The Lambertville record. [volume] (Lambertville, N.J.) 1872-1968, 1901-03-27
STARTLED THE CAMP
A PRANK THAT ENLlVeNEo A SNOW
SOUND MINING TOWN.

COSND HlINilNd IOWNs
The Resurrection OF a. Supposed
Dead Lawyer Was Mutual Sur
prise TO the Community and to the
Victim of the Tricksters.
Life In mining camp when ii is
snow bound said prominent mining
man of Chicago the other day, rs
dreary time, and men will do anything
for the sake of II little amusement.
The story am going to tell you actual
ly did occur, and at that time we Nil
welcomed the Joke rs Il godsend and
made hero of its perpetrator.
THE winter OF 1893 rested an appall-
ingly heavy hand on the Cnur d'Alene.
Buried many feet deep under mass of
feecy snow, the country lay PROSTATE.
SO Intense was the cold and so heavy
the weight of the snow that 1t was pos
slble TO work none but the richest
claims lngress to and egress from
that bountlfully rich territory was IL
feat that none but the hardest man
dared essay, for It was an even chance
that death from exposure might be the
lot of the one who attempted It.
wallace at this time was thriving,
busy, prosperous town where the arti-
hcial excitement of II mining boom ey-
erywhere betrayed Itself The shutting
down of many of the mines had left
large number of men living In Wallace
with nothing TO do. Time hung hcav-
lily on their hands, and nothing was OF
too small Importance to attract interest
provided 1t held out the hope of killing
few hours of the dreary time of wait
ing
Just ut this period the most proml
nent young lawyer of the town fell ILL.,
There wasn't anything particular the
matter With him except heavy cold
and impending fever; but, being some.
what Of II hypochondriae. he at once
believed himself TO be In dangerous
condition. He promptly took himself
to his bed In the rear of his office de
MED himself to all but two or three of
his intimate friends, Installed II nurse
TO look after his wants and promptly
gave himself over to that luxury OF be
lievlng himself to be really i'll which is
so dear To the hypochondrlae's heart
HE three men who were his friends
and who were admitted to his apart
ment took advantage Of the conditions
surrounding him to perpetrate prac-
tlcal joke that has since become ia
nous In the northwest. They gave out
the News that the lawyer, one Jack
Greene. had died, and rs his mourning
friends they received the camp, which
called In n body to express Its regret.
I'm the meantime Greene in the next
room, heard nothing, the visitors being
naturally quiet In the presence of
death One OF his friends went to the
local undertaken and, informing him
that Jack was dead, purchased cot
fin. Alleging the hard winter and con
sequent hard times, he beat the under
talSer down onc-half In his price The
undertaken, however, got even by sup
plying a plain pine box painted deep
black. THIS was placed in jacks office,
aud in the dcnd Of night lumber care
fully weighted to the weight Of
Greene's body was packed inside 1t by
the three conspirators. The lid was
then screwed down, and the following
day John Greene, followed by the en-
tire population of the town of Wallace,
Ida, was laid away In the cold cold
ground.
about ten days later Jack, having
entirely recovered his pristine health
appeared upon the street. 70 say that
his advent created II sensation IL to put
It mildly. Three or four superstitlous
miners, thinking IT was his 'ha mt,
straigbtway took to their cabins on the
hillside and TO prayer and fasting.
The only woman in the camp had n fit
OF Mysteries and tainted dead away.
Greene, however, stopped the general
panic that his appearance WAS preclp
ltatlng by stepping into the Crystal
Palace saloon and there absorbing his
four fingers Of red eye In Il perfectly
natural and enrtLllke manner.
ut was hard to tell whether the town
of Wallace or Jack Greene was the
more astoElshed by the explanations
that there cnsucd. At length, when
those present had become convinced |
beyond Cayil or doubt that II was
Greene IN the flesh and not Greene In
the spirIt-although by this time Il
must be confessed TINT spirit in great
plenty was In Greene-they gent for
the three piratOrs.
"'What did you do 1t forf' was the
question addressed In blunt and simple
terms to the ringleader.
"'Well, I'll tell you. You see we
wanted 10 run Jack for II town Office
and we thought In this way we could
get II line on how lie stood with the
community. But and here hc slapped
II wad Of newspaper clippings down
OH the bar in front of the astonlshcd
and aggrleyed Greene, jack, you won't
do. Just read those obituaries ana see
what the people think of you. Why,
after such II send off az that we
wouldn't dare to run you for the office
OF picking feas Off n yellow dog that
was locked mp on the town farm"