The Princeton union. [volume] (Princeton, Minn.) 1876-1976, 1903-08-13

Szy shirt sleeves his battered silk
hat on the back part of his head. He
was tanning himself with a palm leaf
fan and freely using his handkerchief
on his brow. He bowed cordially to
Alan and came toward him.
Il want to ask you," he began, 'has
Pole Baker any way of raisin' money!"
Not that 1 know Of" laughed Alan.
Il don't know whether he's got clear
title to the shirt on his back. He owes
everybody out our way. My father is
supplying him on time now"
THAT was my IMPRESSION" said Ira
bue. HE wanted me to defend him
the other day, but he couldn't satisfy
me about the fee, an let him go. He
first said he could give me a lien on a
mule, but he finally admitted that it
wasn't his"
Hes not in trouble, is he?" ex-
claimed Alan, suddenly recalling Mrs.
Bakers uneasiness.
Trabue looked at Miller, who stood
leaning in the doorway, and laughed.
well reckon he might call it that.
That chap owned the town two days
ago. He got blind, stavin' drunk an
wanted to whip US from one end O. the
place to the other. The marshals are
afraid Of i'm, for they know he'll shoot
at the drop of a hat, an the butt of it
was stickin' out O. his hip pocket in
plain sight. Was you thar, Rayburn :?
Well, it was better n circus. Day
before yesterday thar was sort O.
the Johnston House, speakin' on a dry
goods box. He had lot O. gaudy pic
lures illustratin' the appearance of a
drinkin' mans stomach an liver COM
pared to one in healthy condition.
He was a sort Of q snide faker out fer
what he could git dropped in a hat, an
Pole was sober enough to git on to his
game. Pole stood thar with the rest,
Jest about able to stan, an that was
all. Finally, when the Teller cot
warmed up an got to scrcechin', Pole
begun to deny what he was sayin. AS
fast as he'd make statement Pole
would fatty give it the lic The Teller
on the box didn't know what tough
customer lie had to handle or he'd "a
gone slow. AS it was, he p'inted fin
ger o scorn at Pole an helt i'm up for
a example.
"Pole wasn't sober by long shot, but
you'd "a thought he was, fer he was
as steady as a post. He kept grnnin',
as cool as a cucumber, an sayin: Now
you know yo're allyn, stranger-jest
a-lyln' to get a few dimes drapped in
yore hat. You know nobody's stomach
don't look like that durn chrome. You
never seed inside of drinkin' man, an
yo're the biggest liar that ever walked
the EARTH This made the crowd laugh
at the little, dried up Teller, an he got
as mad as old Nick. He begun to tell
Pole his liver was swelled from too
much whisky an that he'd bet he was
jest the sort to beat his wife Most of
US thought that ID make Pole jump on
i'm, but he seemed to enjoy naggin'
the Teller too much to Spite it by
fight. \ niger boy had been carryin'
round a bell an sign advertisin'
Webb's auction sale, an stopped to see
the fun. Pole heerd the tinkle of the
bell an tuck it an begun to ring it in
the lecturers face. The harder the fell
Ter spoke the harder Pole rang. It was
the biggest racket ever heerd on pub
lie square. Part Of the crOWd-the
good, church folks-began to say it was
disgrace to the town to allow a stran-
ger to be treated that away, sence thar
was no law agin public speakin' in the
streets. They was in fer calm halt,
but all the rest-the drinkin' men IAN
I frankly state I was one)-secretly
hoped Pole would ring i'm down. When
the pore devil finally won, l felt like
yellin' hooray, fer 1 glory in the pluck
even of a daredevil, if he's a north
Georgian an white. The lecturer had
to stop without his collection. an went
off to the council chamber swearin'
agin the town fer allowin' him to be
treated that Away. Thar wasn't any
thing fer the mayor to do but order
Poles arrest, but it took four men-two
regulars an two deputies-to accom-
plish it.
1.-The trial was the richest thing l
ever attended. Pole had sobered up
jest enough to be witty, an he had no
more respect fer Bill Barrett's court
than he had fer the lecturers platform.
Him an Barrett used to fish an hunt
together when they was boys, an Pole
kept CALM him Bill. 1t was Bill this
an Bill that an as Barrett had only
been in Office a month he hardly
knowed how to rise to his proper dig
nifty, especially when he saw the crowd
was laughin' at his predicament When
declined to defend i'm, Pole attempt
cd to read the law on the case to Bar.