Washington standard. [volume] (Olympia, Wash. Territory) 1860-1921, 1903-02-13
OLD-TIME MEMORIES.
"CLOvER BILL" WRITES HIS
AUTOBIOGRAPHY.

He Relates Some Incidents Of Travel and Ad
venture In His Memorable. Though No
Entirely Voluntary. Trip Around the WorI'
1t Was Intended as Chastener for a Some
What Robust Lifc-lts Effect Has Been
Calm. Though StaIwart Manhood.
In writing this simple tale of m,
travels around the world 1 will use tht
personal pronoun l. My boyhood'
happy days were spent in Olympia
Years and years ago Olympia was ,
sleepy little village. Near where the
State-house now stands, was swamp
with a cow-trail running through it
In later years. Olympia began t.
mingle with the outside world. A bi.
side.wheeled steamship called tn,
Dakota began running from Frisco tt
Olympia once q month. Steamer day
was red-letter day. l let my minds
eye wander back to our fair city year,
and years ago and l am on Main street
on steamerday. 1t is lovely Indian
Summer day; the leaves on the biz
maple trees are quivering and flutter
ing in the balmy north wind; the
swallows are flying to and fro; thu
usual crowd is sitting in the shade ir
front of Jim Pray's saloon, their chairs
tilted back against the shade trees
which line the street. Down in iron,
OF the Pacific House, Becky Howard.
big prize porker is roofing up sections
OF the street, seeking a cool spot
Good old Aunt Becky is summing hel
mammoth self in front Of the hotel
Jim Bolan is asleep on his dray ir
front of Sam Williams store. Charley
Grainger's billy-goat is making a mea'
from ali old bed-tick. Rice Tilley'l
stage just left Tilley's barn for Monti
cello, where passengers board the
steamer for Portland. DR.. Turner
is filling a prescription written by DR.
Ostrander in the rear OF his drug store
No other signs Of life are seen. Olym
pia is at rest.
Suddenly there is . b-O-o-m and
then too-ooooo. That is the cannon
and the siren of the old Dakota; jim
Bolan wakes up and whacks his ole
horse couple and goes sailing around
the corner OF Fourth street, jerking
his lines every jump to make the
old horse 60 faster. (Before Jim.
horse died his mouth was wore cleal
up TO his ears.) The streets are now
all life; the old hog goes wobblinl
down the alley; Aunt Becky goes ur
to her parlor and adjusts the folds o.
her ample gown and prepares to re-
ceive travellers from the outer world.
All is life and motion now, but wher
the old Dakota departs, Olympia goes
to sleep for another long month.
Chips" Etheridge built a steamer
which was named the Aida. She
was so slow that it would take her q
day and night to 60 from Olympus
to Seattle. 1 could beat her with 6
row-boat. "Chips" was sadly dis
appointed in the boat for he though,
she would be very fast. This was the
lively and progressive village where I
spent childhood's happy days.
/ always went down and visited the
Dakota-thst is if / was not confined
to my room in Hotel de Billings."
missed steamer day good many time.
on account OF not having the keys te
my suite in dear old "Hotsl de Bill
One time / took smallpox and broke
out; another time took . bunch oil
matches and lit out. The hotel was
run by Sheriff William Billings. ]
tried to keep steamer day, if could,
but was detained sometimes on &C.
count Of not having the tools to cut a
new door or window in dear old "Ho.
tel de Bill"
Along in the fall of 1879, my par.
! ents concluded to send me on a sea
voyage for my health-and the health
OF Olympia. Her health or mine
we're sadly run up, or down. There
was big, full.rigged ship named the
John Kinney, bound for Bath, Me-,
loading spars At Port Townsend, at
the time, and few days later l was
enrolled a. An officer on her. My
duty was to carry the Captains food
from the galley to the cabin. l ate at
the Captains table-generally what
the Captain left. When my father
engaged passage for me, thought the
Captain was the finest man had ever
met, but I had another opinion later
on. When the tug Politkofsky cast
off her lines near Cape Flattery, il
was blowing great guns. I took q last
farewell look at the shores OF Puget
Sound, and it was nearly two and a
half years later when they came in
view again. The big waves ran like
giant hounds foaming at the mouth.
They whined and growled round our
vessel until she quivered like leaf. I
was scared, never having met old
King Neptune before. At times it
would seem rs if the ship would dive
down about o mile, then she would
rear up on her hind legs, then down
she would 60 again. All this was very
trying to my delicate, Olympia stom.
ach. and 1 soon began to think OF call.
ing in q doctor. Later I thought