, 1903-03-27
An INCIDENT AT FfIIERMAN.

into stories about the Western bad
said Con Groner, formerly an
of Buffalo Bills Wild West
show. "a man didn't go hunting for
men even in the worst mining camp
for the pure fun of the thing unless
he had taken more liquor than usual,
which sometimes meant a good deal.
But when a fight got started o could
look out for more trouble than could
be found anywhere east of the Mis-
souri, river. 1t was a case Of Idle, and
no foOling.'
Il remember the night Billy Bacon
and Jack Sanders had their last gun
play at Fetterman, Wyo., before the
town had a railroad. went into Jack
Sanders saloon with a freighter who
was known as Whiskey Curley. AS
we stepped up to the bar we could see
that Jack was in an ugly mood. We
learned later that it was because Billy
Bacon had been in there a few min
utes before and while under the in
fluence of his potations had shot off
the necks of about half the whiskey
bottles.
Better dilute the poison here,
suggested Curley and l called for a
Manhattan just to see what Jack
would do.
"Curley took my cue. and said; Just
make it two, Jack. Pass up the syrup,
and you needn't break your neck rust
ling the cherry
Jack looked bewildered at first
and then his eyes flashed fire.
"Look yere.' he said. If you think
it's your night to make a monkey out
o. Jack Sanders, he's liable to fool
you
He then set a bottle of vile whis-
key out on the bar and continued:
"I reckon you'd better take 'er
straight. boys. If you're stuck on nav
in a cherry, you a get six all the
same size and color. They always
turns red after takin'.' Then he laid
his IA within reach where we could
see it.
We took it straight and went out.
| talked to Curley about some hauling
| wanted done and in about half an
hour we heard some lively shooting in
Sanders saloon and ran back there to
see what was going on. When we en-
tered we saw the redoubtable Billy
Bacon, with his var bonnet on and,
as Curley remarked, 'Sneezing for
trouble
He was engaged in shooting the
hands off the clock. just as If clocks
were as plentiful in Fetterman as
prairie dogs. 1t took him three shots
to get both hands of, and he explain
ed his incapacity by saying he had
just recovered from a broken shoulder
and wasn't in form.
Jack was looking gloomy. He
didn't care to mix it up with Billy, and
still he resented the mishap to the
only timepiece in the town. Curley
took in the situation and said to me:
You could go up and ask Jack for a
Manhattan all right now. He'd either
give you one, or tell you politely that
he didn't have the right brand Of cher
ries. He's meek as a lamb when Billy
Bacon's around
But Curley hadn't sized up the
whole proposition. Bacon went into
the dance hall, which was an addition
to the saloon. He didn't see anything
else to shoot at, so he took a crack at
the window panes. Jack went in to
demonstrate and told Billy he was
'buffaloing' the ladies' Billy immedi-
ately apologized by shooting the wood
en- heels of the dancing slippers Of
Miss Lottie McCarty, known in Fetter-
man as Black Lot because she was a
brunette. Miss Lottie gave a yell Of
fright and Billy ordered her to do the
double shuttle without heels on her
slippers. She appealed to Jack who
was known as her admirer.
Jack was chivalrous, but he didn't
have the proper nerve with him. He
made a sneaking shot at Billy, but it
failed to bring him down. Then the
two blazed away at n another until
they both dropped. They YER laid
out on the bench which ran around the
dance hall, and Doc. Barber, a veteri-
nary surgeon, was called in.
DOC. looked at Jack and saw his
case was hopeless. Then he went over
to Bacon.
"'Hold on Doc said Billy, as Bar
Der started to examine him. Is Jack
Sanders dead yet?'
mot yet was the reply, but he
can't last more than five minutes
"'Well, wait a minute said Billy.
He staggered to his feet and went
oy er to where Sanders lay and emp
tied his sixshooter into the PROSTATE
mans body.
Now Doc he said, as he laid
down once more. I've finished him
and you can prospect me for lead
Barber probed for a bullet which
had lodged in Bacon's neck. He must
have punched a little too hard, for the
ball dropped into Bacon's windpipe
and he was dead before you could
wink."-New York Press.