Year: 1874

SA-O


It was Asa Brashear himself who told
the story. Asa, as everybody in Louis
Vile knows. is not unacquainted with
cards. 1t is possible that ne is better
acquainted with the Queen of Clubs
than he is with the Queen Of Sheba. 1t
is probable that the blue and gold of
the King Of Diamonds is a more familiar
custom to him than the picture of Solo
mon arrayed in all his glory. 1t is also
highly probable that Asa is fond OF
social glass or two. But this is how ne
happened to tell the story: Asa is lame
of one leg, and we asked him one day
what was the matter with the defective
limb.


How did | happen to break my leg,
did you say! Well, it was curious
thing, and II tell you about. You see
I'd been drinking pretty hard for
week or so, and thought I'd lay off and
get over it. live up in the third story.
thirty feet or so from the ground. and
my window comes almost down to the
floor. It's mighty easy to fall out of
that window. and there brick pave
ment down below which ism t as soft as
a feather bed. So you see fellow
that d fall down there would be mighty
apt to hurt himself. fell down there
once, and | know how it is myself.


1T was nearly dark when | went to
my room that evenin', and | thought
I'd sleep awhile and see if the trouble
in my head wouldn stop. 1t was
whizzing sort of feeling, and, didn t
feel exactly right about what | saw.
In fact. the last drink took
that day there was fly in it. At
least thought so; but Jimmy, who
was behind the bar, looked sort o funny
when | asked him to take it out. How
soever, l soon fell asleep, and slept |
don t know how long; out | woke up
rather suddenly, and heard strange
kind of noise out side the door. ltwas
awful dark. and the noise on the steps
sounded like thousand men with felt
slippers on striking thousand rattan
canes on the steps, and all in military
line. All at once music struck up but
the door suddenly opened, and blaze
O light came in that blinded me so that
couldn' see any more than when the
door was shut. When | got over the
| daze looked down on the floor. and
there was long file of soldiers. not one
of EN- higher n my finger. all a-march-
! in into the room. headed by a band OF
music. and with the kurnel, who WASH t
bigger Il any o the rest of EN-, mount
on horse correspondent.


We'll, they marched into the room
and formed in files in front of my bed
and | was looking at EN- all the time.
When they had all got fixed in proper
ranks. the fellow on the horse got down
and the band stopped playing. After
he touched the floor the kurnel com
mcnced to grow, and before he stopped
CROWN hewas as much as eight feet
tall. kept lookin' at him all the
time. and then he got up on the bed and
took screw from his pocket and
screwed it into the cealin'. Then he
stepped down again and caught one o


them little soldiers by the nape of the
neck and tied string around his mech;
and stepped upon the bed. And I wa:
a lookin at him all the time. Their
he tied the other end of the string shorr
up on the screw and let go o the little
soldier. The poor little feller kickec
around for while and grew black il
the face and then died. s'pose: a


least he didn't make any more fus:


that night, When the kurnel saw h


was dead he got down again. and a.


soon as he touched the floor he bega,


to grow smaller and smaller until h,


was no bigger he was at first. Thel
he got on his horse and the band com


mcnced to play. and he shouted For
ward, march. and the little soldier
commenced marchin' out of the room
Now there was one little soldier tha
seemed to be watchin me all the time
and when the rest of EN- commence,
marchin out. he slipped back fror
t one file to the other and so on till b
: had got to the rear rank. When tn
last Of the little soldiers but him ha
1 got out of the door, this little chap b
} came runnin' back to the bed and say
r ASA. put down your leg.


/ well, put down my leg and th
} little cuss climbed straddle my foot.
t Nov, Asa, says he, pull your le
, up in the bed