The Guthrie daily leader. [volume] (Guthrie, Okla.) 1893-1996, 1908-12-12

90 DcileNe ln-Wcii, Wll1t shall / call
it?-luck. There's certain gamblln
combinations in which iheres millions
o chances agin their Tnappcnin, aud
yet they have happened. They say
llghtnin' don't strike twice ia the same
place. ! kin show you out In Mulligan
county an old oak that's been struck
to my knowledge three times
The curiestest thing that ever hap
pened in my experience WAS when we
was tightin' around Atlanta. Some
Georgia troops como so near the tenn
porary breastwOrks we'd throwed up
that when they went bacl, they eft
several dead right under our noses.
One Of 'em had on a good felt hat
The reason / noticed 1t was because
my hat had become unserviceable. aud
couldn't get another IN the regular
way. Besides, II was rainln'. ] was
startin' to go out and git the dead
mans hat when / sor Bill Struthers
OF our company jump down on t'other
side OF the breastworks, pick up the
hat and put It on his head. But he
took It Off ag'in TO wipe out the blood,
for the Johnny had been shot through
1t In the head. Struthers swabbed It
with the sleeve of bis coat and put It
buck on to his head.
There was more or less fghtin' that
day, and we in the breastworks gen
orally laid low, cause onct In awhile
stray shot would come along our way
Struthers was showin' his hat to some
OF the boys, not seemin' to keer about
his head bein' above the parapet He
took the hat of and poked his finger
through the bullet hole I'm It, then put
It on agin. He hadn't moron got It
on when he pitched forward They
picked him up and found another bul-
let bole In the hat close beside the one
he'd been a-showin' 'em. The bullet
bad made hole I'm Struthers' head.
well, Jim OKeefe of Company G.
next on our left, was wearin' cap. A
cap out IN the rain is the wo'st sort O.
headgear, for when It gifts soaked
stlddy stream runs right down a mans
backbone. OKeefe he pressed the
hat into his own special service. My
hat was nothin more'n u stovcpipe
without the tother end stopped up
and ketchln' all the rain there was.
was feelin sorry that hadn't got
ahend Of Bill Struthers. the man that
irRt got the hat, when ] saw OKeefe
throw up his hands and tumble IN a
heap. / run up to him, and what do
you Think There was third hole in
the hat and bullet through O'Keese's
brain.
t.Countin the Johnny, this made three
men that had lost their lives wearln'
that hat. 1 was just goin' to pick 1t
up and throw away my stoyepipe when
! remembered this and stopped. II was
rninin' harder every minute, and the
hat would be a fne perfection. Barrin'
the bullet holes It was sound every
where. Howsomever, l didn't like
maxim the fourth man to repose my
weary limbs on Confederate soil, and l
concluded to let the hat alone ! sor
one or two men pick 1t up, look 1t over,
throw down their own hats and goin'
to. put It on when l hailed 'em and
told 'em that three men had been killed
wearin' Of It, Mostly they dropped it
like hot coal, but purity soon lieu
tenant of Company b come along. He
hadn't any head coverin at ALL He'd
been on the skirmish line and been
driven In in a hurry-such big hurry
that he'd dropped his hat and didn't
calc'late to stop to pick 1t up.
''As soon as he sor the hat l was
taikin' about lyin' on the ground he
made dive for It, called out TO him,
Lieutenant, don't wear that hat says
/. whats the matter with itT says
he. There's three men been shot
a-wearin' It, Well he says. If 1t has
been struck three times there's a thou
sand chances to one 1t won't be struck
ag'sn mot Just now, anyway And he
clapped It on his head.
Now. that's just the way these men
who make up systems to beat gamblin'
banks git fooled. Howsomever, It's
mighty good reasonin' all the same
It's good reasonin' and it's bad reason
in There's some would argy that the
hat was fated. others that the spirit OF
the original Confederate owner had
swore that no cussed Yankee should
wear It. l don't believe in any Of
these superstltlons. There's only one
thing do believs in-luck; jlst luck
and nothln' eise.
About thls time OF day the irln
got purity hot The bullets was singin'
gayly jist g II 1t was lots o. fun to
plug Yankee. some OF 'em cuttln' the
twigs OF the overhaDgln' branches
spiteful sor the lieutenant with tho
hat on-the hat was tellln' you about
standin on the breastwork tryin' to
git bis men out TO make a charge
they beln' short o. ammunition jist
THU. believe--when sudTent saw
hiDf collapse
sEsia ccmrades picked him up. and
sor one OF EN- take on his hat and
poke his finger through four different
bullet holes IN the crown.
9Mell. by this time It was pretty
web understood that the hat had a
streak OF bad luck I'm It, 1t lay on the
.BTox@r. and not man would touch
It. A good hat gittln' a wide berth
with Aen ell about wantin' It. II
WANT superstition. No one could argy
that there wss any more chaRce Of git
L.. l.. A.