The Bottineau courant. (Bottineau, Bottineau County, N.D.) 1895-1929, 1920-04-01

"Who Are Vert FrIen' o Mlne7"
in a yard of my position. The sudden
blazing up of a fire revealed the un-
mistakable features of the deputy.
'Hullo," I said, happily, stepping d.
rectly before him. "When did you
come ashore?"
"Hello, yerself," he managed to
calculate thickly. "Who are yer?
frien' O. mine?"
why, don't yer remember me, Of
man? We wus talkin' tergether comm
up. I wus goin' fer ter enlist"
II! yes; glad ter see yer. Sum
hot whisky ct this camp-tried eny?"
"No," 1 answered, grasping at the
opportunity to arouse his generosity.
II amt got no coin to buy. I'm fiat
broke; maybe yer cud stake me fer a
bite ter eat?"
EAT" he flung n arm lovingly
about my shoulders, and burst into
laughter. Eyer bet yer life, we're a
goin' t.. eat, an drink too. I don't 60
back on none O. tber boys. Yer lever
heerd nuthin' like tibet bout Tim Ken
nedy, I reckon. Eat, sure-yer know
Jack Rale?"
"Never heerd the name"
what, never heerd O. Jack Rale !
or river man, half boss, half alligator;
ulster tend bar in Saint Louee. He's
up yere now, a sellin' f~orty-rod ter So
jers. Cum up long with him frum
Beardstown. Frien' O. mine. Yer just
cum long with me-thas ALL"
I permitted him to lead me, his voice
never ceasing as we followed the dim
trail. I made out little of what he
said, nor did I question him. The
trail ended before a two-room log
cabin, so deeply hidden in the woods
as to be revealed merely by a glimmer
Of light shining out from within
through chinks in the walls. Tim fun.
bled for the latch and finally opened
the door, lurching across the threshold,
dragging me along after him. There
were two men at a sloppy table, a dis
reputable looking white woman stir
ring the contents of a pot hung over
the open fire, and a fellow behind the
bar, attired in a dingy white apron. 1t
was all sordid enough, and dirty-a
typical frontier grogshop; but the
thing Of most interest to me was the
proprietor. The fellow was the same
red-mustached individual whom I had
watched disembark from the steamer
that same afternoon, slipping in the
yellow mud al he surmounted the
bank, dragging his valise along after
him. So it was this fellow passenger
who had given these fugitives refuge;
1t was his presence in these parts
which had decided Kirby to make the
venture ashore. He glanced up at our
entrance, the glare Of light overhead
revealing a deep, ugly scar across his
chin and a pair of deep-set, scowling
eyes.
Back in time fer supper, hey, Ken
nedy." he growled, none too cordially.
"Who's yer frien'?" a..o 49,
"A fel1er whut's goin' ter enlist.
He's all right, Jack" the deputy hic-
coughed thickly. lies liquor, an then
We'll eat. I'm payin' the bill-so
WhutS 1t ter yer?"
"Nuthin' tall ; eny frien' O. yers gifts
ther best I have"
He set out a squat bottle on the bar,
and thinking it best to humor the both
of them I poured out q stiff drink.
fully aware that Rale was observing
my features closely.
Seen yer afOre sumwhar, amt II"
II reckon" I replied indifferently,
watching Tim fill his glass. II worked
my way up on the boat; saw yer on
board"
Sure; that's 1t; faint in my lire
fer ter forgit a face. Yer amt, en-
listed syitY'
mo; I reckon I'll wait till maunin',
an clean up a bit furst. How bout
sum soap an wafer fore I eat7-an'
yer cudn't loan me a razor, cud YEP
Wal I got plenty O. water, an may
be cud scare up sum soap. Tim we're
he's got a razor, an If he's a frien' O.,
yers. ! reckon he mought lend 1t ter
YER
The deputy gulped down his drink,
q smacked his lips. clingfng with
n hand to the bar, regarding me low
ingly.
Sure; he's q friend o. mine. Shave
him myself soon's I git sober. Whut's
thet7 Yer can't waltz Oh, all righ'
then, take It yerself. Mighty I'm razor,
OF man." 81
Rale found me q tin basin. water, q
bit Of rag for 4 towel. and Z small.
cracked mirror, Ii which my reflection
was scarcely recognizable. He was q
man Of few words. ~contenting himself
with uttering merely q dry comment on
Kennedy, who had dropped back Into
convenient cflair and buried his tace
on the table.
srini's = good fellow, m, I nsy1eau1