Pittston Gazette

              ( Oldest Newsnauer in the WvomiDg Vallev PITTSTON, LUZERNE CO., PA., FRIDAY, MARCH 4, 1892. A WeeKly Local and hamilv louraal. "It war about the cattle ai ;in. He's ne nau received at th ? Travelers ttest "Been havin a set-to w.'tta uomu one.* "DC» you think we are runuing any tfreat risk/" asked the short man. "I'm afraid so." I have lived in sfwn different states, but (ieorgy Keats em ail Wonld a staid thar only I didn't have iu« laud, sin I was tired a-rentin Ever l**en in (it-orgy?" NYE MEETS EUGENE. moment to aim for the magnificent beast, as he had one eye already closed by u gentleman whom he had thoughtlessh charged with falsehood while east were handsome boys, and yet their poor littlo blue toes stuck out of their little red and broken shoes, while the blast outside seemed at times almost to outbhnek the blast that Mr.. Stone was giv ing the corrupt city government at that time. been hentin before as if some of the settlers had lieen takin hia cattle, an when he got personal in his remarks I hit him, an I'll do it agin if he couies around hyar with his insultin talk." A bitter oath escaped Ropes "I've lDeen having a lit - le trouble with old Riggsby." he said, his" face assuming u,n angry aspect as lie 'poke. "aud i reckon thar'a going to be tr ouble over it before long. •'But t lift interested parties are a thpuaand miles away, and there is no way in which they can gain any clew to the business unless we are fools enough to tell them." •Well. yes. I traveled through there a few years ago"  HIS FIRST ACQUAINTANCE WITH CHICAGO'S CLASSIC POET. He had not time to pull the trigger, however, before the alert animal had bounded up the face of the cliff, which was at an angle of 45 degs. at least, and stood entirely protected by an immense overhanging rock. "I'm afraid we are going to have trouble with those cattlemen," replied Dan thoughtfully. "It is plain to see that they aim to make war on the settlers, and there is no telling where it may end." 'Never been ter MacMooney's Cove, I reckon? That's the richest land on the face of the earth —right in the bend of Suds crick—an would fetch a hundred bushels of corn to the acre"  "What! he didn't strike you, did lie But I am not sure of that?" Why?" Scenes at Ann Arbor and a Meeting with Finally he called the boys to him and asked them whose children they were— if they had any father. One of the lads rubbed his purple foot against the call of the other leg and said in a pathetic \ child treble, while his little chin quiv- -s, "red, "We are Mr. Field's little boys." That settled it with Mr. Stone, for he has a kind heart. "Is it possible," he said to himself, "that we are accepting the wonderful work of this wonderful man, yet failing to pay him enough to keep his family from w«.it?" "On~thi» fo)lCvwCC4 C&* Gene's salary was doubled, wid patting the little boys on the head that evening he complimented them on the way they had "created the part," and he gave each of them a nice candy cane over five feet in length. Three years ago, on a professional trip with Mr. Riley, and while my wife was with me bound for the coast, we got word at Kansas City that the children had been attacked simultaneously with scarlet fever, and so it was necessary to give up the California trip. Our manager hated to give up the tour entirely, and in order to make it more impressive wired that I was ill, which was all right for a manager, but would not do for anybody else. He sent the following message, totally unnunctuated, to Field: ••Yes: and I'd a" put ft bullet through his onery carcass if it hadn't V been for that puppy of a boy of his, who knocked the pistol from uiy hand." a .Strangely Beautiful Creature with "As 1 said before 1 ain not sure that Barnaby did not write the letter notifying the woman and boy of the death of our client, and of the will he made." a Hang-—The Story of a Remarkable Shot. Here was a problem. He could not cross the gorge. The animal was no doubt safely there. He could calculate exactly where he stood lieneath the big and beetling cliff, though entirely out of his range of vision. •Ever been in the •eigliborhood of Ringgold?' asked the tall stronger. "It looks kinder that way, I must admit," remarked the father; "but 1 think we can hold our own with them if they coiue about the place. I ain't goin ter bother them as long as they let me alone, but 1 ain't goin ter take any of their talk, an if they want trouble they can have it." These words caused a sensation among the cowboys, and they speedily collected about the speaker, anxious to hear the particulars of, the encounter. 'Ever been thar? That's ny ole home. if I know»inyself UW t«r nee some one that knows altont Ringgold—I am. by gosh! Did ye stop thar?" En Passant, February.—We visited Ann Arbor not long ago. The town is like all college towns. The citizens are solemn and reserved, with an apprehensive air, as if they were watching to see what the students would do next. [Copyright, l«tt. by Edgar W. Nye.] "That places matters in a rather unpleasant shape." When'ho Bad finished giving his account of the affair the cowlwys grew furious with rage. ."It does indeed. If old Barnaby had died a few days sooner it might have Saved lis a deal of trouble. I never fancied him for a partner; he was too conscientious entirely. Of course his name drew a large business to our firm, but he threw away laany golden opportunities of making a handsome thing, simply because he nw*  Making a few rapid geometrical calculations—for he admits that he is a fine mathematician and billiard player—he aimed for a certain point on the angle of tlDe rock and then fired. CHAPTER L AT THE*TRA VF.I.F.RS' REST. "lieckon it would." couimenten the landlord. "Don't see how ye ever grtt hyar. Wind jist Mowed ye along 1 reckon; it's powerful windy in Kansas—powerful!"