Omaha daily bee., 1905-09-16
ARTIST OF The SHELL CANE
oy Wsrmsn'I RsCOllsoti0nS Of sOapy Smith,
Who Died Suddenly,
WORKED cREEOE WHEN cREEDE WAS HOT
Characteristics of smooth SHARP
Who Grnvitated over the western
NEUTRALITY-SUSPICIOUS. of
Life in Creole.

| some OF the most entertaining features
in the busy life Of "soapy' Smith were
overlooked by The Bee correspondent,
whose nominations at the Skagway grave
side Of the noted gamester appeared in
| the last issue of The Sunday Bee. Smith
was one of the pioneer sports of Creole,
! Colo. In 1892. and the way he worked the
game in that noted silver camp is told by
! Cy warman editor, historian and poet
OF Creole. Listen to Cys tale: IN
! With a press franchise. a force Of print
ers a lead pencil and a power press, the
writer had gone to the booming camp TO
establish a morning paper, with telegraph
service in a town that had been in ex-
istence but three short moons and was
not yet definitely located on the maps.
II was March, 1892. and that means mid
| winter in the mountains. 5000 or 1000 feet
| above tidewater The snow was clustering
| down Windy Guch and iecking the felt
hats that covered the heads OF the molly
/ multitude that was buying lots from the
state land board that had come up from
| Denver to sell the school lands upon which
| the town had been built. Lots sold at
auction for 800, $1,000 and even 5000, that
had been worth nothing the year before
and were worth little more than nothing
a year after the sale
The water washing down the dumps
was bad, the whisky was worse and many
men were sick.
Having secured a lot by the side Of the
little river that ran through the camp
the first payment upon which was S10O, we
turned tired, cold. homesick and hungry
TO walk away.
In little bushless spot by the roadside
was board shanty upon the door of which
was tackled a tin beer sign. Inside half
| a dozen observation-disclosures or miners
they might be-were sitting on the wooden
| benches about the stove They had been
in animated conversation, but hushed 1t
as they noted the entrance of a newcomer.
A Business Venture.
One small man with pale, lusterless
hair and cold gray eyes, was recognizable
as Tom, the shell man-"Troublesome
Tom" they called him. had seen car
penter pause at Toms three-legged stool
that day, watch the game for a moment,
then slowly slide his tool bag from his
shoulder to the ground, put s. on the table
and pounce upon one Of Fhe shells, He lost
his s. and 81 more called the shell man a
thief and demanded his money back.
Yes" said the man with his cold eyes
fixed upon the top of the mountain, Il
presume that's what you wanted with
my moneyt-to give It back"
Now the carpenter was pushed aside by
a man who could guess. This man was
able TO win three times out of FIVE.
Seeing that the game could be beaten a
merchant from Denver put down so. tried
again and lost. Crumpling a so bill in
his left hand, the merchant watched the
two half shells for a moment and then
made a grab. Turn it over. turn 1t over, "
he demanded excitedly, dropping the crum-
pied bill. Tom turned it over, but there
was nothing in it-nothing for the mer-
chant
why didn't you turn 1t yosef2' said a
man with a southern accent and full
black beard: that fellows a shark"
The merchant glanced at his questioner
flashed another bill and watched the shells
Suddenly he nailed one of them. Take
yo' hooks of that she'll" said the dark
man TO Tom. land let the gentleman turn
It over"
IT don't see any money" said Trouble.
some Tom.
There's my money" said the merchant
dropping the bill.
You bet ffty?"
II bet the bill" answered the merchant
, Now the shell man moved his hand from
t the shell and allowed II to hover over the
new note
The man turned the shell slowly, but the
| pea was not lntIe. Even as ne turned II
} Toms velvet fingers closed on the 800 bill
Now this same man with the Georgia
) pronunciation came from behind the pin,
bar and spoke to me. He had no whiskers
; but I-could swear that this was the mar
that had helped the merchant play OFF tht
hundred
: 'Yo' tn Artist that's goin' to staht thu
, daily papah, eh?'
8 Yes" I answered, and as my eyes wan
3 dered over the faces of the company my
l mind went back to Denver.
Good bye" Colonel Atkins Of the New,
had said; when you come back you'll b,
wearing a wooden overcoat." There wa
t something in the air of this place that re
called the colonels prophecy.
I Coin to make wah on the gamblahs p
Not for gambling"
4 What fo then2"
"sandbags. six-shooters and masks" wa
! the reply.
4 well, sch, II that's yo' gait we can gal
lop In the same heat" said he enthusiast
! cally, offering me his hand MY name &
= Smith-soapy smith-an' when yo' fl
trouble say so, an I'll help yo"
That is the way we became acquainted
e sOapy as Friend md Funeral Director
Later. when Bob Ford, the slayer Of Jess
, | James, got gay ana shot up the town, tn
Chronicle roasted Ford. Ford said h
would go kill Taber, the local man, for crit
icising his conduct; Hartigan, the city ed
itor. for printing it, and the editor for run
, ming such a paper
Now came Soapy. of his own motor
s standing for the editor, who was unarmeC
and the desperate was awed into quiet
And that Is the way they becam
friends
Gambler Joe Simmens, one OF Soapy
working men, died suddenly two day
I before the first issue OF the Chronicl,
, and Soapy gave him big funeral. STAND
4 ing at the open grave, he opened chan
payne, pouring some into the grave an
g drank some, saying as he did so: Here
n TO Joes soul over there, II there is an
u over there" and passed the bottle to HI
\ next friend.
i The description OF that funeral whic
. Hartigan wrote for the first issue CAV
the Chronicle a start and made It we
come at the exchange table before It wa
two days old.
It's a mistake to assume that gan
blers do no good. Joe Simmens helpe
= make the Chronicle.
One day a man came over from Chal
Creek to burn a lot OF money that