body in Virginia City and Dayton was pres
ent. and to accommodate the crowd Curly
$3.50 to have the orchestra from Piper's OPP
era House furnish music.
HEARST IN NEED.
'Well, it seemed that Hearst's washer
woman had gone broke in a faro game,
and had put up all of her customers clothes
to try and win back some of the money,
and Hearst's boiled shirts went with the
lot On the day of the wedding he went all
along Z street to buy a shirt, but there
was none that would fit him. The boys
had all taken fancy for boiled shirts, and
dealers had run out of stock. True enough,
there was box car load of them on the
Frisco freight train, but that was three
days behind time, owing to a snowslide in
the Sierra Nevadas. George began to get
nervous and foreSaw that he would have
to go to the wedding in his red shirt unless
something happened, So he went into the
Nevada Bank about o'clock in the after
noon and posted up notice stating that the
Cashier had been authorized to pay $50 to
any man who would bring in a No. - white
shirt with a starched 'front.'
Two hours later, when the bank closed
no one had appeared to cash In shirt and
George was in trouble. lie had to have a
for a man who would stoop so low as to
borrow a shirt In the early Virginia City
days would run q chance of getting lynched
for insanity. George knew this, but he had
to borrow-and from an intimate friend
who would say nothing. The only man
whom he knew well enough was Mark
Twain. So he wrote note to Mark, apol-
ogizing most humbly, and begging the loan
of billed whitley, as shirts were called
the letter, but, despite the rivalry that ex-
listed between them. he couldn't see his old
friend go to a wedding looking as if he had
just come out of the eight-hundred-foot
$50 he wrapped up one of his best and
sent it to George. He also sent a letter
calling George to account for doing such a
thing and said that if it got abroad it would
ruin him socially, and that he couldn't even
expect to be elected mayor of Red Tail
George didn't reply. but appeared at the
wedding in fine style. The shirt was too
large by several inches, and George had eVI-
IDENTIFY found that he could not button on a
collar so he came without one, and in its
place was as handsome a piece of new red
flannel knotted sailor fashion. as ever
saw His trousers were tucked in his boots,
which were polished like brass; his clothes
were new and fitted well any in Vir-
GINA and his long gray hair was oiled with
two kinds of hair dressing. He did look
great and when he kissed the bride her
Hearst always was winner with the girls.
1.-THE wedding was over, and the newly
married couple had Just started on honey
moon trip to the Moundhouse. Wine was
flowing pretty freely, for Curly Bill never
did do anything unless he did 1t in style.
Some of the boys had begun to WhoOp il up
running in full blast. and the horse stalls
OF the barn had been turned into poker
rooms.
A DREADFUL DISCOVERY
George went into one of them and took
hand. In about half an hour he came out
with about 5000 and invited the crowd to
drink with him. The fellow who lost most
Of the money was a young chap named Joe
Dolan, who lived in Phoebe. His uncle was
rich and owned big ranch of cattle. He
gave Joe 5000 week. but the boy lost it
in Virginia gambling, and was one of the
worst losers In the town. He was angry
because Hearst had won. and while George
was setting them up he remarked very
loudly. That old guy with the stun looks as
IL ne was ready TO be lynched
1t struck hard. George dropped his glass
square on the floor. In the heat and the
excitement he had removed the red flannel
nothing in its place. That Is what made
Joe Dolan get 50 fresh. Wen. Hearst went