•Only a short time; I was only"  •Didn't git acquainted with Joe Muggs that kep' the tavern thar. I reckon? lie's er uncle of mine—been mayor six times, an they wanted ter run him fer sheriff, but he said he was gittiti old an didn't feel like wrastlin with lawbreakers like he did in his younger days, but ole Joe war a powerful man in his best dayspowerful. Saw him lift a log that three men couldn't bndge off of the ground"— The college 1 believe to be one of the most progressive and ready to seize upon the pompadour topknot of Time and l»e the first oil the ground of any in our country. The students are handsome specimens of yonng American manhood, and the law department has long stood well up at the top in the judgment of able jurists, not counting myself. A heavy gust of wind, laden with mist and rain, swept with a dismal sound against the dingy window panes of the Travelers' Rest, causing the rickety bnilding to sh adder and creak beneath its force. But in spite of his words, spoken in the heat of anger, ho realized when in a calmer mood that the threatened trouble with the cattlemen might prove to be a very serious affair. They outnumbered the settlers by considerable and were more aggressive in their demands, considering the unsettled prairies their lawful domain. They had used every means in their power to prevent settlers from taking land in that vicinity, fully realizing that each claim that was taken not only added strength to what they termed their enemies, but lessened the grazing scope which they had set apart for their own especial use. "We've stood this thing long enough, boys," said Ropes, "and it's about time we'd showed these settlers who's running this part of the country.'" . a moment the report seemed to deafen him, then there fell on the sloping rock at least a half bushel of warm vitals and mutton tallow, and he knew that his aim had leen true. "I reckon I'll have to stop hyar till momin, when I'll see if the wheel can't be patched up," nf 'ed the driver, removing hia dripping hat and coat "That's the talk!" came from several of the cowboys. "We're ready to commence war whenever you say the word." "Too honest,'' supplied the voice of the 6hort man with a low laugh. "You could never be complained of on that score." Simon Riggsby, who for hoars had been sitting by the window moodily' contemplating the storm without, suddenly removed his pipe from his month. , and emitting a cloud of sinoke from his bearded lips, turned to his wife, who had just entered from an adjoining room. It took two days to get the animal by a roundabout wry, and then he found that the flattened bullet, with an edge like a razor, had completely disemboweled the animal, these organs having been neatly cut out and dropped down the gorge. The heart and liver had been carefully preserved, while the bullet had in its flight also cut off the limb of a sagebush and inserted it in the rift of the carcass so as to prop it open and cool off the matton in the pure, crisp air of the mountain. "1 think I can fix it up fer ye," repligj" Riggsby. "I've got some tools out in the ole workshop, an I used ter be a perty fair hand with em." "I know it." answered the cattleman, "and 1 think the time has come for action. But this is not all—there are other offenses which we must avenge, and the sooner we do it the better. The settlers are shooting cattle all over this part of the state. Only today I received word from my partner up in Bourbon county, and he says they made a raid on his drove of cattle night before last, and, after stampeding the herd, shot down over twenty fine steers. Are we going to stand this or not? If we do, then we had just as well quit business and go home to Texas." "We are two of a kind," was the retort. "But to our business—we must nurry tnrongii with if with as much eipedition as will seem consistent." "Never heard of him,'" said the tall man "But I was trying to think of ■ome one there—tnought perhaps yon might have heard of him—his name is lliggsby"  /- Although it was early in September the storm had made the air quite chilly and a cheerful lire had been made in the office stove. Near this the two strangers bad seated themselves and were conversing in low tone. "Hit's goin ter rain all night, Sally," he said petulantly, "an 1 reckon this "That's a capital idea, for it wonld be extremely awkward for us if the old woman and boy should come staggering in there from Georgia and assert their rights." A look of profound astonishment crossed the landlord's face, and for a moment he almost discredited his ears. Then, as a smile of self pride crossed his face, he said, while a curious twinkle shone in his eye: wind will blow itself inter ribbons. Looks as if this country was made jist for the purpose of bavin a place for the winds to frolic over." The uiore Simon Riggsby thought over the matter the more convinced did he become that there was serious trouble ahead, and his encounter with Ropes would not tend to pacify matters. "Plague take the luck 1" exclaimed the tall man in a tone of vexation. "This is decidedly worrying to be wrecked here on the prairie wheu we have so much business to attend to at our destination." "There is one thing that makes me think Baruaby never Bent that letter to Georgia, and that is no word has ever come from the parties there, and it could not have been less than a month ago that ho wrote, if at all, for It was early in August that he died." "It is a heap windier than Georgy,* declared Mrs. Riggsby. "but we didn't bare no land in Georgy. and I guess it'i better to live on the windy prairy of Kansas add have a home of our own than to stay back thar and be rentic and inoviu round ail the time." "Yes—1 knowed a Riggsby—lived nigh ter Ringgold—used ter haul logs ter Paxton's mill—ole Simon Riggsby— know him?" "1 reckon I'd better send Dan over ter the crick an notify the settlers so they can be on their guard," he mused as he reflected on the condition of affairs. "I'll send him early in the mornin, fer there's no tetlin what mischief may be a-brew- I ran across Eugene Field once more the other day in Chicago. The gathering years have dealt very generously with Gene, and he is growing to resemble ine. Kansas Crrr, April 30,1889. Eugene Field. News, Chicago: Nye rtry ill west of Missouri what would you take for sixty nights with Riley? The short man nodded assent "We're notgoin ter stand it," declared the men with one accord. "But I guess we've got our business in a shape so it will beep." he remarked after a short pause, a cunning glitter in his small black eye. "Of course you have got the papers all right?" "Let me see," and the stranger drew some papers from his pocket, and glancing at them said, in a scarcely audible tone, "Wife of Simon Riggsby"—then aloud. "Yes, it was Simon Riggsby. Can you tell me if he is still there'/" Pond. "Then wc have got to commence war on the settlers at once," and this declaration Wits sanctioned by the men with a cheer. "That's so—jnst a few days before I dropped in on yon fresh from the great Rockies of Colorado, where X had l»eeii engaged in an unsuccessful search for gold." Eugene did not seem to understand the telegram, I judge, for he wired back: "Yes," he said, in that rich, deep, melodious voice of his, a voice that would win the chick-a-dee-dees down from the bushes—"yes," he said, coloring up with boyish delight, "several people have spoken of it. You do not mind