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Show THE MAN f ROM CR8PPLE CREEK RECALLS A HUNCH THAT WAS WORTH $10,000 "When it conies to guessing what cards Divine Providence holds in its inscrutable in-scrutable hand." said tho Cripplo Creek man. roachiug over until his linger connected con-nected with tho push button. "L don't play a very strong game. It'u like' a system to beat roulette. Just when I'vo figured out that some fellow who's been working twelve hours everv day (o make good is going to got a lift, Providence Provi-dence overlooks him like a while chip or mavbo sets him back in tho nine hole. But if a man plays fifty-seven varieties va-rieties of darned fool she's sitting on his doorstep before the milkman gets around, waiting to tip her hand. "Now there was Shady Myrick 's hunch. A hunch? It's a sort ot good-luck good-luck presentiment that Providence eends, only a lot stronger than a presentiment pre-sentiment to the deluded mortal that gets one, especially if his weakness of mind runs to poker. This huuch of Shady 's came along a good spell before he'd developed any horse sense, of course. He connocted with it a few months after we'd been over looking around Silverhcels, the time Short Lino Hawkins decreased the population of that camp by Big Henry. We'd found a good claim on that trip, the Wonder, it was called, and gotten a 90-day option to buy it for $5,000. Wo put Shady in charge of a gang to work it. Short Lino and I being ovcrbusy at Leadvillo with soino heathen that wanted (o jump our Littlo Annie mine. We also extracted ex-tracted a promise frmi him not to invest in-vest a penny in liquor or poker except under the most aggravating circumstances. circum-stances. "For a couplo of months Shady dubbed along stead', developing a good vein and sending in reports pretty regular reg-ular for him. Then his letters began to breatho of iron stains and other rich svmptoms, until about a week before tho option was up thero came a letter chockful of hallelujahs. He'd broken into a chute of $400 ore, and no foot-wall foot-wall iu sight which, if you knew mining, min-ing, would sound like mighty big money to you. Ho told us lo scud over tho $5,000 quick, so wo rustled the cash, fired it to him bv the first mail, aud waited anxiously for further news. Stage Driver Brought Bad News. "But tho news didn't come. Wo met every 6lago from Silverhcels and haunted haunt-ed the -postoffiee, but it was worse than trying to get information from beyond the tomb. Ou the fifth day we tackled the stago-drivor. 'Oh. yes.' he replied, with a disagreeable smile, 4 Shady 's over at Silverhcels all right. That is, his body is, but his happy spirit is floating 'mongst tho feathery clouds, playing tag with tho angels.' " 'Dead.' I ejaculated. " 'No, drunk,' returned tho driver, 'plentiful, glorious drunk.' ''I looked at Short Lino in dismay. " 'Shady probably interprets that oro strike as aggravating circumstances,' he remarked quietly. ' I reckon mine and money are both gone, but we'd better go over and save what, wo can from tho wrock.' "Wo were two might' sad and weary travolcrs when we got oft' tho stago at Silverhcels next day at dusk. Tho owner of tho Wonder had como over, too. ne'd heard of Shady s strike and was going to bo on tho spot to take possession next dnv if wo didn't ante up that $5,000 at sharp noon. The mine was worth ten times that. wi i i aiina hw i tmm' wiw i mm 4 'Tho first man wo met was Con Featherl.y. , " ' I know what .you're going to ask, ho said, 'but it's all over. Shady 'a a total loss by this time, lie como to me about two hours back with a jag you Couldn't put in a tub, and says most hilarious how ho's going to do Jake what used to bo ono of Big Henrys gang, 'causo thoy'd trimmed him close the night before you shot that gent. Then ho unwinds a drunken yarn about a scheme soino follow and he's cooked up an old motheaten trick they teach boys tho first year at boarding school. The fellow's to give four aces to Jake and a four-card straight flush to Shady, flashing the top card to him to show ho'll fill his hand on tho draw. They bot high, and when Shady takes ono card that'll make Jake think ho has fours to go, which his aces will beat, because, be-cause, natural!'