The Mount Holly news. [volume] (Mount Holly, Burlington Co., N.J.) 1891-1942, 1900-11-20

! Ny Would Be Assassin.
BY M. QUAD.
COPYRIGHT, 1900. By Q. p. LEWIS.


me last goodby. They looked their
| pity and sorrow, and their hands lin
gered lovingly in mine. l was rather
skeptical. I didn't see why should be
pulled down by a mountain lion, claw
ed into mince meat by a grizzly bear
or buried under a landslide, but they
smiled feebly and shook their heads
in solemn way. Only one telegram
received out of eight or ten threw any
light on the matter. and the light came
! too late. 1t read:
IF you are going hunting with old
Bill Potts, you'd better make your will
and leave things easy for the widowed
and fatherless."
The other kilograms simply read
that the senders would see that my
grave was kept green, If it could ever
be found, and that it was to be hoped
wouldn't suffer over week in dying.
I liked old Bill. He was hale and
hearty and good natured, and he could
pack mule, cook a good meal and
shoot fairly straight. He was a smok-
err and chewer, played a good game
of euchre, and l had every confidence
that the pair of us would get along
like brothers. We got away in good
style, and it was two full days before
anything happened to shake my con-
fidence in him. Then, as l sat cleaning
my rife, he picked up the ak to cut
some wood. He hadn't made six
strokes before the ak few off the ham
die and almost shaved my hair as 1t
passed.
Excuse me. colonel" said old Bill
as he held up the handle. THAT ak
has bin loose for the last six months
and orter have bin fixed I'll tend to
it the first rainy day we have"
"But, man, that was close call for
me-" l said as felt my anger rising.
eyes, colonel, but as long as no dam
age was done it's all right. | kinder
thought it was goin to cut yer head
off, but it riz leetle and missed ye."
/ figured that 1t was pure accident
and overlooked it. Next morning old
Bill found the trail of lion near Sur
camp, and after breakfast we took 1t
up and started out. l had Winches-
ter, and he had double .barreled shot
gun loaded with buckshot. He took the
lead, and we had trailed for half a
mile when l stumbled over a stone
and pitched forward. Potts was about
20 feet ahead of me, gun on his
shoulder and passing perfectly open
ground. AS I went down both barrels
of his gun were discharged. and my
| hair curled as the handful of shot
shrieked over me and cut away half
the branches Of young pine.
"What is it? What were you shoot
ing at?'' l shouted as l scrambled up,
half expecting the lion had got in our
rear and was stalking US.
eye see, colonel" replied old Potts,
with sheepish look on his face, II al
lus carry my gun on the full cock, SOS
to save time, and | guess | must have
bin fingerin them hammers"
"You dolt! You idiot! You jackass"
l yelled at him as l looked for club.
eff / hadn't stumbled over that stone,
you'd have blown hole through me as
big as BARREL"
Eyes, but We stumbled, and, bein as
no harm was done, hope We won't get
mao ABOUT IL. why. Slcu luluS6 ulO
liable to happen every day."
told Potts that If ever caught him
carrying his gun in that shape again
I'd pump lead into his legs and leave
him to the wolves. and for the rest of
the day the relations between us were
strained Under the influence of
good supper and a pipe we got closer
together, however, and by and by he
went into the tent for the cards. He
was fussing around for several min
utes, and had just opened my mouth
to ask him the cause of his delay when
a bullet lifted the hat off my head and
sent it ten feet behind me. | made
two jumps for a bowlder and yelled
to Potts, thinking had been fired on
by renegade Indian, but when the
man came out with my self cooking re-
volver in his hand l knew what had
happened.
"You blunderhead! You fool of
iackassp' | shouted as l made up to
him, but be backed off and protesting
ly explained:
Don't git narvous, colonel. | had
and was jest tryin it. might have
p'inted it the other way. but | didn't
think"
mo, you didn't. and the ball went
through my hat Potts, you are
fool You don't know enough to chew
beans"
what fuss to raise over leetle
accident, and nobody hurt at that"
sighed Potts, and we spoke no more
together that evening. l made up my
mind before going to sleep that the
firm of Soft & Potts would dissolve
after breakfast by mutual consent or
otherwise but he prepared such a
good meal and seemed SO downcast
and repentant that | found myself
melting We had with us humping
big bear trap. and while he shouldered
It and set off to place it In hopes to
catch a lion l took up my gun and
went in another direction.
came back to camp at noon with a
small deer on my back and found Potts
and dinner waiting Two hours later,
when we had taken care of the meat
and the hide. he asked me to go with
him and see hot spring he had dis
covered farther up the mountain.
saw that the hammers of his gun were
down; but, not knowing what surprise
he might have up his sleeve, took the
lead Now and then he gave me
word of direction and he had just an
nounced the spring as close at hand
when | tlipped and fell. | heard the
clank of q chain, and it flashed across
me that l was pitching forward on to
his bear trap. fell, but also swerv-
ed aside, and it was my rifle which
struck the pan and sprang the trap.
The terrible jaws, each armed with 10
great teeth, closed together within a
foot of my face and with sound that
made me think of a surgeon saving
off legs. had escaped but my gun
was caught in giants wise. l got up
and tried to call old Potts Names but
l was so shaken and mad that not a
word would come. He stood looking
at me with a puzzled and anxious ex-
preston on his face, as If wondering
what there was to break loose about,
and at last l grabbed up club and
jumped in on him. l believe that l
chased him fully mile before l gave
up, but he kept out of my way. When
1 finally sat down to rest, he came
sneaking back to say:
Colonel, they all said We was queer
sort of a critter, but this last circus
beats my time. Mebbe yen tell me
what it's all aboutY
"And maybe III pump is bullets in
to you as soon as l get hold of my RI
fer l gasped. Potts, you ought to be