it, do your" "Mebby that's so," admitted the man reflectively "But this prairy is power fnl windy—powerful. If a person conk! only bring the climate of Georgy hyai and fasten it on this prairy ao the wind wouldn't blow it away Kansas would be fit ter live in." and Simon Riggsby turned and gased out across the prairie where the rain was sweeping in sheett of gray across the level waste. in." Chicago, April 21,18W. J. B. Pond, Kansas City: I also am sick west of tho Missouri, but do not know what I would take. "Yes. and 1 don't intend that they shall get out of my possession till our little affairs are adjusted to our satisfaction,'' and the tall man tapped his breast pocket to indicate that the papers referred to were safely stored thevejn. Their conversation was soon interrupted by supper being announced, and they werenshered into the dining room, where they were served with a substantial repast.The two strangers and the stage driver now came into the room, having finished their supper. When Dan had carried the guests valises up to their room the tall man asked for writing materials, and being provided therewith he seated himself at the office desk and began to write rapidly, while his companion drew a cigar from bis pocket aud began to puff away, his eyes turned to the ceiling as if in deep thought. "Our first move," said Ben Ropes with a gesture of determination, "will be to burn the settlers' cabins and drive them from the couutry!" "And keeping out of the reach of the officers of the law," broke in the voice of the tall man with a chuckle. •He left thar a year ago." •'Where did he move tu?" 'Ter Kansas." Eugene Field. Mr. Field is an erudite scholar and a great collector of antiques. I have promised him a joke of mine to put with a bookworm which he has in a bottle of alcohol. "That's the idea!" came from the crowd "Exactly," replied the other, "but I fancy neither of us has any business that is liable to tako us back to Ohio." A look of profound amazement, not unmixed with apprehension, crossed the faces of both the strangers. "Oh, no," 1 said. "Anything that gives you pleasure pleases and delights me almost to death." "And the place to open the attack." continued Ropes, "is at old Simon Riggsby 8." "Not if we can avoid it," was the reply. "But to the business—do you think we can trust the woman to do the impersonating act?" "l)oyon know where ho is at present?" asked the tall man in a careless tone though there was a gleam of suppressed excitement in his sallow face. THE BANG. It was quite h good many years ago that Field ami I met in Denver. I had somo pelts to market one spring, the winter having been very severe on my stock, killing two ont of my herd of three cattle by its severity. Fearing to trust the arduous task to other hands, I took the pelts myself, together with an article on "How to Write on an Empty Stomach Without Pain." In his office while at work once he waa interrupted by a very raw visitor who wanted to see how ho thought his thoughts. "Do you think them easily?" he asked. "Do think them between meals, or how?" The Riggsbys had moved from Georgia and settled on a prairie claim in south eastern Kansas, thirty miles south ol Fort Scott, on the old military road As there was considerable travel ovei that road at that time—eighteen hundred and sixty-seven—Simon Riggsby had hil upon the idea of establishing a wayside inn, which he at once carried into effect. He erected a two story frame bouse near the road and hung up a rude sign over the front door, which read at follows: A buret of applause followed the cattleman's words, and a hard look came over the faces of the men that boded no good to the inmates of the Travelers' Rest. We visited the D. K. E. headquarters for a couple of hours in the evening, where we were made welcome with college song and salad and marmalade. 1 shall long remember our evening there among the future judges and physicians and governors of the Union; the young men in whose hands Mr, Blaine and I will soon have to place the welfare of our common country. While his guests were at supper Simon Riggsby proceeded to open the mail that had just been brought. A few moments later when Mr. Riggsby entered the dining room he found his wife just seating herself at the supper table. "1 am sure we can." "1 do. I am Simon Riggsby!" and the landlord advanced und held out his hand. "And she will not fail to meet us in Scott at the proper time?" "Oh, I never know when it will attack me," Field said. "This divine racket is liable to catch me at any moment." He then looked far away and his symmetrical limbs began to jerk. "Excuse me a moment," he said; "I most write a poem." He then put his feet on the table, with one heel in a ventilator over his head, and wrote that beautiful and pathetic little thing that has spoken with tenderness and tears in many lands, the story of "Little Boy Bine." The visitor did not know that Gene had already written it in his mind and only wanted a little leisure to put it on paper just as the visitor came in. but it happened so, and now he reports iu his home in Egypt, Ills., that Mr. Field has times when he can no more help writing a poem than a man can avoid feeling of a freshly painted letter box. "Only three letters," he commented as the pouch was emptied upon the [tine counter, "an 111 declare if hyar ain't one fer Sally—yes. sure .enough, an one fer Sug Whitwell an the other is fer Ben Ropes." At the time of which we write ther»D was a most outer w ar in progress oetween the settlers and cattlemen. The zauseof the trouble—or one of the causes, for there were many—wt*s the bringing into Kansas of large droves of Texas cattle. Those cattle were of a different breed to those owned -by the settlers, and in localities where they were herded the native cattle owned by tho settlers died in great numbers from what was called Texas or Spanish fever. This disease, it was claimed, was transmitted from the Texas cattle to those of native breed, und to prevent the spread of the disease, the settlers in some localities resorted to extreme measures to keep the Texas cattle ouCof the country. "She'll be on hand, never fear." "Did you give her the particulars of the business on hand?" [contim EID.] "Hyar's a letter fer ye, Sally." he said, thrusting his hand into his pocket. Then he drew it forth, a look of surprise on "No; I'd rather do that by word of mouth. Letters sometimes prove to be deuced aw V ward things when they fall into the wronjr hands." Many volumes and thousands of articles have been written to show the new generation how little the Americans of 1860 expected a great war, yet the popular