. Shady wouldn't bet a four-flush so high before the draw. Then when they're all in, Shady 's to show down n straight flush and Jake goes home as lean as a coyote maybe. Eeftisod to Sec the Flimflam. " 'I told Shndj- ho was being played horse with; that he might as well try to rono a humming bird with a lariat as catch that .lake crook with a poker trick, but his so'zy brains couldn't see it. lie just pulls out a roll ofi bills, waves 'cm at me and saj's: "It's money lo buy the Wonder with tomorrow morning, morn-ing, but I'll double it tonight and break slimy Jake, too. Cot a hunch big as a hipperpotamus. By-by, '' he says, reeling reel-ing ofi' down tho street, "going to meet 'em now. Pearson, ho's got .Jaku cor-ral''l. cor-ral''l. " ' "T tried to follow him, but lost out in the crowd. 'Yes,' concluded Con, sadl 'I reckon he's all in by this time. ' " Tt was useless trying to find that wandering sinner, so wo returned dis-cousolatelv dis-cousolatelv to the hotel, tilted our chairs against tlio , barroom wall. and -cussed him deep and plenty. Suddenly Short Line sat up. " 'There ho is now,' ho exclaimed, pointing toward the "door. "I looked and saw Shady eulering: not the drunken, shaggy Shady I had expected, but a man, clean, neat and, though a trifle nervous and pale, walking walk-ing erect and sober. Ho came over to us and gravely shook hands. " 'Just closed a deal on tho Wonder.' Won-der.' ho remarked calnil-- " 'Closed what?' I exclaimed. " 'The deal ou tho Wonder,' ho repeatedly re-peatedly quiotly. I could see now ho was holding a tight curb on himself. 'Got the deed right here,' ho added. 'Como upsfairs' " 'His reason's gone,' I whispered to Short Lino as wo followed to Shady 's room. 'Liquor aud loss of money and mine has turned his brain, aud he's plumb loo'ney. ' Short Line uoddod. "Wo entered in silence. Shady seized a bottle and with shaking hand poured out half a tumbler of liquor. "'Pass it. Shadj-,' said Short Line. 'You'ro drunk now, or crazy, or both.' " 'Never was as sano in my life, or as sober,' answered Shady, downing tho whisk'. 4 A man who 's just been through hell with his hat off needs something before he can talk reasonable reason-able about what hns happened. Is my hair whitc7' " 'No, but your faco is,' replied Short Line, curtly. 'Whero's the need?' " 'Hero,' said Shady, handiug him a document, 'Judge Goddard drew it.' "As he road tho deed tho sour look on Short Lino's face gavo placo to one of bewilderment and surprise. 'It s all right,' he said.- 'Did you pay Hunter tho monev for it?' " 4 Do 'you thiuk that old tight-wad would a' let loosn without the cash7' asked Shady, with a smile; tho liquor was taking hold. " 'I kuow,' said Short Line, looking puzzled, 'but I thought you'd ' Had Built Up a Spectacular Jag. " 'Hoi' on,' cut in Shady, gulping down auothor big ono, 'aud I'll tajk it right down lo tho hock card. While I was waiting for the owner of the Wouder to como for tho monoy I got to feeling so good over that striko that I just couldn t keep off the juice. Then o'' course I got tanked, badly tanked. For a weok I was wearing the suu as a breastpin and riding herd on the stars. This morning, after an ull-night of it, 1 seen thrvt Jake man that was Big Henry's pard. Right off I had a. hunch I was going to do him out o' his wad. told a follow named Pearson about it. fellow I'd knovcd back in Missouri but uot as woll as I thought I did. He says if I had a real hunch ho'd hive tho deck for mo so's we could surely harpoon Jake good and plenty. All wo needed, ho says, was lo get him roped into u game. His plan was to deal me " 'Never mind tho scheme interrupted Short Line. 'Con told us all about it. What happened? Go on.' " 'Well,' continued Shady, 'the week's festivities had got me so loosed that Pearson's scheme looked easier to sudden wealth than a government contract. con-tract. So into it I went, liko a bear at a bnzzsaw. We played down in Murphy's backroom, aud the drinks como so fast that I had to shut my eye to keep from seeing fifteen spots oil a deuce card. The play got heavier every hand, until chips wasu 't big enough, and wo took to cash, big cash. But. drunk as I was, I kept my oyo on Pearson. By and by thcro comes on a big jackpot that goes 'round a couple or times. When it comes Pear-sou's Pear-sou's deal third time I