Reporter and farmer. [volume] (Webster, Day County, Dakota [S.D.]) 188?-1946, 1912-12-12
MADGE
A Story of the
Former West
BY JAMES G. FRIEBERG

When wild west" shows FIRST appear.
cd they represented what was really
going on between the Missouri river
and the Pacific ocean. or, rather, what
was then dying out. Now the western
half OF the continent In dotted with
cities containing mercantile establish.
nents. manufactures and dwellings
with every convenience. including lux
uries. The western settler has given
place to the ranchman, the prospector
to the capitalist, the gambler to the
teacher and the Indian to all.
These people Of former times consti.
tute unique society. They were good
and bad Mingled, the good constantly
striving to throw OF the bad. though
the line was not sharply drawn he
tween them.
The women, though disproportionate
~ small in numbers, partook OF the
same general characteristics as the
men. There was type OF western
woman, personated on the mimic stage
In eastern cities during the latter part
OF the nineteenth century, who was
very popular-a diamond in the rough,
independent. free hearted, free handed
and supposed to lie fairly moral. She
could ride, shoot or throw lariat,
tackle a grizzly or bring down an ante
iope at long range. Some had fought
Indians. and all Were fearless.
When a very young man, desiring to
see people Of whom I had heard SO
much, went to spend season among
them. The Union Pacific railroad was
being built, and travelled on a train
10 the foot Of the Rocky mountains.
Then I went on by stagecoach till l
reached region In which gold had re-
Gently been discovered, and put up
Tor awhile at the boarding house Of
woman named Hayward. Madge was
her first name. and she was seldom
called by any other. Those who ad-
dressed her by the last name usually
preixed q Mrs., but whether she was
married. single or divorced didn't
know. No one there cared.
/, There was that freedom about her
and her house OF which I had read.
Certainly nothing was conventional.
And yet there was q line drawn be.
yOnd which no one ever passed. 4 saw
enc man attempt to pass II, and also
saw Madge put him out Of her house
With revolver.
! ! was not over nineteen years old at
she time and looked even younger.
Madge took me under her protection.
The 6rst man who appeared to guy
me FOR q tenderfoot got q dressing
oown from her that shut him ND In.
stanter. and from that time. being con.
sadered By the frequenters OF the house
- her pet. was let alone.
Every one In the community gambled,
and 'Madge was no exception to the
rule. Every evening after she had
!wsshed and put away the supper dishes
10 would cit down with whoever was
Ineadys to play the national game of
oOker. aud more or less money would
ehxnge hands. But at II O'Clock. no
neattet who had won or lost. she would
take the cards from the table and put
sAsm away. She said she didn't pro.
pose that the house should get the
svputaticn Of being gambling den.
On. one occasion q man whe had lost
q good deal Of money protested at the
game being summarily closed, where
upon Madge informed him that he
would not be permitted to play there
sgaia Had she been man there
would doubtless have been q fracas.
hut Madge had the support OF every
snan ia the party. though II Is question
sble IL she needed Il. think she could
have taken care Of herself had the ne
cessity arisen.
I wished to take q hand ut some Of
these poker parties, but Madge would
not consent to my doing 90. One even |
ing begged so hard that she consent
- When I left the table had lost
30. Madge handed me the money.
which + refused to accept from her.
whereupon she forced It upon me. II
= needless to say that this was the |
MT time ! played the game in her
house.
OF course those who came and went |
- aud from Madge Hayward's were
. floating throng Now and then some
enc who played poker there would
Arop out. and suspected that he had
been cleaned out. though nothing was
said about Il, and 1t was generally un-
Gerstood that any application for a
small loan would be honored by the
mistress OF. the house. Madge was
considered an excellent poker player.
Dot I never understood that she was
much ahead In the long run. She was
= liberal that sometimes 1t looked as
n she must he behind
Nevertheless occasionally l saw her
win large pots. One evening was
booking over game at which she was
staying with some miners who had
ZONE "A during the day loaded with
1ust. The miners were anxious for
Hleh- stakes. and Madge was continu-
NY trying to keep the limit down.
Presently d Jack pot began to grow
uoon ire table. A nurnber Of hands
80 dealt, but nobody got the requI-
~ cards to open the pot, and at every
~ deal the pot was sweetened
4 man By the name OF Piunket was
1879 when some one got = hand that