caricatures of that time show it most clearly. Here are two from Harper's Weekly in the era when secession was ■till looked upon as a joke and the majority of the people lielieved that after a short disturbance Tie states would soon be as firmly united as ever. How little did a people expect war who could laugh at such jokes as these: Like » Thief In the Might. I went to The Tribune, which has •inco been swallowed up by Tho Republican. It was edited by O. H. Rothacker, since dead, and had Charlie Raymond at the counter, Field where he could be drawn on at a moment's notice for anything from a poem on "Thought" his face. Ou the train we saw a student with the most phenomenal chrysanthemum bang that 1 ever met. His hair elsewhere was short, and he wore the slightest little silk skull cap that fitted him like a bald head, but over his brow this wild and storm toaned bang boiled up in the most wonderful profusion and swayed to and fro like a bunch of straw colored asparagus gone to seed. "W'y, I've dropped it somewhar," he exclaimed. "I'll jist go back inter the office an look for it." Placing the one for his wife in his pocket he distributed the other two in the little row of boxes which were arranged in alphabetical order behind the counter. TRAVELERS' REST. : i Commodalion for Man and B—t. : But the most thorough search failed to reveal the whereabouts of the missing letter. ' "That's a fact; yon should have been a lawyer." "It isn't too late yet—suppose 1 study under youV" with a low laugh. Simon Rioosbv, Prop. "It's kinder handy ter have a postoffice in a man's bouse," he mused; "it beats goin fifteen or twenty miles fer a letter. Hit's a great gover'ment we have in this country an powerful couimodatin. Grant an his men made it perty lively fer us fellers fer awhile down in Georgy. an I had some perty hard thoughts agin 'em an lowed tbe country was ruined, but 'tain't so. The Union is right after all, an 1 know it don't hold no iU feelin toward a southern man er it wouldn't 'a' made me postmaster of Prairie City. It's tbe hand of Providence— that's tbe way it looks ter me—that things have been settled as they have. I hain't no ill feelin against the northbut—it's powerful windy hyar in Kansas" This venture had proved a profitable one. and tbe Travelers' Rest soon be oome well known as a popular stopping place for tbe freighters and other travelers on the Old Military road. Dan ftnd Fanny Riggsby were seventeen and fifteen years old respectively, and they afforded valuable assistance tc their parents in helping with the work •bout tbe place. * During the summer months Mr. Riggsby and Dan had cut and stacked nearly fifty tons of prairie hay, which made excellent food for horses and cattle and fonnd a ready market at the ins during the winter months. "What could have become of itJ" asked Mrs. Riggsby. "1 can't see how it could get ont of the house." "That wouldn't be a bad idea. What branch will you take up first?" "Wills." "It's a mystery 1 can't explain." replied Simon Riggsby in a vexed tone. "Bnt mebby we'll run across it somewhar about tbe bouse in the morniu." Both men laughed at this remark, and the conversation was broken off. After looking him aver 1 decided not to put the welfare oif our republic in his hands. Dan Riggsby, who had overheard every word that passed between the two strangers, remained silent, hardly knowing what to make of what he had heard There was one thing he felt sure of, how ever, and that was that the two strangers were connected with some business that was not altogether honorable. That they had entered into a plot to defraud some one out of an estate that had been left by a man who had died recently was plainly evident from their words. But the owners of the Texas cattle were stubborn and aggressive and refused to heed the warning of the settler*. Besides, they claimed that there was no such disease as Texas fever known among cattle, and that fhe dinease complained of was a species of merrin and not contagions. In support of this theory they produced abundant proof that no Texas cattle were ever afflicted with the disease known as Texas or Spanish fever, and to claim that they brought the disease into the state was absurd and unjust. "Wonder who it was front'/" asked Mrs. Riggsby. if ■- Several gentlemen in the smoker were telling how they had sworn off from certain things the other day. "I have sworn off in the matter'of -wet pool,"' said a traveling man, "1 couldn't say now, 'cause 1 only glanced at it, but it was mailed iu Kansas somewhar, and had beeu sent ter Georgy an forwarded round till it was ttnally sent hyar." "And what is wet pool?" the student with the bang and a chaperon was heard to inquire. "Maybe it war from Uncle James," said Mrs. Riggsby. "He was in Kansas somewhar when last heard from. Ha never wrote to none of us after he left Georgy for the west. He had some fallin out with the other members of the family, you renu rubjr, and when he told me goodby be said none of 'em would ever hear from him again, tnougb 1 alius thought he'd write to me, but he never did. He used to think so mueb-of Dan, too, acd was alius gettin him presents." Trademarks. «■ w"*^ A PAIR OF^-SUPPERS. "It is pool at the end of each game of which," said the bagman, as we call them in England, "the loser has to stand W ho were the parties to be defrauded? That they lived in Georgia was plain and as that was the native state of Dan. as well as his parents, he conld not help but feel more than a passing interest in it. Would he be justified in using the knowledge he had accidentally gainedr Dan asked himself over and over. The more he thought over the matter the more convinced he became that a great wrong was about to be committed, and it was his duty to use all honorable means vfrithin his power to prevent it. But what could he do? This question he could not answer; but he was resolved to lay the whole matter before his parents on the following morning and abide by their decision. He stopped his soliloquy abruptly, for ftt that instant the door opened and Ben Ropes, a man who owned a large herd of cattle which were being herded in that vicinity, entered. He was a heavily built man of some forty years of age. and his sun tanned face was almost completely covered by a thick growth of red beard. Two pistols were visible in his wide leathern belt, and in his hand be "carried a heavy cattle whip. "Howdy, Ben," greeted Riggsby as the man entered. "Jist got the mail an tbar's a letter fer ye." As he spoke he walked to tbe box and drew forth the letter and passed it to the owner. the grog." w* At* "And what made yon swear ofit?" came the