El Paso daily herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1881-1901, 1900-10-25
Nv Would Be Assassin.
BY NJ. QUAD.
COPYRIGHT. 1900. BIT c. 3. LEWIS.

was to go up into the mountains OF
Wyoming on a hunting trip with old
Bill Potts, a dozen men called to bid
me last zoodby. They looked their
pity and sorrow. and their hands lin
gered lovingly in mine. 1 was rather
skeptical. / didn't see why / should be
pulled down by n mountain lion. claw
ed into mince meat by n grizzly bear
or buried under a landslide, but they
smiled feebIy and shook their heads
in a 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
BiIl Potts. you'd better make your will
nud fatherless."
The other kilograms simply read
that the senders would see that my
grave was kept green. IL 1t could ever
be found. and that IL was to be hoped
I wouldn't suffer over a week I'm dying.
I liked old Bill. He was hale and
hearty and good natured. and he could
pack "A mule cook n good meal and
shoot fairly straight. He was a smok-
er and n chewer. played a good game
OF euchre. and L had every confidence
that the pair of us would get along
Ike brothers. We got away In good
style. and 1t was two full days before
anything happened to shake my con-
ndence in him. Then, as I sat cleaning
my rifle, he picked up the Ak to cut
some wood He hadn't made six
strokes before the AK flew of the han
die and almost shaved my hair as 1t
passed
Excuse me. colonel" said old Bill
n he held up the handle. THAT ak
has bin loose for the last six months
and orter have bin fixed. I'll tend to
Il the first rainy day we have"
But. man. that was a close call for
me-" I said as felt my anger rising.
Yes. colonel, but as long as no dam
are was done it's all right. / kinder
thought it was goin to cut yer head
or, but IL riz a leetle and missed ye."
I figured that IL was pure accident
and overlooked it. Next morning old
BiH found the trail OF a lion near our
czmp. and after breakfast we took II
I'D 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 1 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 a young pine.
what is it? What were you shoot
ing atI" / shouted as / scrambled up,
half expecting the lion had got in our
rear and was stalking us.
"Ye see, colonel" replied old Potts,
with n sheepish look on his face. Il al
lus carry my gun on the full cock. SOS
10 save time, and / guess 1 must have
bin fingerin them hammers"
You dolti You idiot You jackass"
yelled at him as 1 looked for club.
III hadn't stumbled over that stone,
you'd have blown a hole through me as
big as n barrel"
yes, but We stumbled, and, bein as
no harm was done. 1 hope We won't get
mad about it. Why. SIGH things are
liable to happen every day"
told Potts that IL 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 a
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
ufes, and / had just opened my mouth
TO ask him the cause OF his delay when
= bullet lifted the hat Off my head and
sent 1t ten feet behind me. / made
two jumps for a bowlder and yelled
to Potts, thinking 1 had been fired on
By a renegade Indian, but when the
man came out with my self cooking re-
volyer in his hand / knew what had
happened.
You blunderheadI You fool of a
jackassr' l shouted as l made up TO
him. but he backed off and protesting
~ explained:
Don't git naryous, colonel l had
never seen one of these self cookers
and was jest tryin it. 1 might have
plated il the other way, but 1 didn't
think
mo. you didn't, and the ball went
through my hat. Potts, you are a
TOOL You don't know enough to chew
BEANS
what a fuss to raise over a leetle
and nobody hurt at that
sighed Potts, and we spoke no more
together that evening. 1 made up my
mind before going to sleep that the
irm of Soft & Potts would dissolve
,fter breakfast by mutual consent or
but he prepared such a
rood meal and seemed so downcast
Ind repentant that 1 found myself
melting. We had with us a humping
big bear trap. and while he shouldered
4 and set off to Mace IL in homes to