Daily inter mountain. [volume] (Butte, Mont.) 1881-1901, 1901-03-19
Hotel Gossip

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
NJ. Janse, a prominent railway con-
tractor arrived in this city few days
ago from Washington, ID. c., where he
had been to prefer a claim against the
British government for the cOnfiscatiOn
and destruction of property in South
Africa during the most exciting period
of the British struggle in the
Transvaal.
Mr.. Janse was one Of the contractors
who built the Great Northern railway
into Montana. He left here and went
to Africa four years ago. He came di-
rectly to Butte from the national capital
after preferring his claim against Great
Britain and until yesterday was at the
McDermott, Manager Taylor being on
the list of the friends he made in this
city while engaged in the construction
of the Great Northern line. Mr.. Janse
went to Wallace. Idaho. yesterday. where
he has mining and real estate interests
and will not return to Butte for several
days.
Il had a pretty warm time in South
Africa" he said before leaving for Wal
lace. The Beers were on one side of
me and the British on the other. I was
closely watched by the British soldiers
for some time and it was no uncommon
thing for scouts and spies to show their
| faces in the neighborhood of our camps.
There We're many occasions when I
looked to see the region in which we
were working Over-run by an army. and
there was one time when fully expected
that our camps would form the center
of a battle ground. Stray bullets used
| to go whzing overhead at intervals and
Eo tn
! so nervous that the sound of combat
in the distance would cause them to
cease work and take things easy behind
convenient boulder.
Finally the British descended on the
camp and confiscated everything in
! sight. OF course, there was no use of my
| remaining in country after such an
experience as that and last January 1
| returned to the United States. My out
| fit was worth $75OO0 and I have pre-
| ferred a claim against the British gov
eminent for that amount"
| With Mr.. Janse in the Transvaal was
another contractor named Keefe, who
had formerly engaged in the construction
of several main and branch lines in Colo
RADIO. Keefe once had peculiar expert
ence in constructing a tunnel on the
! Colorado Midland line. Near the center
I
and the mud flowed so swiftly that it
carried away the tools of the workmen
and came near drowning two or three
of the workmen themselves. Bales Of
hay and other bulky objects were used
to dam the stream. but it took several
days to turn the current in such q direc-
tion that the workmen were able to pro-
coed with the excavation of the tunnel.
There is a little tale going the rounds
of the hotel corridors, in which several
we'll known politicians and others are
made to figure. which is not 50 interest
ing on account Of what is told as of what
is left to the imagination.
1t seems that bill" Owsley and
Matt" Hodges think they can fiddle
Neither pretends to have attained to tina,
technique distinguishing one Nero, who
it will be remembered, took unto himself
considerable notoriety at one time by sit
ting on a damp wall and catching a Sc
we're cold while trying to gather inspira-
ton in handling his Stradivarius from
the cracking flames; but, just the same
both believed that the latent musical
genius in their composition would some
day take the form of kinetic energy and
startle the world. What they thinl.
of them admits that he is mot so many
but he may not have been counted lately
Last Saturday evening Owsley and
Hodges took their fiddles, and accom-
panied by competent Judges and few of
the boys" who went along "just for this
fun of the thing" rode out to Crystal
Springs to decide the question Of super
iority in dragging forth packages Of har-
mony from the violin. A search was
made for Tom Bryant, who had express
ed a desire to enter the contest, but he
had patterned after the five foolish vir-
gins and did not appear at the proper
time.
Once at the Springs liquid refreshments
were called for and then the trouble be-
gan. Mayor" Davey and M. j. Medin
We're unit in deciding that both had
payed equally wei, or. as Medin express
ed it. lone as badly as the other" The
entire musical repertoire Of each contest
ant consisted of The Arkansaw Travel
err.
The supporters of both at once set UP
a howl and emphatically declared that
the judges blundered in deciding the fid
ding match a draw. Zebulon p. Mel
horn. yclept 1.-The Dukes Jester" was Sc
emphatic that today he is hoarse.
Then it was decided to let the two test
the question of superiority by dancing
The judges decided that one danced as
} clumsily as the other-anOther draw. II
p, J. Gilligan had been there, they say
the dancing contest would not have beer
a draw.
At an early hour the party took a VOTE
) and decided to come home. Abe Cohen
Jack Mclaughlin, Jack Sullivan and PA
Reagan got lost on the way in and rode
, the blind baggage. All are of the opin
ion that the next contest pulled off a
Crystal Springs should be in relation tt
knovledpa of ChakeSnea rean lore