Part 26

Where was Bill? In the sleeper was a smooth-faced young man who had taken off a cowboy suit of clothes, put on a bran new suit of black broadcloth, gold eye-glasses, clean-shaved face. This preacher- looking fellow soon came into the car where the big man and myself were talking over the loss, and sat down near us. I was busy pumping the sucker to see if he had any more money.

"Why, anybody can play that game," he said, and of course I remarked: "The dealer though has every advantage, as he has two cards to your one. If I had some cards, I would show you how it is done."

That was enough for the preacher-looking man, and, slipping back into the sleeper, he procured some cards and dropped them down into one of the seats near me. I saw them and picked them up, observing, "I believe these are the same cards."

The sucker looked at them and declared that he believed they were.

I began playing the cards, but the fat fellow said, "You are pretty good, but you can't handle them like the cowboy did."

"It wants practice," I said.

I practiced on, when up stepped the preacher-looking, gold-glassed individual, saying: "I'll bet you a dollar I can guess the card."

"Oh, I don't want to bet with any boy preacher," I said.

"I'm no boy preacher. I'm studying to become a priest."

"You'd better keep that dollar; that's my advice."

I was only waiting for Bill to put a mark on the card, which he soon did while I went back to get a drink. As I came back they all began to laugh at me, and the big fellow said, "Any fool could tell the card the way you throw them."

Then I pretended to get mad; so I offered to bet $2,000 that no man could turn the right card.

The priest spoke up, "I'll bet you $200 in gold that I can do it."

"Put it up," I said.

This made the sucker crazy, for he was so anxious to get even that he pulled out and counted down $860. But I would not bet less than $1,000. There was a little man standing near who offered to loan him the $140 to make up the $1,000, when Bill turned and said, "I'll bet you $500 that my friend, the big man, wins."

Talk about monumental gall; I thought then that calling the fat man his friend, who a few moments before had been chasing him around, ready to kill him, was about the grandest specimen of sublime impudence that I ever saw.

The big fellow turned the card, and lost as usual, and the little man looked at me, then at the fat man, as much as to say, you two rascals are partners. He took the priest aside, who was no other than Canada Bill, and assured him that he was positive of this fact. I won the money, and there was no kick.

CLOSE CALLS.

I never will forget the night that Canada Bill and myself were on the Michigan Southern Road, where we had been working for some time, and finally shaken down a man for $1,200. He telegraphed ahead for a warrant to arrest Canada Bill, and I knew that Bill would have to hustle, as the cars would be searched. I hurried him into the sleeper and found a top berth that was empty, while a lady occupied the lower. Her dress was laying in the top berth, and she was fast asleep in the lower one.

"Bill, jump into this," I cried, holding up the garment.

He refused at first, but as the emergency was desperate, at last consented, and, tying a handkerchief around his head, his face being as smooth as a baby's, made as fine a looking woman as you would want to see.

Along came the officers with the conductor and lantern, and searched all the berths in the sleeper; but as soon as they spied the two ladies in the two berths, upper and lower, they apologized and hastily withdrew. When I was asked where Bill was, I informed everybody that he had gotten off, and I feared was seriously injured. Reaching Detroit early in the morning, Bill managed to escape from the cars unnoticed, and I got out at the depot as if nothing had happened.

Another time, on the Missouri Pacific from Kansas City to St. Louis, Bill and I succeeded in beating a Jew out of a few hundred dollars. He was a gamey little hooked-nosed son of Abraham, and, like all the rest of his class, loved money as a duck does water. So when he was on the platform he drew a pistol from his hip pocket, and resolved in an instant to die, thinking, no doubt, it was preferable for a Jew to be dead, rather than penniless.

Placing the muzzle to his mouth, he pulled the trigger. A flash, loud report, when all the passengers rushed out to see what had happened. The Jew lay on the platform, bleeding at the mouth. We straightened him up, held over his head to spit out the blood, when out dropped the bullet. Two of his teeth were gone, which must have checked the speed of the bullet, as it had found lodgment in the rear of his mouth. Of course he didn't die, but he had a close call.

Bill and I made a good deal of money one night going up on the cars from Jackson, Miss., to Vicksburg. The suckers began to kick, and I saw trouble ahead, so I told Bill to hustle into the sleeper, but he sat still. I went on into the smoking car. A large man grappled Bill, and, pulling a long bowie-knife, demanded every dollar he had won, and the watches. The conductor hurriedly called me, and grabbing my Betsy Jane, I rushed back just in time to knock one of the men senseless with the butt end of the weapon, which I drew on the rest and held them at bay. This was long enough to allow Bill a chance to reach the platform, pull the bell cord, and jump off. I was not long in following, and that, too, was too close a call to be styled pleasant.

A EUCHRE HAND.

One evening I played a game of euchre on the Grand Republic with a sucker. I gave him a big hand, and told him I could euchre him. He offered to bet $100, and I bet him $500. Up went the money, when down came the clerk, who I knew would stop the game; but quickly giving my hand to my partner, I rushed up and grabbed the clerk, good naturedly holding him until Bill had all the stuff taken. The clerk made a holy howl and a terrible kick, but I gave him the laugh, telling him that if he made me give up the money it would be taking the bread and meat out of my mouth. This amused him, and no more was said.

I was playing in a game of poker at one time, and one of the party was a friend of mine. I saw I could win some big money if I could get my friend out of the game. I tried every way I could to run him out, but he was game, and would not run, so I at last ran him up a hand, and then broke him; then he retired in good order. After getting him out I started in and made the balance of the party sick in less than no time. After the game broke up, I found my friend and asked him how much he lost. He told me. I handed him the amount, saying, "I tried to get you out of the game without winning your money, but you would not go, so all I could do was to break you; but I never try to beat a friend, so I want you to have all your money back."