birdlike voice of the boy with the noiseless bang. On the other hand the settlers claimed that the gornis of Texas fever were carried in the hoofs of the Texas cattle, and while it did not appear as a disease among them, it readily developed into such when transmitted to cattle of native breed. North—Lookee here, South, I'm git tin rayther cold. "Well, last Thanksgiving I was sort of practicing with the pool balls when a tall, thin man strolled up to the table and asked if I'd like to play. I said yes, and we played one game, which was 0:1 him, and he drummed on the floor with the butt of his cue and asked me what it would be. I told him, and we ha l the order tilled. So it went on till we had played twenty-seven games of wet pool. 1 did not sell any more goodslhat week, and when I got ready to go at it again 1 found out at the hotel office that my tall, thin adversary had been three days in his grave. South—Well, North, ean't say I'm cold, but am bloody hungry. Now you want my cotton. Worth—No. dern yon, you want my ccjm! Yon acknowledge the cor  NYE VISITING OKI*. to an obituary of the Ahkoond of Swatt, and Fred Skiff to aid and abet the others; and Tom Dawson, now at Washington and as fat as the thin, piping voice of a passe prima donna, gave dignity to the paper. "The letter might 'a' ben from him," said Mr. Riggsby reflectively, "though thar ain't no tellin. It's been nigh onto ten years since ha went away, hain't it?" This theory was supported by overwhelming evidence to the effect that wherever Texas cattle were driven, the native cattle were attacked with the fever if allowed to graze on the land over which they had passed. And thus matters stood at the opening of our story. /South—No; you cotton tome, compromise.) (They "Jist ten last spring, f hope well find the letter in the mornin, for it meeks me feel oneasy to lose it when it might be of emportance to us." NOT CP IX) THE SPIRIT OP OCR INSTITU- Mr. Field's room was entirely papered with envelopes, each of which hung on the wall by its flap, like a well merited rebuke on the brow of beauty when administered by my coworker in the dramatic field. Colonel John L. Sullivan. This was Gene's scrapbook. He has since secured letters patent on it, but is kept busy fighting infringements. It consists simply of a box of manilla envelopes, each of which, when called into use, contains the scrap with title on outside of envelope. Then the owner, with a dexterous movement of the damp tongue, prepares the flap of the envelope and deftly sticks it to the wall. When Field required any of these envelopes he would walk around the room, reading the titles, till he came to what ne wanted, and it' it happened to be out of his reach he would call Mr. Skiff, who is a very tall man, and mounting on his Bhoulders would soon- have it down. TIONS, "It warn't particularly fer the letter (hat 1 come," said Ropes as he took the letter and placed it in his pocket. "Jjist wanted ter warn ye that I've been losin more cattle, an onless this thing stops (bar's goin tar be trouble among the cattlemen an settlers." V-- "So it might, an I'll take a good look fer it as soon as daylight comes." CHAPTER IIL THE TALL MAN IS SURPRISED. Fur a long time he lay there thinking over what he had heard, till at last he tell asleep. While the two were discussing the missing letter Ceq Ropes had ridden to bis ranch house, and on arriving there he took the letter from his pocket, but to his surprise he found that he had two letters in the place of one. After reading his own he examined the other to find it addressed to "Mrs. Bally Ann Riggsby." "When I l»lay now it is for the natural exhilaration of the game, and the most arid pool there is is the pool I prefer." "Don't ye offer ter uae that pistolr The sun was just throwing its first lDeams across the level waste of prairie and tilling his room with a warm, red light when he woke. Hastily dressing he descended the stairs to the office, where he fonnd his father already up. A PAIR OF LONG, BLACK BUTTONLESS KIDS. —Truth. The section of the country in which the Riggsbys had taken their claim wat but sparsely settled at the time, then being tat two or three bouses on the road between that place and Fort Bcott. "I have sworn off from drinking in a drug store any more," said a large, powerful man, who handles millinery goods on the kerosene circuit in Kansas. "I have to make Kansas twice a year, and you know of conrso that there the prescription business runs largely to vini galici, tonics and the frumenti side of the pharmacopoeia. One evening we gathered in the back room of a drug store, three of us -Ellis, who handles overalls; Bascom, selling grain elevators and union depots by sample, carrying three trunks with street numbers an them instead of names, and myself. We took port wine three times around. I skipped the last round, because I had promised my wife before I left home that I would not touch liquor of any kind—unless 1 wanted to very much indeed. "What have 1 got ter do with yer losin cattle?" demanded Riggsby in a firm tone. Breaking the Xews. "That's jist what we'd like ter find out," replied Ropes in a significant voice. Mrs. Bingo (severely)—1 should like to know where you were last night? Six months after the completion of the wayside inn the place was made s postofliee, and Bitnon Riggsby was ap pointed postmaster. Ho it happened that a triweekly mail was brought tc the Travelers' Rest, the name of th« new postofliee being Prairie City. "Hit's the day for the stage ter bring the mail." muttered Riggsby, as ht gated through the window into the fast deepening twilight "Orter been hyai an hour ago—sumpin must be the matter.*"Ton don't dare ter insinuate that I'd folest yer cattle, do ye?" cried Riggsby, moving toward the speaker, bis face white with anger. "Ye didn't see anything of a letter atDont the house, did ye, Dan?" asked Mr. Riggsby as the youth entered the room. "Thar was one come fer yer mother in the evenin mail, but I drapped it somewhar an it can't be found." Bingo—Well, if the truth must be told, I was playing poker with Kingley, and, my dear, the last jack pot I bet him a new bonnet for you against a new bonnet for his wife. "I'll be hanged if I didn't pick up a letter that didn't belong to m«," he commented, as he gazed at the address on the envelope. "It's from some lawyer at Baxter Springs," he continued, as his eye fell on the small printed card on the letter. "Wonder what they could be writing to the Riggsbys about? IH open it anyway and see if it's fit for them to read," and a low laugh escaped him as be broke the seal and took the letter out. "If the shoe tits yeH—- Ropes did not finish the sentence, for with a spring like a panther Riggsby leaped forward and struck him full in the face, fie reeled against the wallthen steadying himself, he quickly drew a pistol from his belt and leveled it at the breast of the landlord; bnt at that instant Dan Riggsby leaped through the door and struck the weapon from his hand. Mrs. Bingo—Yes, my dear; and who won? "1 haven't seen anything of it," replied Dan. "How did you come to lose it?" British Tar (who has had some experience in Mexican and other revolutions, on landing from a long voyage, and, proceeding to inform himself, encounters a sensational newspaper and observes to shipmate)—Hello. Jack, blessed if they haven't got a revolution in Arneriky, and we've come ashore with nothing but our jackknives. Bingo—Well, you just wait until you see his wife next Sunday.