Show A STRANGE HISTORY FANNY CROACHER DESERTED LIVES IN THE FOREST A fortune made by gambling left it alone araso ml croacher crox takes take up homestead Homei tead and lives for far eighteen courll alone la in the pine fine forest superior wis letter N the old military wagon toad road about 0 five miles from ram the city ot of superior in the midst of it a dense pine forest and hidden from the view of travelers by a cluster of I 1 towering tower ng firs stands it a quaint old leg cab in which has been for or eighteen years and Is now the home ot of an eccentric and most interesting feminine charac ter her real name Is unknown and strange to say never has been known during her eighteen years of 0 residence in this section of 0 the country years ago she was known all over the head bead of the lake region as fannie fannia croacher the homesteader she came here with a man mait named croacher from pennsylvania and resided with him for or a tew few months at the old superior house she was supposed to be the old gentle mans daughter but after his desertion of her she denied all relationship to him and took up her residence upon a homestead tract ot of land always after she objected to any mention ot of the num name e croacher and requested that noname acquaintances quain call her lust just plain fannie gradually time relieved her ot of the tha hated appellation and substituted a 0 4 FANNIE CROACHER name that better suited her tancy fancy and condition fannie queer Is the name under which she now lives but occasionally an old acquaintance excites her ire by politely saluting miss croacher fannie queer Is one of the shrewdest card players that ever sat at the table round she has fought many it a desperate battle of chance with men in all stations ot of life iffe she has won and lost a dozen fortunes but a cool head bead and good judgment together with a boldness ness marveled at by the card sharks with whom she had come in contact invariably prevailed over discouragement her course differed from too the usual one of the professional gambler and to today day she Is a rich woman though still engaged in the card bus business I 1 ness and living a life of seclusion with the wolves and other wild animals of the forest as aa neighbors fannie Is 35 years of ago age but retains the beauty tor for which she was noted eighteen years ago though associated goc socia ted with all classes of people principally of the masculine gender during her long residence in the wilderness berness der ness sg and experiencing many of the ups and downs and hardships and inconveniences usually attendant upon a backwoods life miss bliss queer Is not only a disciple of modesty but to is recognized at the bead of the lake a as the possessor of thoroughbred manners and its as an intelligent thorough lady with perhaps tho the one falling that from which she alias ha derived the little fortune which Is supposed suppo ged oiled to be stored away chiere the eye of man can never gaze upon it except by her own will she Is a brunette always neatly but not lavishly dressed and the tha long black hair that depends depend from a knot on the back of her well formed head bead Is the only feature not modern about her make makeup UP when she located upon the homestead claim her object in n so doing was to acquire the timber standing stan dlce thereon which she be was told lold would bring not cot less than 1000 during thi the period of live five years which she was required I 1 by the government to remain up upon on the claim she came in contact with many residents of superior besides hundreds of men employed in the pine forests surrounding her home she learned to play nearly every card game that was ever invented and learned to play them well but otis be never played tor for money because she had 4 but little money to play with until one evening a young woodsman who had received his pay for a seasons work happened tb that atway way with a number of friends and requested lodging for fo the night situated as aa she was on a well traveled road in the center ot of logging operations the she had bad made it a practice of 0 supplying food and lodging to ta travelers and deriving considerable income this young man to in question with big bl friends was cordially received on an a raw march night and to pass page away the time a game gam of cards was played it was WAR pokey poker for money and the young lady was wa a novice but she proved an apt scholar and a lucky one no she won forty or fifty atty dollars this gave her a start and after that day the fascination for card plit playing liag gained the better of her at the mid of live five years she sold her ber timber tor for 1000 and for a few years after that the she met wibb very poor luck in her ber lard card manipulations she became known among the lumbermen as aa a sucker and the lumber jack that have tho the money often borrowed it to get into a little cams ame with fannie they were usually successful but after a time her luck began to change then came a period of ills most extraordinary success that ever befell a poker player some eald cald vie she cheated but they watched her closely and discovered nothing others said she was bewitched but all respected her and agreed that she was a great player and an exceptionally good bluffer she had bad accumulated 10 at one time but there came another change and again she was looked upon as a sucker although she had lost every cent of her accumulations she did not want tor for backers and in six months thereafter she was worth she was always willing to bett bet to her limit and at one time lime was known to have hare staked on a pair of dette deuces cs her opponent to lay bonn a trl full hoase her fortune grew steadily year after year and in the spring of she ate waa v as supposed to be worth about the common wage lumberman had almost ceased to call at her home but the professional card players ot of milwaukee chicago minneapolis and other western cities had determined to secure a slice of her snug little fortune and they dil did succeed by forming a combi combination nation that spring in reducing her limit to A year later she came in contact ath with a party of fishermen from chicago they were well supplied with money and the lady succeeded in relieving them of within a weeks time they accused her of cheating and threatened to raid the place pace providing she did not refund the amount ol of her winnings but a colts dexterously brandished brandishes bran dished satisfied the gentlemen that card playing was not the sole achievement invoked by their hostess in the matter of getting along in the world the only person in this vicinity win wilt claims to know anything about the past history of this mysterious person Is a colored woman known as aa aunty aulty grant who now resides at superior she claims to know that miss queer was the daughter of a wealthy phila delphian delp delph blan lan who came west on a tour of speculation and brought his daugn dauga ter wit with him in superior ho he became infatuated with a married woman and left with her tor for the east without saying goodbye good bye to the daughter the girls mother had died the year previous so that there was no loving relative left to give her comfort or to guide her she wrote home tor for money to travel elst east with and received a check tor for with instructions to remain west and shift tor for herself sh she did so BO and the eighteen years of 0 lit ufa on a pine claim has been the result |