The Alaska prospector., 1903-08-27
Mail Carriers wa-wa..

l had dropped into a veritable Wild West camp, for there q dozen or more men in various attitudes, and one, the sheriff. with great. bushy, black beard and piercing eye, surely this wasDick Dead Eye, or some other son of the plains with four pistols buckled around him. Now in the midst of these fierce looking men sat To, or rather Mantasta Sam, who had been caught stealing from Shorty Walsh. the station, keeper, his hands were tied and he had horse hobbies on his feet. The case was being ar gued pro and con, and finally Sam was given his chance to clear him. self-here is his speech: "Me no steal from Shorty, me all time sit down with Shorty, me like Shorty, me and Shorty all same as part ners." Some one sung out "That is one on you, Shorty, and ought to clear the Indian;" and it did, for he was taken across the river an& told to get to Mansfield, and he did not stand upon the erder of his going but went. The next day several Indians appeared and ask ed about him, for the word had gone out that he was to be hung or drowned.
 Of all the hard luck stories told, the Panama musher takes the cake. Harry Behrens, Rettig and Bill Crumb started to build boat when they reached the Panama, but it took so long and their grub was so low that Behrens (the slot machine man) pulled out on a raft, but had not gone far when the raft capsized and he lost all, barely saving him. self. His matches were spoiled, so he got three logs together and tied them with his clothing torn into strips; but that got away from him soon, and having lost his knife he was surely up against it. He tried walking, and as all the food he could get was the little frogs he grew rapidly too weak to walk. At first he said he ate only the hind legs, pinching them off with his thumb and finger, but there were so few that he pinched their heads and swallowed them whole. He ate so much that he was afraid he would turn to frog, and really he does look it. We'll, finally he got so weak had to creep on his hands and knees, and he came to slough and he thought "My God, I can never get around that" and while looking to see if he could cross, the bank caved and he plunged in; the splash disturbed three little logs which he caught and worked out into the main channel. He tied them with the remains of his shirt and climbed on saying, "You will save my life" He had not gone far when the raft struck an eddy and turned into the bank, bump- ing against it, circling around and then out, but he did not have the strength to get it beyond the suc- tion of the eddy, and the last he re- members is circling around bump ing the bank out and around,, then. back, and he thought "So goes the world, around and around," and lost consciousness. In some way the raft caught the current and he hoated by the government camp. They saw him and with a boat rescued him.
 Rettig and Crumb finished their boat but did not go far until they struck a rock and stove hole in the bottom, they jumped cut, the boat spun off and they lost it. They walked on, living on soup made of an old caribou hide, which they found in an old Indian shack. At last Rettig gave out, giving his money and watch to.Cnumb saving Save yourself. if ysu can, then. save me if there is any show" He lay down at the mouth of an old ravine or dry creek; Crumb. went on.