—Life. "That's just what I don't know. 1 put it in my coat pocket, an it must 'a' drapped out soinewhar about the place." I was introduced to Field by Colonel VVtinam i_.igntroot Yuscner, of Kentucky, who was then running a bright little paper called " Hello 1" It was cut off by the central office about two weeks afterward, and folding its little tired hands over its pale, calm face, its little scare head fell forward on its form and all was still save the muffled remarks of the printers' towel or the dying echoes of the hammer as Colonel Visscher finished nailing another political lie. Irregular. Indignant Physician—Asafetida pills' Humbug! They won't do anybody a particle of good. They will make people sicker, if anything. Seating himself at a small table on which a kerosene lamp burned, he unfolded tne letter and read as follows: For over an hour he sat there absorbed Though Dan and his father made a thorough search through the house, no trace of the missing letter could be found, as the reader will readily surmise.As be spoke the dim outlines of some vehicle coming down the road loomed through the mist and darkness, and s few moments later the stage drew np and stopped in front of the inn. 1 Two passengers got out and came intc the inn carrying heavy valises. Simon «ggsby, who had arisen and hastily lighted the solitary lamp in the office went forward to welcome them. "Howdy, gentlemen," he greeted oordially. "Jist be seated. It's a pow erful nasty night ter be travelin." I "It is pretty rough," declared the tallei of the two men, a thin, sallow faced individual of some forty years of age "We wanted to reach Fort Scott tonight, tat the old wreck of a stagecoach became disabled, and it was all i we could do to get here." "I suppose we can get accomodation! for the aightT queried his companion, a thick, ha»vy set man with a bush; black beard and keen, restless eyee ol tha same sable hne. "The stage driver said we would probably be compelled tc remain here till sometime tomorrow." (« the book Itcfore him. As soon as Dan Riggsby had finished his work about the house for the night, he retired to his room upstairs. Lighting a kerosene lamp which sat on a table near his bed, he opened a small bookcase containing a dozen well worn volumes, and after gazing fondly at them for several moments he drew forth a work on natural philosophy, and seating himself by the table began to read. Phlegmatic Citizen—Then what are you howling about?—Chicago Tribune. With an oath of rage the discomfited sattleman turned and confronted the youth with blazing eyee. Reaching for his reserve pistol he made a threatening gesture, tat the warning voice of Simon Riggsby caused him to pause. "Don't ye offer ter use that pistol!" warned the landlord, leveling a rifle, which be bad taken from tbe corner, full fct the cattleman's head. "I don't mind tellin ye now that ye are a coward an a bully. But don't ye come around hyar tryin ter raise a fuss agin; if ye do yer liable ter git more ofjt than ye want." "Iiaw Office op Barnaby & Dill, "Baxter Springs, Kansas, "August 3, J 866. "Mrs. Sally Ann Riggsby, Ringgold,Ga. An Ultimatum. "Ellis went home with me and Bascom went to another hotel at the station. Ellis snored so in his sleep that I tried to wake him up, but couldn't, so 1 got mad and emptied the ice water all over his head. Then I poured the contents of the big pitcher on him-and got him on his feet, 1 gave him everything I had in my valise, including a package of common baking soda and a mustard plaster that was a Christmas present from my wife. Just as I got him so that 1 could walk him around the room and knew that he had given me a general idea of what his diet had been for a day or two, there was a big racket in the hall and a pounding on the door. A big doctor rushed in, and with him a sobbing drug clerk. The doctor rummaged arouDd among Ellis' vitals with a stomach pump, and finding that, barring a few follicles and the everyday coat of his stomach, he was pretty empty, he got his breath and told us that Bascom was dead and if Ellis got through it would be due to my wonderful foresight, for the clerk had given us laudanum the last round bv mistake. 3o I get along now without a prescription in Kansas, and hope to die a natural death, greatly beloved and mourned by all who know me, casting a great big gloom over our quiet little community and generally mourned on account of my charming qualities lDoth of mind and heart. Eastern papers please copy." Then the conversation gradually drifted into other channels, and a man who handles trusses for the northwest got to talking about hunting. He could shoot with unerring accuracy, he said, ana loved dearly to shoot all kinds of large Same. He preferred elephants, I judged from his tail*, and when lie scared up a covey of these little feathered songsters it was very seldom that any of them got away. A gentleman who contemplates the purchase of a certain piece of real estate in this vicinity, becoming somewhat impatient with the real estate agent who was negotiating the sale at his tardiness in obtaining the abstract, impatiently exclaimed, "Now, here, 1 want you to hurry up and get an abscess to that land, and no more fooling about it."—Salem (Or.) Irrigator. The Other Way. "It beats all," commented Mr. Riggsby, a puzzled look ou his countenance. "Why did Hicks fail? Didn't he stick to sound principles?" • 'That wasn't it. His sound principals deserted him."