gets a four-straight four-straight flush, with the eight o' hearts at the top. I know that means ho's dealt Jake four aces. I passes, o' course, and Jake opens tho pot big and heavy. Pearson passes out and takes up the deck liko he's ready to deal tho draw. IIo flashes the top card to me and I sees it 's tho heart nine, as we'd agreed. Then I looks at my hand, appears to fiud something there I hadn't seen before, and raises that Jake bet heavy; Jake, he comes back sonic heavy himself, but it wasn 't a marker io the lift I give him. All that was bothering me was I might raise him out cveu with his four aces, for I could see that nine o' hearts there in Pearson's hand ready to fall in and fill I my straight flush. '" 'But Jake wasn't going lo bo raised out. He nceled off a thousand dollars and flung it in tho center. Raised Him $2000. " ' "Talk to that," ho said, skinning over his hand again. " 'I skinned mine, too, to mako sure none o' them hearts bad got away. Thoy hadn't. I counted out $2,000 o' that Wonder money and shoved it in. '" "Talk," I ?ays. "I can talk loud; come some more." " 'IIo sweetened her up, one more thousand on that. It mado me perfectly perfect-ly penceful. I knew I'd got his game tor tho Test o' that $5,000, aud set in the balance. "Come and sco mo on that littlo raise," T says. " "All y' got?" says Jake with a sneer. 4 4 Here wo go." and he sized up1 to what I had put in. "ljot the, Mr. Dealer .give us a few cards now," ho says. '" ' "One card." T says. Jake says he '11 take one, too. I hail my eye glued ou that nine o' hearts card on lop the deck. Pearson took it in his lingers and flipped it over to mo. It fluttered in tho air a spell like its wings was broken; bro-ken; then it turned over and fell on tho table, face up a dead card! " 'T was sober in a second; dead so. ber. Tho card lying there with tho bend on the corner Pearson had put in it to make it turn over told the whole story and squeezed the liquor out of mv brain liko a roller in a crushing mill. T was done up for cash and mine, and everything, and things were gone lo h 11. But there was ono little white chip in that black stack o' misfortune. I'd u good excuse for killing Jake. Just as T reaches for my gun I hears Pearson's Pear-son's voice coming to me liko in a trance. It was soft and low, "Excuso mv fumbling," ho says; "here's another an-other card." '' ' As J sets there a. minute, undo-cided undo-cided whether to puJl tho gun or take up the card he'd just doalt, I hears tho still small voice o' that hunch again. That decides inc. I reaches for tho card aud looks at, it. It was the .' Shady halted for another drink. " 'D n it, go on,' exclaimed Short Line. " 'What was it?' Tho Crooks Forgot the Other End. " 'It was the four o' hearts. Short,' says Shady. 'An' tl come like tho shaddor of a great rock in the desert. Jor it lilted my straigut tiusn at tnc other end. Them crooks had forgot about that, and my hunch just naturally natural-ly took care o' inc. I had plenty o' time to get ready while Jake spread out his aces, he not suspecting what I was loaded with. I set my gun over the table before I spread out my hand. "I'm going to show y' how a man fiUa a straight flush anyhow." I says, with a smile, and drops the little sequence on, the table ono by one. "Now," I says, keeping the gun looking llrst at one and then tho other, "if you genls aro disposed dis-posed to mako any objection while I pocket this pot, you'd better say what few last words vou'd like to have to go to your friends right now." And with that I commenced cramming tho monoy in my clothes. " 'No, thoy didn't mako no kick. Thov was too" flabbergasted. But after I'd "backed out o' the door I heard Jake's voice say, "D n you, you flim-flammed flim-flammed rncl " and then a h 11 of a thumping; but 'twarn't none o' my business, so I come on away, got a shave and a clean-up, found old Hunter and closed up the deal for the Wonder. But say.' he concluded, 'wasn't that a four-time-winner of a hunch?' " 'Wo'U take that $5000 you won and buy a mill for tho Wonder,' said Short Line, ignoring Shady 's inquiry. " 'Sure,' said Shady; 'that's what I was going to do. But I sure would a' liked a shot at that Jake,' he added, ir-rolcvantly." ir-rolcvantly." (Copyright, 190S, by F. P. Morse.) |