Ottumwa tri-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1903-1916, 1914-07-23

one by one, he Staked against there
value--and lost as fast as the layouts
could be made and the cards drawn.
Did it feeze him? Not in the least
Smiled like four-time winner, die
the don. and ordered brought hi
horse and pack-mules, their saddles
and his arms-and played them OFF al
cheerfully as he had lost his first bet
Only toward the finish he reduced his
bets to lower units. as If seeking to ex
tend the period Of play In desperate
hope Dame Fortune must deign tt
smile on him, all unmindful Of the fac
that should have been obvious to ever
as mad gambling fend as he. tina
the dealer held Dame Fortune {
throttled subject of his will
Stripped Of his beasts and equip
ment, the hidalgo's face fell grave fol
the first time. For few minutes hi
sat silent, as If in study.
Then, politely excusing himself fol
FIVE minutes, he rose and entered 6
neighboring house-to return almost
instantly. it seemed, man externally
transformed, scantily clad in the dirty
ragged blanket, the loose cotton trous
ers, rawhide sandals, and the frayet
and greasy sombrero Of peon.
On his arm he bore his magnificent
spangled costume, complete from
boots to hat, and on his face he wore
the same disdainful smile.
Sure as death itself of its marked
victim, the dealer readily conceded
whatever value the hidalgo set upon
these his last belongings.
Play was resumed, but now reduced
to petty larceny terms, the bets SC
small that it took the dealer more than
two hours to win the fourth Of the
values that, earlier in the contest, fell
to him on a single layout, and to
leave his victim plucked to the pin
feathers.
Rising quickly, the game thorough
bred remarked:
"Well done, son: you have won
my money, all. but I still own my
pride. Good night"
, And 1t proved his good-by as we'll,
for straightway out into the darkness
he marched. and we never saw him
again.
OF course, that evenings diversion
divorced me from my prospecting
mate. With winnings that totaled
we'll up in five figures, 1t was for him
to hunt a place to blow It where il
would buy him the most fun, not toe
dangerously near his old Colorado
haunts.
The shortest trail to Tucson was
good enough for him, and took 1t
with him.
There followed for me several years
more of drifting, improbable as their
predecessors. Service on the Tucson
police force; ranching near ella Bend,
where / soon starved out; merchandi'
zing in butter, eggs, and honey at
the Harquahala Mines, where got
touched up by the needy for my profits
so Systematically that philosophically
concluded Id worked about long
enough for others and dropped back
into my old line Of deputy sheriff-at
Florence, Arizona.
At the time there were five con.
demned Indian murderers in the jail
awaiting hanging, the notorious
Apache Kid among the jailbirds, and
no less than seventeen so-called bad
men in town who well deserved the
name. So Sheriff Prayer, Under
Sheriff Hinson Thomas, and had
had enough to do to keep our guns
from rusting.
The sheriff made me custodian OF
the Jail, and the good luck that usual
ly followed me as long as stuck tight
to my profession" soon developed IN
an incident that served to establish
measure of respect for me that mate
rally helped my local prestige as q
| peace officer.
The greatest bully of the town was
man named Pizona, burly two-hun
Observation-Disclosures who was re-
puted to have Systematically whipped
the town on an average Of once fort
night for a year or more.
But when Fryer came into Office ne
resolved to stop him. Thus 1t hap
pened one morning that posse, head
ed by the sheriff, came hustling the
redoubtable Pizona up to the jail, the
prisoner bleeding like butchered beef
j steer and Fryer and most of his posse
looking like they had been trying tc
win a fall off a circular saw.
Turned over to me, l was usherlne
him. kindly enough, into the inner
court of the Jail, when Pizona whirlet
on the sheriff. swearing he would whtl
him again. At which Fryer drew his
pistol.
Springing between them, I claimed
him now as my prisoner, but only tc
be myself grappled by the ruftian, anc
down we fell, locked together.
| A wild cat in activity and bull II
strength, he was near getting the bet
ter of me when managed to get hin
! by the throat, and, presently, had hin
! choked to docility, l thought.
But Just as I was rising of him, thu
Chiricahua bronco, Apache Kid, hand
! ed him a club, through the head o
which a spike was driven. In the same
instant one of my helpers passed me
club. To be sure. l wore my pistol
but since never could get my Owl
consent to fight an enemy with an.
other weapon than such as he himsel
welded at it we flew, ..,-.
Round and round. we clrcled
crouching leaping, lodging. he posi-
lively growing like the beast he was
For me especially it was take n
chances that could be sidestepped, 70
one crack on the head with his spike'
war club would be sure to finish me.
On oil NV aDarpies were in NAV Il