—New York Sun. "My Dear Madam—It is our painful duty to inform you of the death of your uncle, James H. Mansfield, who died at this place of a fever on the thirty-first of last month. "It does indeed," replied Dan. ''J expect we're goin ter have trouble with the cattlemen," said the father in a troubled tone. "Ropes has been lookin fer some chance ter raise a row with me fer some tune, an the trouble 1 had with him last night is liable ter bring matters ter a cressis. As soon as ye pat yer breakfast, Dan, I wish ye'd ride over ter the crick an tell a few of the settlers how things air goin. 1 look fer trouble right away, an it would be a good idee if all the settlers in this part of the country knowed it. Tell 'em toy pome ter my house an hold a meetin teruight, an we'll see what can be done." Field welcomed me heartily to Denver, and taking his foot out of a large hole in the wall which he had bored with his heel—a fashion he has yet while engaged in thought—he rose to his feet and catching apprehensively at the waistband of his trousers ere it was too late he put his suspender back over his shoulder again with a sigh of relief and grasped me heartily by the hand. While at work Mr. Field removes a great deal of his clothing. Sometimes when a poetess calls on him suddenlv while at work he only has time to stick his limbs into the drawers of his desk and run his head through a vile contemporary, allowing it to droop down over his shoulders, before some great warbler from the tall grass of the literary field enters t#6 room. A Fin De Steele Girl. "As the attorneys of your late uncle, it is our pleasure to inform you that he has left a will bequeathing you quite a snug fortune, consisting of valuable property and real estate situated in the city of Fort Scott, Kansas, some sixtyfive miles north of this place. Dan was an industrious and studious boy, and nothing afforded him so much satisfaction and pleasure as those short periods after working hours when he could retire to his room and be alone with his books. The Riggsbys were poor and books were costly in those days, and it was not often that Dan could afford the luxury of a new book. She can execute a rhapsody by Liszt as few can She can warble Schubert's Serenade—you'll do it; listen gladly to it; She can give a scene from "Ingomar," from Sure to Get Well. Mamma—Run for the doctor. Dick is very sick. "Hamlet" or "Othello," Her manner's very fetching, and her voice is sweet and mellow. "HI be even with ye for this," cried Ropes with on oath. "You've got the drop on me now, but yer'd better look out in the future." Little Papa—Don't worry. He'll be all right tomorrow. She can tell a story nicely, and she's something of a poet. "It is also our pleasant duty to add that the deceased has left a generous legacy of five thousand dollars in cash to your son, David Harlford Riggsby, yrhich is deposited in the Bank of Fort Scott, yon being appointed his executrix without requirement of bond. We should strongly advise you to proceed to Fort Scott as soon as it will sujt your convenience, where we could meet you at any time you might mention and adjust matters as you might be pleased to direct. "Don't yer threaten me!" broke in Riggsby: "1 ain't in the humor ter take any or yer talk jist now. lio! and uon t ye be long about it!" and as he Rpoke be made a gesture toward the door. "Why, how do you know?" And there's Dot a fad that comes to town but she's the first to know it. She's a devotee of Kipling, and she likes tb* style of Ibsen; Among the small collection of volumes in the bookcase were two works of fiction, "The Vicar of Wakefield," by Goldsmith, and "The Fair Maid of Perth," by Sir Walter Scott. There were old volumes wher he had come into possession of them, but now deprived of their covers and worn with much handling, they had come to resemble huge basswood chips. Yet they were the most prized of the collection. "It's snowing, and lie hasn't had a chance to try his new sled since Christmas.—Good Newa, "All right, father," answered Dan, and he left the room to do up his morning chores. She's "up" in art. and raves about Du Mtt Uriel and Gibson. With muffled expressions of baffled rage the cattleman moved toward the door. As he did so he stooped to pick up his hat which had fallen from his head in the scuffle. At the same time he saw a letter lying near his hat, and thinking it was his own which had fallen from bis pocket he picked it up and strode from the room. The Color Test. She enjoys a college football game- would walk five miles to view it; Knows the latest rose—or orchid—atwl tho florist who first grew it. She dances like a sunbeam; argues free trade and protection. And anxiously, intensely waits the coming fall election. A few minutes later the two 3trangers came down into the office. "Why are those two gatemen, one with the red and the other with the blue nose, being so intently gazed at by the engine drivers?" "Certainly, certainly," responded Riggsby hospitably. "Jist place yei —tchels by the counter thar, an I'll hav« 'em sent op to yer room as soon as my •on comes in. Our 'commodations ain't "Mornin, gents," greeted Riggsby. "Quite a pleasant mornin after the storm." He asked me to be seated, pointing to the only chair in his office, barring his own. I began to remove the exchanges, of which there were a great number, but he said; "Never mind the this, that and the other papers. Sit down on them. Everybody else does." So I sat down on them. I can remember it yet. There was no seat to the chair, and so I passed on rapidly till I struck the floor with much feeling. I never saw any one feel sadder than Field did over that, for he never conld bear to give any one needless pain, r Once he left a hotel in Denver and went elsewhere because, as he said to the proprietor, he had thoughtlessly, whilo asleep, rolled over on several little creatures in his bed, crushing the life and lights and fragrance out of them, and he would pay his bill, please, and go elsewhere; where he would not give pain to the smallest or smelliest of God's creatures. "Why, you see, that is the way the drivers are now tested for color blindness.—Huiuoristische Blatter. "Very pleasant," responded the tall man. "What is the prospect of fixing up the old stagecoach? Do you think it can be patched up to carry us to Scott?" She can teach a class in Sunday school, preside at som« high tea; She reads Emerson and Swedenborg and talks theosophy; She attends a school of languages and also on« of cooking. And apes the poaes of Delsarte to keep herself the best, but 1 reckon the ole house will keep the nun off—which ain't such a bad thing, considerin the kind of a night we're likely to have." "We are not going to find fault with our quarters," observed the tall man, ■eating himself in a chair which his host had placed at his disposal. "It's a lucky thing that we didn't have to remain mit ntn th* nnirio " "Trusting that you will favor us with an early reply, advising us as to your intended course of action, we are youi most obedient servants, There was not a book in the case that he had not read over and over again several times, and how often he would long for the day to come when he could purchase other books of which he had heard, the possession of which was his crowning ambition. The letter picked up by Ropes was the one which had arrived in the evening mail addro—sd to Sally Ann Riggsby, and had been dropped from Simon Riggsby's pocket "Yes; I've jist seed ter that, an 1 found a wheel in my shop that will do in the place of the broke one, an I don't think ye'll have any trouble gittin through all right." A.