The Washington weekly post., 1899-11-28
BRET HARTe'S STAGE STORIES.
The Passenger Who Wanted to sleep Lost
Opportunity.

From the New York srn
My determination to make myself com
Portable under all circumstances has been
matter of regret Oftener than | can tell
you, is the way in which an easy-goIng
Southerner began, in an uptown club
what turned into an interesting story 81
have always. or nearly always insisted
on having my sleep when / felt so inclin-
ed. good many years ago | was in the
far West, where stage coaches were con-
sidered a luxury / took my place in one
from the door OF a miners tavern in a
mountain town. the name OF which 7 long
ago forgot. IL was dark when the driver
started the horses. / was the sole oc-
cupant of the old rattletrap. and draw
ing my buffalo roOe about me l turned in
for sleep. Somewhere, / never knew
where. l ewOke to find the stage at a
standstill The driver and some one afoot
were engaged in conversation | could
hear only the sound OF the voice OF the
man in the road, but / distinctly heard
the driver say 1t was darned strange
perhaps the language was stronger-that
a man should want to get into stage at
such place. TEen he said 10 the appli-
cant:
well crawl in ther, and don't git gay
with that other passenger. If | hear any,
lHlilS out OF you 1 II put you hONn IN "A
coyote camp and you won't know you was
ever livin''
The stranger got in and was my visa
Wis. | concluded to return to my sleep.
The stranger concluded he would like to
be cOmpaniOna BILE. He began by saying
he didn't blame he driver Picking up A
passenger in the dead of night in such a
bowling wilderness was not safe. | said,
no., and shut up. The stranger said IL
was a country full of adventures. and that
hQ wit Ca1 n lot af /
no reply. but he proceeded. The last |
heard him say at that time was something
about mountain storm In which he had
an experience he would never forget. |
determined not to hear Ii, and | didn't. |
went TO sleep. l don't know how long I
slept. When / awOke the driver was at
one of the doors of the coach. What the
conversation was about. or why the driver
concluded to get off his box and look in I
never knew. | heard him growl at the
stranger:
"You shut up and keep quiet or you
get out. You was the last in, and tother
passenger was fust in, and ef he don't
want TO CAB, you hush up.
From the strangers reply | at once
concluded that he was a gentleman. and
that he had done nothing 20 excite the
driver. However, | had not finished my
sleep, and rolled over to begin again. The
stranger laughed good naturedly and be
gan another story. | was determined ]
would not listen, and / didn't. 1 went 10
sleep. Along about daylight the stage
stopped before another mountain tavern.
The snow was blowing IN every direction.
A blizzard was on. The stranger left me
at that place. He wished me very pleas
ant journey and said in a sort OF CHEEKY
way that he hoped that driver would he
more agreeable: at the same time he said
! that drivers were not to be feared, that as
! a class they were the soul OF honor. Then
! he handed me his card II seemed odd in
| that godfOrSaken country. in stage
! coach, too, for a stranger TO be so cour-
/ teous. People seldom do that IN a rail-
/ road train. | showed the card in my
! pocket. | was still drowsy. ] fear | may
| have appeared gruff. j slept until !
! reached my destination. Later In the day
! | unlOaded my pocket and the card turne
up. Then / knew / had, in my determina-
| tiOn to be COmfOrtabl lost the OppOTtu-
| nifty of hearing some good stories from
| man who became one Of the foremost
! writer's of his time. The name on the
card was Bret Harte"