The Bozeman courier. (Bozeman, Mont.) 1919-1954, 1925-07-15

WEW"" M#A.N-1&.
iancy Of 9 good sport that paid old
Ilm's passage out.
For tive days, while he waited for
Lhe inside Passage beat, the coed sport
had been scattering bis money and
coaxing Old Jim 60 come along" he
had taken quite a liking to old Jim
But up to the hour Of sailing old Jim
had refused fatty even to think Of it.
Then at the last moment the good
sport and old Jim were rowed out to
the bOat-bOth drunk.
Nor did the good sport stop with the
purchase OF old Jim's passage cut.
Handouts Of gold bought other pas
sages-cabins always. Rolls Of bills
paid for railtripS-Observation-csr
suites. They left a trail Of empty bot
ties clear down the coast. Then the
good sport sobered back to his own
natural, dirty self and turned old Jim
loose, without a penny, In Los Angeles.
And up the coast, In Seattle, another
good sport, the JOker-Bnly Todd
was throwing fifty thousand dollars to
the vultures, and relating to them the
fuu particulars Of his last Alaska joke.
That was some joke!
When old jim found himself without
a cent on the streets OF Los Angeles he
went to work. The AngiO-American
P~hOtOplay company was filming an
Alaska mining town drama and need
ed extras. Old Jim's long white hair.
his garb, his whole appearance just
filed their requirements.
Three days after old Jim found him
self ia Los Angeles, he was on the
trail again. He was n Of the sour
dOughs In a phOtOplay Alaska STAN
pede.
Old Jim staggered along the built-up
trail. He didn't need orders or dlrec.
tiOns for that. In his place in the line
OF costumed stampeders he struggled
Up the hill and swung to the right,
into the center Of the scene. Then he
stopped.
The director screamed at him. The
orders were to keep moving and not tC
look at the camera. But-Death
knows nothing about orders or d.
rectOEs.
Old Jim was finished. When he left
Alaska, fifteen years Of prIvatiOn anC
exposure and eternal hopes that never
materialiGed were riding his heart, and
the prOtracted spree that had brought
him to Los Angeles finished it. ok
Jim died On the trail.
SQuarely in the cente Of the seen,
old jim stopped. He turned to tn,
LETT and staggered out Of the line
With staring eyes that saw nothing
with both hands before him as IL Il
s~upplicatiOn, Old Jim faced the camera
took three tOttering steps and pitches
forward on his face.
The director turned old Jim Ovel
He stopped eursing. Everyone too
on his hat.
Then because Il had been done nat
UFally, and because such things d
sometimes happen in a stampede, an
because Aim costs money, that incident
just as it happened, vent out with tn
release.
And three weeks, two months ate
old Jim had left that note pinned t
old BOb's coat, that film was shown
Seattle. 3
It was an extensively advertise
Aim. The movie theater that shove
1t was crowded the drst night. An
that n%rst-night crowd was treated to q
1 incident which was not on the program
The stampede scene was in the SCI
Ond reel.
: The long line Of stampeders elimbe
the hill on the right and swung aero,
the screen. Half the line passes. The
one Of the stampeders stopped. SQuar
" in the middle Of the screen an oil
e w%hlte-haired man stopped short in Il
trail and faced-the crowd in ii
o seats.
Years Of theater going had taugl
/ the picture fans not to expect a screc
character to look down on theme
cept On very special occasions.
d Down in front one Of the crowd, {
old white-haired man, stood up. Z
9 tOttered to his feet. He held I'D b
hand. He called:
, "Jimr"
The eyes Of the crowd flashed to Il
screen.
The old ~white-haired stampeder
the picture threw out his arms.
left the trail. He staggered fOrwa
toward the crowd.
The eyes Of the crowd shifted baC
"a The old white-halred man down
ID front held out his rms
e. Il didn't take It. Jimp he can
pleadingly. Half OF It was ron
Jimi Half Of it."
/, The old stampeder on the sore
pitched forward on his face.
n Down ia front the tired voice OF
a old man faded ont. His arms 0rOpp
= TO his side. he sighed and fen bs
y across the seats.
81 Old Bob Farrell and old Jim Tat
- were pals again.
ip And a few doors down the street
a cafe, the JOker-Bnly Todd-was
lating 20 one of the girls the elosi
/. dateUa NJ hfn last a1naha foRn