The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1906-12-30

IT HAT reminds me of the golden cat
o. the Hassoyamp," said the man
with the cock eye and the droop-
ing mustache, as the passenger from
Dayton finished yarn about a nine
pound black bass he almost caught sum-
mer before last 81 guess you've heard
about it?"
I'm the fust place, this amt no fish
story. The golden cat O. the Hassoyamp
was one of the four-legged kind. with
fur and a voice like the head bowler
in grand opry. 1t was long time ago,
jes about the time when Tombstone was
full an runnin over, an prospectors was
scattered out all over Arizona lookin'
for another place jes' like it, couple
O. felers meandered up to the ella, and
then down to the Hassoyamp, lookin for
signs all the way, but never seem any
They thought the Hassoyamp was pref
ty like lookn' bit O. water, so they fol-
lowed 1t north fer string O. miles. One
feller's name was Price and the other
was Stark, a long, lanky cuss that the
boys called Stumpy Stump Stark was
an old-timer. He'd follered the gang with
pick and pan from Virginia City all
O. gold In the rocks or the sand as well
as any man In Arizony. He'd make a few
strikes too, but they hadn't done him
much good, fer the slick fellers with the
spare aces and the ladies at the dance
halls had got all the proceeds Cal Price
was as short and dumpy as Stark was
long, and slabsided, and he was kinda
green at prospectin. almost tenderfoot.
though 1t wouldn't "a been safe to say so
in his hearn', for he was kinda uneasy
with the trigger.
well, havin introduced the two-legged
ones, I'll get around to the cat. Cal and
Stumpy had fixed up a camp at a bend
in the river jes about due west O fhoe-
nix, an was workn' up an down the
stream pannin' little here and knockin
samples off O. lodges there, but not find
in anything worth mentioning. One night
they'd curled up in their blankets an
had gone to sleep, leavin' a big fire blaz-
in, fer 1t was winter time an cold Long
in the middle O. the night they was both
woke up by howl that sounded like the
wall of a locoed steam engine or one o.
them rosined boxes we used to work over
time at shiveree. Afore they knowed
what had hit 'em they was both settin'
up an loolxin at the cause O. the rum
pus. while little billiards. was worlSin' up
and down their backbones. Not twenty
feet away, where the fire light stopped an
the blackness begun, was a great, big
yaller cat. 1t was standin' up on its
claws, with it's back bent up like
buclSin' cayuse, its fur stickin' out every
way for Sunday, its tail as big as your
arm and raised straight up like Fourth
of July hagpole, an its eyes shinin' as
bright as the headlights of an automo-
billy. When 1t say the boys was lookin'
it jumped up stiff-legged three or four
times, let out a couple more screeches,
split like a kid with its first chaw o
L ar N
hellitysplit up the river bank.
"Geminy Christmas, Stumpy, what was
that?' said Cal, a-swallerin' his Adam s
apple.
." Don't know, Call said Stumpy,
'1essin It's the devil himself er one O. yer
friends from back east come to call, So
ciable like. Anyhow, Cal, eff it's still goin'
as fas' as 1t started, it's a hundred miles
off by now. So les go to sleep ag'in
''They laid down, but neither of EN-
went to sleep any more, cause even
Stumpys nerves was shakin' little.
Well, the next night the same thing hap
pened, and the next night it come agin
same as before, but, instead o. runnin'
away like telegram behind time, the
cat would trot little ways an look back
an howl.
Seems like it wants to see you per-
sonal, CAL said Stumpy. Why don't you
'cept tn invite?
Il Amt proud, Stumpy,' said Cal; 4
don't go nowhere lessin my pals includ-
ed In the invite. l dare you, Stumpy to
follow that varmint with me-
Never took a dare yet, CAL said
Stumpy, and so they pixies up and takes
after the cat.
when it saw they was follerin it the
cat was so tickled it turned two or three
summersets, and let out a screech that
pearty near made 'em turn back. but they
plucked up an went on. The cat chased
along ahead of 'en,, runnin' circles every
little bit to keep from gettin' too much
of lead on 'em 1t tolled 'em up the
Hassoyamp about two miles an by that
time it was broad daylight, an by that
time, too, they'd found it was just
ordinary yaller cat, blgger'n common, but
nothing to be afeard of, an they was
trolin' along behind it quite cheerful.
1.-THE sun was Just gettn. up when
they turned a corner o. the rocks an
there, just at the mouth of a little ar
royo, was a dobe hut bout the size of a
bacon box. The cat went right up TO the
door an stopped. and when Cal and
Stumpy caught up it rubbed around be-
tween their legs an purred quite lovin'
ly. They pushed open the door, and there
on the door was stretched out g man.
They thought .he was dead at first but
they opened his mouth an poured a lit
tie whisky down, jes' fer luck, the cat
jumpin' aroun' an meown' an purrin'
like it was jes' running over with joy
After a bit the stranger began to>pick
up a little an in an hour or so he was
able to talk a little but he was too far
some to keep. an before noon he was
dead fer sure
We'll, the boys looked around then
~ theE found big key Of rocks that