The sun., 1903-06-21
CTUMPY VIOLATES
- POKER ETIQUETTE.
The Gamblers Return to Browns
vile and His Speedy Departure
Therefrom.


Of time since his taking OF had been suffi-
cient to allay the excitement which u hao
| occasioned.
This excitement. 1t may be said was not
tlse result OF any fervent esteem which
the one-eyed man might have enjoyed
among his fellow citizens II he had been
a person Of more congenial temperament
than he was. As matter Of fact, he had
| various traits OF character which had dis
tinctly failed to commend him to tho hearty
liking Of the community. and while he lived
| there were not few citizens who counted
him among the least desirable OF their
number.
| Brownsville, however, was not habituated
to homicide. Fights there were In Browns
| vile not infrequently, and good shindy
! was commonly reckoned among the pleas
! urable variations to the inonotony that
characterized life in the little river. town
for something like three hundred and sixty
| days in the year,
Such fights, however, were usually car
| red to a moro or less satisfact ory con-
clusion without loss of life. and the sudden
| demise of the one-eyed man had aroused
some horror. as well as strong feeling 1i o.
! feeling was also tempered by the luke
war mness of the sentiment Of the COM
munity. toward % the one-eyed mar man. but has the
gone little too far in shooting
| There was no dsputing the fact however.
that it was a fair fight, and that the one
| eyed man had brought 1t on himself. 80
| there had been no attempt made to put
| Wharton on trial for the killing. He had
gone away from Brownsville, and the
tempered the hostility he had provoked,
which hostility was indeed no very power
| ful sentiment.
When the Creole Belle, however, tied up
at the Brownsville landing, just at the
after the shooting, and Mr.. Wharton
stepped ashore he failed to receive any
enthusiastic welcome. Strangers ~ho
came ashore at Brownsville were OF so
numerous as to allow Of his escaping recog..
milton. and most OF those whom he greeted
on his way from the landing to the bar
room responded with a cool "Howdy,'
but no one proffered q handshake, and
none gave him spontaneous greeting.
| 1t was not observed, however, that any
Of those in the barroom made any strenuous
effort to avoid his invitation to partake
OF such refreshment as Sam had in read-
ness. 1t was therefore to be fairly in
ferred that time had also tempered the hos
tlity that Mr.. Wharton's violent action had
| originally evoked.
actual condition of public sentiment could
be made than that which Stumpy put in
words. speaking to Gala CHER, as they re-
turned to their work on the landing after
they had followed the crowd into the bar
| room.
Il do be thinkin' this here Wharton 'ud
be betther loiked, he said. -av he'd shtop
some place where they knowed less about
him; ,, Ay he shtays here. belize there'll
Maybe, said Gallagher but I reckon
there's them here thatll kape him from
too much killin' an the most o the houses
is nailed down"
.Shure, it's not the likes O that I'm
thinkin'. Tain't likely he II steal the town.
nor yet the river, returned Stumpy, some
"but, he's not the koind o man l loike to
| see.
"Shure. he's gambler. an he's too al
mighty free with his gun. I'm thinkin'
in the town. an av there's amy rowan
belike there will be II Long Mike sits in wild
him, it's not flghtin wild fists we'll see, but
! shootin' scrape.
Sure don't mind bit O. shindy, or
a sociable game O. dhraw poker, but thin
kind is the wrong cattle to play wild.
We'll see," said Gallagher, shortly, as
he turned to his work.
He was an enthusiastic gambler him
self, though most unlucky one. and the
no terrors for him. Moreover the scent
OF battle, even afar, was sweeter to him
than new-mown hay. Stumpy, however,
though by no means averse to excitement
Of any kind, was more conservative and
had his foIebodings.
| Later in the evening, after the Creole
Belle had discharged her freight and
taken on that which was waiting for her
and had gone on down the Mississippi.
leaving Mr.. Wharton still in the barroom.
it appeared altogether probable that some,
at least. OF these forebodings would be
justified.
Sam had been kept tolerably busy in the
meantime, Mr.. Wharton having realized
what was expected Of him as strang ger.
and being evidently disposed to fulhl his
this the crowd around him. when Browns
vile resumed its normal inactivity after
| the departure Of the boat, was conversa-
tionally disposed,
at once most Of the time, and though Mr..
Wharton did comparatively little talking
red liquor to affect his nerves in the least
it was noticeable that he was doing all he
There could hardly be a doubt of his
object. At all events. Stumpy entertained
none, and though he did bis duty con-
scientiously in seeing that none Of Sans
liquors should go begging. as became one
customs, he yet maintained a constant
| watchfulness, as one who feared the worst
When, presently he heard Wharton pro-
| pose gamc of cards, he mutterd:
| Il knew it. Now for a battle, murder
an sudden death, ] don't know. Av
Long Mike sits in, an the saints above
cudn't kape him out, there'll be doin $.
Sure it's me for 10 shtand by"
Stand by, accordingly, he did. Whartons
proposal was seconded and adopted with
alacrity. and Long Mike and Gallagher
took their seats at the table eagerly. Hen
messy also declared, his willingness to buy
chips, and the fifth hand was taken by a
man named Cutler. who had been in town
for some weeks, and was, therefore, known
to them all excepting Wharton. but had
failed to arouse any feeling of liking or re-
| spect among the citizens.
just why he was there he did not ex-
| plain. nor did any demand an explanation;
| but II seemed so utterly unreasonable for
| a stranger to remain In Brownsville in
| definitely that he was already an object
| Of suspicion He flashed his money with
| the others. however and no one made
objection to his playing
The game was for table stakes, and AZ
each player bought hundred to start.
no one else In the room felt rich enough
| to take hand. They all stood around
looking on. however. so Sunny at
tracted no attention when he took his stand
directly behind Wharton's chair, getting
as close to it as he conveniently could
without touching It, It 40 happened.
| moreover, that Cutler sat nearly opposite
| to him. being the third man to Wharton's
! left.
For q copv vrora hlo TINA Tho y,loy u,oo