The Ely miner. [volume] (Ely, Minn.) 1895-1986, 1927-04-08

WISH noperS men were surrOunQc0
In thirty minutes.
He saw what he was up against.
He knew there was only one thing
to do-to cut through the ring and
make dash back for the lava beds.
"A few men-about a dozen-got
through. The old sergeant never
got his name-was shot through the
head. Frying Pan was left for dead
on the field. My father did not reach
the lava beds. He fell at the head Of
his men, in Crawling Stone wash; his
body never was recovered"
Selwood paused. Gentlemen" he
said, wiping his forehead, "this cham
payne is for everybody. / drink 1t be-
cause 1t steadies me. / can't drink
whisky. It's funny, but whisky makes
me want to kill somebody.
$50 my father didn't come back.
Smallpox broke out again that fall at
the fort. My mothers father took it
and died In a week. My mother was
left alone. She was thousand miles
from any woman she felt she could
turn to. Don't be afraid Of the cham
payne, gentlemen; 1 tell you, it will
steady YOU"
They watched the gambler pour and
drink glass after glass of the heaiy
French wine-but seemingly without
effect on the iron restraint under
which he held himself.
"My mothers condition." he re-
sumed, forced her to go to my grand
father. She told her story. He asked
for her proofs-buzzards were pick
ing them in the Crawling Stone wash.
HE told my mother his son had
never married herl He did, so help
me Godl The post surgeon was more
merciful. He defied the old man, took
care of my little mother at the hospi-
tai; and Of all the damnable things
that could happen to woman in that
distress, my poor mother gave birth
to twins-a boy and girl. am that
boy.
Even that didn't soften the old
wretch's heart. He was only broken
over the death Of his handsome son.
My mother had no place in his grief.
Her very presence at the fort seemed
to irritate him. Before the snow was
off the ground he arranged to send
her back to st. Joe with her two
babies. She was put in charge Of two
drunken troopers TO be taken down
the river to landing where steam
boat, caught on the river the fall be-
fore, was going to st. Louis when the
ice went out.
"The surgeon wrapped my mother
and the babies up In furs and made
her as comfortable as possible-old
Roper came to the hospital then and
offered her money-she refused to
touch 1t. A snowstorm set In after we
got started. By noon it was biz
Zard. The troopers lost their way and
drove backward and forward all day.
BY nightfall they had found the trail,
but they were drunk. When they
struck timber along the breaks above
the river, wolves got their wind and
followed them. The horses got scared /;
the men whipped up and in few
nllhuICS lAc LCettu was dN n.y.
The sleigh bounced along on the trail,
struck sharp turn, and my mother
with the babies in her arms was
thrown from the sleigh twenty feet
down into a river break filed with
snow-the wolves followed the horses.
''It was close to a village of Man.
dams. The Indians heard the noise
and heard my mothers cries, dragged
her out of the snow with her children
and got her into a tepee; they were
kinder. than the whites. They got my
mother and her babies to the boat,
and she reached the farm of her mar
ried sister In Missouri. But the hard
ships and exposure of the trip were
too much for her. She lived, with
what had come to her from her father,
till we were twelve years old-never
well, but devoted to her children.
after that my sister and l went
to live with our aunt. Her first hus-
band had died. Her second husband
was a hard taskmaster-he made US
earn our keep. Three years of it was
enough for me. 1t was too much
more than 1 ought to've tried. You
can see for yourselves, gentlemen,
there's not much underpinning to me.
I couldn't stand blowing from day.
light to dark. I'm not lazy, ] don't
believe-but 1t wasn't In me to do
heavy farm work, and told my uncle
so. He didn't care much; was
bleeding at the lungs at that time
and not much good to anybody. said
goodby to my aunt, who was always
like mother to me, ran away and
Joined a party of emigrants headed
for the mountains.
ST fell In with Tracy. He was the
first man 1 met In the high country
who didn't try to get the best of me.
l drifted here and there with him, but
I always had in mind to hunt up
Colonel Roper and tell him my
mothers story after she left. In fact,
nv mother asked me to promise to
do that much, and / had promised.
81 found him at the fort again-he
had been sent back there. told him
who 1 was. He flew into rage and
said my mother and her babies per-
ished Ia the blizzard that set in the
day they left the fort. and told me /
was an impostor-that's what I got,
gentlemen. when was less than six
teen, from my own grandfather
Tracy made the trip up to the fort
with me. I'd told Tracy that If my
grandfather would take me / should
quit him. He agreed that would be
right.
I'D thought the old wretch might
l .oe+opad with fho vaarS. my