The Bozeman courier. (Bozeman, Mont.) 1919-1954, 1925-11-06

n another pretty we'll and there
was nothing strange in their being
sort Of sUspiscious.
Suspicious of COnOIey.
There was some close watching
done the next time the deal came
round to COnoIey, and as hard luck
would have it, there were three pat
hands out. Ayers wasn't in it, but
lie Occur had a flush, Goddard had a
straight and COnOley caught a small
full. They played a straight in the
West as long ago as the early mining
days, and it was the rule then that
straights we're only counted when an
agreement to that effect had been
made before hand.
There was some pretty stiff bet
ting, and COnoley cleaned up about
$4OO on the hand. Just about this
time Though I am not assaying as
there was anything crOOked), Cod
dard spoke up sort of nasty and
said:
Tt appears to me that you are
getting pretty d good and strong
on the deal
"ConoIey showed pretty quick
whether he was a fighter or not.
Az q AAO IL n hACW Wu6lIEI
or not he was cheating, but before
Goddard had quit talking, Conoley
had a gun pointed square under his
nose, and these were his words:
- allow that you'll swallow
those words and chew 'em up and
COnOley's voice had Just the softest
purr that anyone ever heard-jUst
like StTOking a cat the right way, be-
f0rsn q 1Onr~v1~I es,- GA r -
tell you quick that you beg my par
don or I'll blow the top of your head
off,
Three of -Four Gamblers Shot.
ut didn't seem like he would do
it, for Goddard hadn't really charged
him with cheating, although his con
v~ersatiOn was sure insulting, and an
insult in them days was worse than
a blow anytime in the week. God
dard was furious, and being without
fear he undertook to jaw back. /
l don't recall what was said, but he
started to say something ugly, and
before Goddard had stopped saying
his little piece, ConOley had pulled
the trigger.
Goddard fell over dead and the
next minute Ayers and COnoley were
blazing away at each other. Although
they were near enough to each other
in the cab not to miss their aim,
they did miss. I expect the struggle
had got on their nerves and ruined
their aim. They fired seven or eight
shots before either of them fell, and
when they did go down both of them
we're dead.
"There was terrible excitement. 1t
all happened so quick that there was
no chance for anyone but lie Occur
to interfere, (if anyone had really
wanted to-. After it was all over, we
we're just driving into the Ruby
Cross trail and a few of the citizens
dropped in on us to review the re-
mains. The only man who was not
in the least excited was lie Occur.
He had sat still during all of the
fracas, simply looking on, but not
making a single move. And, when
the smoke of battle had cleared, he
coOlly remarked in his womanish
voice:
"'Well, that seems to break up
this game of poker completely. IL
you gentlmen care to accept the Of
fer, will you all do me the courtesy
to line up at the bar, across the
street and have one on me?'
But, there was one thing I no
ticed," said the veteran stage driver.
when lie Occur got up from the
makeshift table in the stage and
they were cleaning up the scene of
battle, there wasn't any money what
ever lying around loose. There had
been a good deal while the playing
went on, but no one ever knew what
became of it.
There was one thing that this
fracas with the shooting irons taught
me, and that was this. When gam
blers of the Olden days got into such
games with no sucker holding a
hand, they always agree amongst
themselves that they play a fair,
straight game. The boast used to
be that when a gambler gave his
word to play fair, he did it; but ]
never took any stock in that" con
cluded Graves.
-O-