Warren sheaf. [volume] (Warren, Marshall County, Minn.) 1880-current, 1913-08-07
REFORMING Oh AS
BY ALBERT u us WOOD.

[ s
Among the fourscore and odd 4 IAN
who worked under mo when / waa- III
boss IN the Black Diamond nina ~
Tar as ! can remember, Tammaa a. !.
gent was the only total abstainer u
One afternoon q prematurelv .f,raA
shot projected ton Of coal, more g
less, In Tammas' direction. distr,hnt.
ing It somewhat impartially over y, vari.
GUS portions Of his anatomy. Al wa.
my custom when any Of the men swaa
hurt, | made It point to dron = n
him for few minutes every day.
the doctor says" he volunteered
to me on one such occasion, .that ma
pure blood an guild habits be hates
than his physic. That's win a. ia
dummy" IA z.I. y s#" 4
The dummy Tammas, and what
may that be?' queried. .771
I've never told a soul. But ri o,a
1t to you In confidence. It's the story
of ma reformation. Time was ;whan
drank with the best or, mayhap, the
worst O. them. %s ~ H., 81.
Them days David Stephens and me-.
was fast cronies. Que night had na
been feelin' weel the day, David comes
TO me, as usual, to 80 to the tavern
for few drains. Come to the tavern
David says. Perhaps, as you're not not
feel1n' over weel, bit O. brandy
would be better than ordinar' speerit
Tammas.' So I cad for the brandy
an feelin' some better after the fret
one, I kept calm Now, bein' sick
like at the start, and the brandy helm,
strong and unqualified, it soon went
to ma held. By an by David said
summat not to my likin', an took ex
ceptions to it. To. max a long story
short, we soon parted in anger.
Il declare I never felt so strange
afore nor since as I did when I cot
the air that night The sense of direc,
tlon lett me an I lost ma way in a
place could ha' mapped out in nv
sleep. I walked and walked till was
fair knocked up. O., it was a peetiful
condition!
At last my pins gied out beneath
me. I sunk down in stupor. It must
a. been two o'clock when 1 awoke,
awoke, doused wi dew, stiff an cauld
MY senses were still befuddled, but
not so bad as before. I was lynn in q
ravlne near where Hallen's' street
| sewer empties into Williams creek. 4
MY first feelin's was of anger with
myself and David. With myself fol
bein' such beast, an with David TO,
over persuadin' me to drink with i'm,
AS I rubbed ma eyes, tryin' to get
the cobwebs out O. them, l caught
sight o. some one lynn on the groom
near by. Lookin' close, I saw twas
David. Here says l, be you followin'
me, mon?' There was no answer
'Haud up yer held an be ceevil, else
I'LL basic tina snoot, mon,' / said. Still
no answer. I'll max thee talk
yelled, an just then ma han touched
q bit stone, In my anger heayed
it at i'm and it struck full on his held
There was still no SCUM from Da
,vid. rose up and staggered over
to m. I put my and on i'm. David
was cold as deith. s 4:
"That seemed to sober me. Ma held
cleared up. The 'orrible truth came
to me. / 'ad murdered ma best friend
In cold blood. I could ma bide the
place, but turned an ran az fast as ]
could toward whoam. Once there, !
went to ma room and fell on the bed
81 When daylight come, Thought ev
cry footstep was the constable comm
to ale to jail. On a sudden there was
q knock on tho door an David en-
tered. - il. III s< 81 = I
II was never believer in ghosts
but at that moment my views changed
All the buried superstitions O. my an
cestors was resurrected. David
gasped, low came you ere?
David took ma and I shuddered
But twas with relief to find 1t warm
an 'uman, instead O. clammy an
ghostlike. 'Forgi'e me, auld mon,' be
said, Il was in the wrong last night.
"Thank God, you're alive, David,
says I, 4 might a. killed you IN the
drink
emo fear you'd hurt friend, drunb
or SOBER he says. DIT Nc:
"But did ma the stone hurt you
David?' speired. Is }ts
"He looked at me dumfounded an
edged away. .Tammas, you're sick an;
out O. your head. I'll get doctor he
says. s.
Ma, ma, mono O. that says 1. -
Tammas,' he says again, twas an
Ill trick had played on me last night
You'll min it was Allow Fen. y LEFT
ma door unlocked an the boys got
into my room, took ma best rig, hat
shoon an all, then got q dummy from
Myers store an rigged It out In all
ma finery. Then they peraded through
toon wi Meester Stephens, as they
cad It.. They left q note sayin'
would get ma buds by calm at the
back door o. the Hallen street sewer.
Come. Tammas, an ha' : drink Or So
.--. !. Ma, na, David says d ~ I'm
through drinkin'.' An was
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