Sierra County advocate. [volume] (Kingston, N.M.) 1884-1960, 1903-01-16
An Old Mine Mule.
Lived on Mining Timbers and
Copper Water Thirteen
Years.

nave uNu tnlH mule STORY vi
my sieve for six MONTHS" sald tn
Texan, who had been aesociatin,
with the Montana Old Timer clul
OF Butte for years, "but | have re
Trained from springing It, becaus,
l was afraid il would bring down ,
storm OF rebuke FROM you. You
know l can tell a story il occ ,sior
demands, but this is the gospel
truth.
IL had been working on the Tex
as ranges FOR a few years, and Que
day got tired Of the job and went
over to a ranch and asked the boss
II he would give me something easy,
and he set me to herding a drove
Of razor back hogs. He gave me a
an old mule to ride, and when
started out to bring the mule to the
corral TO saddle him, ! found | had
a hard proposition. He was as wild
as a coyote, and it appears that the
boss had tried him on a dozen or
more men with the result that all Of
them quit. was determined to
make stick Of 1t, 30 stayed with
the mule until got him tanned 40
| could ride or drive him. lie got
go tame that he would come to me
whom l called him. One night a
gang OF ruptlers came along and
stole lot OF horses and mules, and
my mule WAS among them. Tho
band was driven up here TO Mon
sana anu uIspose0 or.
IL knocked about Texas and
Mexico several years, and then !
struck out for Butte, intending to
learn the mining business. Instead
OF going to work at once. ! lay
around and got acquainted with the
lay OF the land, and made friends
with some of the minera, andfound
them cracking good fellowe. They
urged me I" become a miner, but
| hesitated and tried my hand at
other jobs. Finally asked one OF
the boys how they managed to get
work in a mine, and he said to go
up TO the mine and rustic. That
word 'rustIe' made mo shiver; tor
in Texas a man who rustles usually
goes with a mob to the nearest tree
and gives correct imitation OF a
man being hanged; but in Montana
they say a man is rustling when he
asks for work.
IL went up to tho mine ana ASKED
the foreman for u job, and he looked
At me the came M IL. ] had been
rustIing sure enough; but he told
me TO come on and he would put
me TO work.
"He asked me IL could drive
mules, and | told him ! had been n
mule skinner for many years; and
then he took me down the shaft 10
to the 200 level. He led tho way
into a drift for 1000 feet till we
came to an upraise from the 1900;
III IN he said, you go down to the
bottom OF this hole aud you will
find a MULE guess j started
down and when l WAS within %
feet OF the bottom | heard snort
that made my hair stand on end,
au.i ii.e place ~nsiuii oi mule beei1
and dirt. ! heard the foreman and
the men laughing aud shouting with
delight at something.
"The mules eyes were shining
like balls OF fire, and sparks were
flying from the top OF the drift
where his heels were striking. Alto
geiher il was a wild sight. and no
doubt would have frightened me
had ! not known the nature of the
mule family. From force Of habit
| sang out, Whoa, Petef aud the
mule quit kicking. He recognized
my voice and seemed glad 10 zee
me. went down to the le vel and
began talking to hlm. aud be pnt
his head on my shoulder and cried
Yes, sir, tears as large as hickory