Fergus County Democrat. [volume] (Lewistown, Mont.) 1904-1919, 1905-03-14
Cruel Joke on UnsuspeCtin0 Tom
Riser the jolly Jokester of the
North MOCCaSins.
t. ". KING SETS THE TRAF
introduced a Native MOntandu as
IenderfOOt---TOm Swallowed
Bait, Hook and All.

Numberess moons ago, while all
thls region was yet in the plastic
state and the tepid waters Of Warm
Spring were hot enough to scald hogs
in, Tom Riser entered over the mushy
trail to the North Moccasin noun
tainS and since that time Tom has
been the principal promoter Of every
thing that tends to make life worth
living In that favored region. Tom
Is not one of those reserved persons
who wants to make himself noticed
because OF his retiring, unfriendly
ways; on the contrary he is one of
those men who greet you with
warmth that dispels the idea within
you that the world has for centuries
been weighed down with a load of hu-
man selfishness. Ever since Tom
first arrived in the Kendall district
he has constituted himself reception
committee and no stranger has enter
ed those gates that Tom didn't bid
him welcome, and incidentally peddle
a load of confidential dope to him
that would suffice the veriest glut-
ton. Tom is not an ordinary hot air
distributor; he goes at you with an
earnestness that creates confidence
and self assurance that compels be-
lief: an ordinary prevaricator is abso-
luteless helpless in Toms hands, just
as common, ordinary raconteur gets
awfully tiresome when Tom is around
So long has Tom enjoyed the dis
tinction OF being the medicine chief
OF all the ''joshers'' around Kendall
that he had even forgot to think
about anybody jobbing him. That's
where he fell down. Last week Il.
w. King came over from Bozeman.
Accompanying Mr.. King was Nelson
Story, Jr. also Of Bozeman. Mr.. Sto-
ry was born in Montana and, touse
his own language, "was raised in a
cow camp" Tom Riser didn't know
this for Mr.. King introduced Story to
him as Mr.. Nathan Strong of st. Louis
whose father had SO much money that
he had sent the "boy" out here to
squander a lot Of it. When Tom
heard that he frightened up his belt
hole or two and prepared to camp on
"strong's" trail. Thirty years in
Montana hasn't dulled Mr.. Story's
propensities for perpetrating a joke
and the way he peddled the greenhorn
stuff to Tom caused Johnny Rash,
the stage driver, to shed tears
Mr. King and his friend stayed in
Kendall five or six days and before
they left Tom actually claimed rela-
tionship with Story, alias Strong. IL
happened that they had mutual ac-
quaintances in st. Louis: this was
enough for Tom. lie confdentially
handed it, out that he knew all Of
Strong's folks down in the old town:
in fact had gone to school with the
old man, and at one time was engaged
to the old lady, but had to go on Il
voyage to the Celebes Island to look
after some mining ground for Uhe
London Exploratian company and
while he was gone the old man cut
him out. He didn't care for that.
though, for the boy was going to
send up a hundred thousand dollars
for him to do some prospecting on,
and if things looked good when that
was gone he would put in some money.
1t seemed kind of good to see one of
the Strong family again, for it had
been so long since he had heard from
them he was afraid they had all died
off: and the boy knew so many people
down there that he knew in the
''early days" that it was sure refresh
ing to meet him. Tom just spouted
around in this strain until he had
every other prospector in the camp
wishing he would go away somewhere
and ease up.
Story, alias Strong, didn't get much
rest either: Tom showed him where
the VOLCANOES were spouting when he
first came to the country: lugged him
around to all the prospect holes and
entered into scientific dissertations as
to how the molten gold speeded
through the assures and smeared it's
self all over any of his claims, or ad-