Butler citizen. [volume] (Butler, Pa.) 1877-1922, 1899-10-19

voices:
Come, fiji M your glasses and drink while
you can.
whatever's the damage IN pay.
so be easy and free while you're drinking
with ne
I'm a man Jon don't meet every day.
They were doubtless right SO far as
the last assertion. considered in a per
soual sense. was concerned Still. the
kind Of man these convivial old fish had
special reference to was man ike
themselves. who came in with his 500
or etj0 check, as the case mIgns be.
after long spell Of bush work for some
squattsr. or after a long overland trip
with some drover, and who, handing it
over the bar e. the publican, said, Il
say. old stick IN the mud. just keep
this ere and lets know when it done
viii yeE Then straightway cried to
the boys: Breast the bar. We sons Of
Aaron, breast the bar, Nominate yer
p'isins and give it a name And this
would last for four OF five days Or
maybe, if the publican was not quite 50
unscrupulous as the generality of pub
hcans, for a week or even ten days.
This was their beau ideal Of q man
the sort Of man you didn't Met with
every day
Shortly after ! entered an old organ
cite was placed Oh the counter and ssme
wonderful gyrations called dancing were
described to the strains of the Devil :
March - Another and perhaps the most
popular Of the innocent little amuse-
ments INDUCED in by this typical happy
family was that Of having a friendly
spar without the aid of boxing gloves
on the slightest pretext. On the com
pletion of one of these rounds, which.
with due regard to the proprieties, was
always fought outside, the party who
had come off second best" was obliged
to set up the drinks all round. These
little incidents We're rather encouraged
than otherwise.
Entering into conversation with one
or two members of the company who
seemed in rather less bemuddled con
dition than their fellows. | learned that
not few of those present We're simply
DELAYED there until the thunderstOrms
had properly set in, 80 that they might
surmount certain dry stages on the un-
certain track leading to the newly dis
covered goldfelds in Western Australia.
OF course, the chief topic Of converse
tion was the arrest which had been
made that afternoon. | found that al
though popular feeling was dead against
the supposed murderer. still, from the
fact that the man, by name Dan
Smythe, who had laid the information.
bore the reputation Of being "a crooked
one even to his own mates. the crowd
on the whole was open to conviction.
As l knew the indirect influence of
public opinion, even on n police trial,
in such part of the world. and not
wishing the witnesses for tlfe prosecu-
ton 60 have the moral support or the
encouragement of that all important
community, | expressed my opinion
pretty freely regarding the trumped up
nature of the case. A e5 note was soon
spent in shouting" for the company,
and | so far sacrificed myself and self
respect as TO perpetrate certain digres-
sions in the vocal line for their especial
benefit They seemed to like it, but
then there is no accounting for tastes.
When the fun" was at its height
slipped ont and made my way back to
grassy rise overlooking the river,
where the gentle breeze would blow
away the mosquitoes, and where the
air was fresh and cool There intend
ed to camp for the night. My horse,
only little way off. was cropping the
rice grass.