Year: 1859

The Gamblers Fate.


The Spring of 1858 found me travelling
through the Choctaw nation, which at that
time, with the exception of the government
posts, was a wilderness. Fort Towson,
DoxborouSh, JonesbOrough, Lost Prairie,
Horse Prairie, Pecan Point, and several


other places throughout this wild and new


ly settled country, were crowded with eve
ry kind and description Of people from the
States, from the government agents and


contractors to the wild and mysterious ref
ugee-the latter being very numerous, and


having settled upon the south side of Red


river, to evade the pursuit of the United


States officer OF justice, ,Aat portion being


then considered within the boundaries of
Texas. The whole region was one of pc


culiar' 4 basement in all respects. AS might
be suspect Z, seas0ne as it was with such


a population, drunkenness. dcbauchery, and


murder walked abroad, hand in hand, day


and night. Human life was valued no high
er than the life of an OK or a hog, and the


heart of the settlement was cold, and pal
sled to the most remote touch of feeling,


and hardened to the recital of brutalities


and crimcs of most indescribable enormitv.
Men talked of their evil doingS, their deep.


revolving guilt with the most impudent
freedom, and laughed and chuckled over
them as though they We're the best jokes in
the world


1t was in one of the Texan settlements,
in this rude, wicked tract of country, that


an incident came to my knowledge, quite
by accident, which l will relate The set
tlement contained some seventy or
eighty people, men, women and child
rem, white and black. was taking a stroll
with one OF the settlers among the cabins


and huts, he being familiar with the occu-


patton of each, their habits and history
When we passed spot worthy of notice,


he gave me the character of the owner, his


wealth, DC. and although all about the set
tlement wore the appearance of the most
a6ject poverty, l was surprised to find the
wealth which many of the inhabitants of so
desolate place possessed. We finally


came to small log cabin, at the extreme
end of the settlement, apparently about
twenty feet long by eighteen deep, story
and half high.


'Who lives here p said l.


The widow - replIed nv guide


whose name was Edmonds, the widow of
v IT.


was killed a few days ago.


was struck with my companion S paus-
es, and thought there was something singu-


lar in them, especially as his comtenance
appeared to change color slightly. l soon


mustered resolution to ask him who were


the murderers Of DIR. -, but his reply
was simply that he did not know
/ should like to see the widow, said l !;


will you Introduce me p


He declined, stating that he must then


leave me me, and go along some !.alf a mile
further, where some men were at work, fell
ing bee-tree.


VERY WELL said l; Il will step in and
introduce myself. iou have awakened
some little curiosity in my mind to know
more about the murder of this man.


He left me without making any reply,
and | entered the cabin, the door of which
was standing ajar. l found, seated near
the fire, on a rude bench female, perhaps
thirty years old, whose countenance wore
a look of deep detection, but at the same
time betrayed strong evidence of having been
once quite attractive. \ little girl sat in
her lap-two boys of the ages perhaps of
seven and eleven occupied a. bench at her
right-an infant of three months old, slept
in the cradle, which httlo girl apparently
about five years old, stood rocking The


group was very imposins one. AS en-


tered, l gave tap upon the door, which
caused the mother to turn towards me but
she did Ro- spea2l, waiting it would seem.
for me to introduce my business. l apollo
gized for my unceremonious entrance say
ing that had learned that she was former


ly resident in the States and that l be-
ing also from thence felt some interest in


her and her family. She beckoned ME to a
seat and after some time told me she was
born in Philadelphia, but that having mar
ried kentuckian she moved there, and
lived some eight CIR nine years in that
State-that her husband, at the expiration
of that time, had taken his family to Little
Rock, Arkansas, where they resided ore
year, and from thence they had come to the
place where ! found them.


Here there was pause in fact, / dis
covered that the poor woman's voice
faltered the moment she approached the
subject of her arrival at her present resi-
dence. The silence was broken by the
child, who stood rocking the cradle, and
who said, This is bad place. amt it,
ma? Here the bad men killed Papa At
this the mother burst into tears As she
did so. she kindly told tbs child to hash.