—You don't mean to say there can be two opinions as to whether lotteries are moral or immoral? The* Moral Standpoint. "Barnaby & Dill." An exclamation of astonishment escaped the cattleman's lips as he finished reading the letter. lithe looking; And her groat-grandmother's portrait, whicli was done in eighteen twenty. Keeps watch (althongh suggestive quite of dolce far niente)— Keep* watch and wonders (she who saw thd centory's beginning) at the many charms it takes to make a modern maiden winning! B.—Certainly. It all dejwnds whethei you win or lose.—Fliegende Blatter, "So there is a fortune about to come For over an hour he sat there absorbed in the book before him. then returning it carefully to the bookcase, he hastily undressed, and extinguishing the light he retired to his bed. CHAPTER EL TUB LETTER. into the possession of those scamps that's been causing us so much trouble of late! But it'll be a good long spell before they see this letter. My enemies is delivered into uiy hands—they are, by gosh! 1 reckon that blow you give me, Simon Riggsby, will be well paid for. Theu there's the boy—the little puppy—he knocked the pistol from my hand, and here's a chance to pay you back, my fine feller." "That's good; we have some important business to transact at the Fort, and should hate to be delayed any longer than we could possibly help." Not Exacting. Usher (at the church door)—Would yon like a seat near the front? At this juncture Dan Riggsby entered the room. "Hyar't a l€tter /er V«,Sally." For some time be lay there listening to the beating of the rain on the roof and the roaring of the wind without, till at last a sense of drowsiness stole over him, and he was just dropping into slumber when the sound of voices in the adjoining room aroused him. He recognized the voices as belonging to the two strangers who occupied the next room. "Certainly uot. certainly not," replied Mr. Riggsby. "But ye'll have tiner travelin terday than if ye'd went ou it the storm last night. It was nasty weather, an the wind was blowin hard enough ter take the hair off a man's head. It s powerful windy in  powerful." Mrs. Seldomcom'jd (with some hesitation—N-no, thanks. A good seat in the parquet circle will do just as well.—Chi cago Tribune. —Cincinnati Commercial Gazette. "(Jo oot an tend ter the stage hossea, Dan," said the father, going to the door and opening it The youth hastily obeyed, and in a few moments the driver came into the room, the water dripping from bis broad brimmed bat and rubber coat He carried a small leathern mail Gentleman—You don't mean to say you call this flavorless stuff oxtail soup, waiter? Making It Stronger. If She's Bright and I'retty It'» Worth It. He vraa shooting the Rocky mountain sheep last year in iliwit-nna, he said, and had bagged two or three at about 3 in the afternoon. He was just eating his frugal lunch of hot terrapin, cooked over an alcohol stove which he always carried with him, when a bighorn weighing at least 600 pounds sprang past him and stood about 600 yards from him on a ledge across a deep gorge in less time than it requires to ejaculate the word "scat!" "The sleighing isn't much, is it?' asked Bromley. Wait«r—Yessir. pouch in his hand, which he banded to the postmaster. "Perty rough weather on ye, Jim," observed Riggsby, depositing the pooch behind the counter. "Bin bavin a breakdown, I bear; anything very bad7" "Well, yea," answered the driver. "One side of the off front wheel is completely smashed, and I bad to lock it so I oould move at all, and Sm hyar to aay mUia.* With a gleam of evil triumph upon his face Ropes thrust the letter into his pocket; then rising from the table he walked into an adjoining room, where a half dozen cowboys were engaged in playing cards and amusing themselves in other ways characteristic of those who live on the frontier. "It is quite disagreeable in that respect," remarked the tall man. "Isn't? Dollar and a half an hour!" was the characteristic reply of his close friend.—Yonker's Statesman. Gentleman—Then take it out and let the ox dip his tail in it two or threa more times.—London Tit-Bits. Only a thin board partition separated the two rooms, and the voices were quito audible. Without any intention of playing eavesdropper, Dan could hear what was said, and in the first words he recognised the voioe of the tall man. So he went away to another place, for Field has a tender heart. "It's more 'an that—it's aggrivatin, an nearly pesters the life out of me. If a a heap windier 'an Georgy." Mr. Stone, who used to own The News, but who is now a banker and has pleas* ant relations with dividends and first mortgage bonds and preferred stock, said that three little boys hung around his office once for several days, attract' ing his attention by their brightness and their pathetic and hungry look, till at fart he uuuured about. for Vhffr Sad New*. Ink spots, if dried in the wood, are difficult to eradicate. Strong vinegar or salts of lemon may remove tbem. Strong muriatic acid or spirit of salts applied with a piece of cloth, and the spot afterward well washed with water, will remove all (race* of ink.—Geod Housekeeping. Removing Ink from Wood. Neighbor—How de do, my little man? I hear your father has come into a fortune. Are yon not glad? Little Man—No'm, I'm orful sorry. "Dear met Why?" "'Cause he says now I've gotter bt •ducated."—Good News, "You have lived in Georgia, then?' said the tall man, a look of interest suck denly appearing on his countenanoe. "1 am of the opinion that we can't get through with this business any too quickly," said the voice, in low but distinct torn  "What was the trouble between you and Ropes, father?" asked Dan when the "What's the matter, Ben?" asked one of the men, glancing at the red spot on the cattleman's face, canned by the blo^ "Lived tharl Reckon I did: went thar from Arkanaaw in forty-one, an didn't wtaeftWftT tUUbootLXMiagft Seizing his trusty rifle and placing it to bis shoulder it was but tb9 TTQlk of a