Barbour County index. [volume] (Medicine Lodge, Kan.) 1880-current, 1904-08-24
fIAIE all have our weaknesses.


w reckon" Simpson was saying.
with an easy drawl. "Zilk boosted of
his, and most of us keep mum. Zilk
confessed his sins even before he COM
United them. Sometimes ! think he
was bluffing Dowly all the time and
didn't mean to have things come to a
nnish. Anyway he wasn't bad sort
OF chap, was he?"
That was Simpson to a T. If he
couldn't say much good of man he
wouldn't say evil. l remember reading
somewhere once that man who is a
friend of all men is the friend of none
MY moralizer goes on to say that a
man with strong likes must perforce
have strong dislikes or be a weakIing.
s His aim is to prove that a man inca
pable of intense hatred is incapable of
Intense love as WELL
Simpson was weakling according
TO this. Hatred was as foreign to his
nature as craftiness is to the soul of a
nun. He was an easy-going, INDECENT
chap, but there wasn't a man in Creek
er's camp who wouldn't have vouched
for him to the last drop of gin IN
Shelters bar, which was a pretty good
pledge in the old days.
And Zilk? Zilk was man after my
moralists own heart. He could hate
with hatred that would have inspired
Poe and driven Kempis to despair
He was as true an example of impulse
run riot as | ever expect to see He
was great fine animal to look at
muscular, brawny and natural in every
gesture. Whatever his faults, deceit
was not one of them; he was as frank
with his vices as we were with our
good points. Zilk didn't pose as a pro-
fessional bad man; he didn't pose as
anything, in fact, for he seemed to
think he was entitled to live without
giving an account of himself or of his
pedigree.
The first tenter who asked him where
he hailed from got stare that sent
him back several PAGES.
whats it to your" asked Zilk. Pm
from Nowhere and I'm bound for the
same place." But tho next instant he
reached out and put a OBTAINING hand
on the fellows shoulder. Look here,
pard," he said, I'm from Hobbies bot
tom, If you must know, and as for my
movings, seem to have struck oil Just
about here. Back in the country l
come from its dangerous to ask ques-
tons, for the fellows amt trained up
to lying. They'd rather use gun than
an excuse"
no offense meant" said Simpson,
for it was he; and then to square
things he invited the newcomer to
share bunk in his tent.
TITS go" Zilk said, and 1 may as
we'll state now that he rewarded Simp-
sons generosity as we'll as he could
He left him two blankets, goodly sup
ply of tobacco and the best pipe that
had been in the camp for score of
years.
A little later Zilk confessed, or rather
boosted, that he had been driven out
of his last stopping place at the muzzle
of a six-shooter for conduct unbecom-
ing a humanitarian.
Just fights" he said, fights all the
time I'd rather fight than eat.
but ] like a real one with something
in the stake. I'd rather kin Jim Dowly
than do most anything-and 1 will
some day, when l so back
Jim Dowly was only q name to US.
We hadn't an idea who he was, and
didn't try to find out until one night
at Shelters. The mugs had been
around three tines and the pipes were
getting empty.
Who's Jim Dowly?" asked Bob
Rounds, suddenly. Zilk didn't show
fight. but answered civilly enough.
He's an Irish dog. He's the lowest
cuss God ever made. I reckon, except
me. and I'm not a shade worse"
What's your quarrei?2 Rounds went
on, and to our surprise Zilk leaned hack
In his seat and grew reminiscent.
He had pale brown eyes that looked
yellow under his tawny lashes. He