The Sauk Centre herald., 1903-10-29
A. TRY, -.
~:~ GAMBLER.

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i.sCopsright. 1908, by n. d. sfcs sInrss 9isI
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1edu i dHhee lEOA %tHt EElslllS
outfit The third man. Davies, as: III
called himself. raped the table Wit
his knuckles indiferently He wa
ahead of the game and could afford t
lose the pot. .c..: {. Z: u. AZ. ,$@:,
There remained old man Lorry Tj
him Gentry looked with surprising In
souciance. Having dealt the cards, th
gambler was disturbed by no doubts q
to Lorry's action. He would raise ant
promptly, Lorry had cut before thl
deal, it is true. but Gentry had reverset
the cut adroitiy, unobtrusive1y. *.S S.
Nevertheless, to the gamblers sur
prise, Lorry was uncommonly slow
He vacillated mentally between eau
ton and cupidity; his weak, red rim
med eyes shone feverishly behind the
iron bound glasses, and he chewed
nervously upon one end Of his ragged
tobacco stained mustache. Finally he
slammed his hand upon the table.
Gentry arched his brows inquiringly
"Out?" he asked, motioning toward
the discard j: 544 .}Ez5s
Old man Lorry swore abandonedIy.
''Nawr' he replied. aSee yer twenty
an go yer hundred better" EiI5s
From the interior of his shirt he pro.
duced roll of bills which the gambler
appraised with amazement. He had
not thought to find such rich prey:
Lorry, conscious that he was creating
a sensation, threw two bills upon the
table with an air. -: ..:.5gssEsssss 5gssEsssss
''Steddy, pop" cautioned Healy, pro-.
prietor of the saloon. !: =. .:.4s.
Mind yer own business" responded:
old man :Lerry sharply. = & :@@.::.ssss J 81
And Ave hundred better" Gentry
remarked softly. .7 : : - s:57
can five hundred"
again" r.: f."
Lorry glanced defiantly about the ta-.
BILE. Healy had turned his back. AS
for the, rest startled out of their COM
posure by this abrupt change in the
compiexieneof the game. they watched
breathlessly
''Call yer! exclaimed the old man,
depositing the remainder of his for
tune in the pot
"Aces up an, aueens!" he added with
an oath, as Gentry displayed his cards.
,'"Better n my kings up an jacks'- He
broke off, staring blankly at the gam
bier as he calmly raked in his spoils |
and passed the cards: to Dugan. The
latter shook his head, with an air Of |
f1nality. .......
"Nope," he said. "No more for me-"
"None inmfne," agreed the lean Yam
kee briefly, and Davies nodded assent |
to the judgment of the others.
Lorry shambled dispiritedly toward
the bar. Gimme some ski, Billy" he
demanded.
Gentry arose and placed fifty in the
bartenders hands. "You can pay for
the drinks out Of that. I'm going to
take little walk to cool off. See you
later, gentlemen" He paused on the
he passed OH out into the infinite silent
peace of the mountain night.
He walked a few steps along the
apology for road which formed the
main street of the half deserted mining
village. then halted suddenly.
"Old fool" he muttered impatiently,
comforting himself against the thought
Of the wrong he had done old man
Lorry. "He should have known bet
ter Well, what's his loss is my gain.
If hadn't got it some other fellow
would /
Gentry lighted a cigar, stuck his
hands in his trousers pockets jauntily
and retraced his steps toward Healy's.
But he did not stop there. Through it's
open windows fragments of an argu-
ment floated to his ears, punctuated
with old man Lorry's voice, bleating
that he had. been shorn. That was |
quite true, but the gambler did not /;
wish to discuss the question with him
since Of necessity it would mean even
tual bloodshed. He stepped quickly past
then of light which the doorway
threw Iosss. the road and began an
ascent of thmountain trail. He would
return, ere ng when things were
quieted, saddle 'aiberse and ride on
to the next camp. Neass' ~.
The night air was wan and sooth-
ing with the balm of thepine. scent.
The gambler strolled benesh "a high,
broad arched, brilliant sky, freted with
bright stars. But from these hskeVt
his face. His thoughts were too near
to the earth for contemplation of the
armament. AS he left the struggling
village behind him he entered upon a
great sweet solitude whose essence was
in the mystery of night upon the noun
tains. The road wound temptingly on,
a forest aisle empty, dusty, now white
in the glare of the heavens, now black
ly shadowed by massed pines, through
whose interstices the starlight fell. '-'','
Presently the gambler came upon a
little clearing in which, set at "a dis
tance back from the road and sur
rounded by a dilapidated picket fence,
was small cabin, vine clad. Its win
dows shone dimly with yellow lamp
light, this although the hour was
past midnight. =, As he stopped, putting.
speculatively upon his cigar, voice
hailed him-7--a feminine voice, singular
~ rich in iptonation and clear sat
that he made out a slender figure sway
ing upon the gate of the sfence.a: He
tossed away. his fsmoke, s. removed 9hisS
eyn hot nj - -e.E