es he heers a sound o futsteps behind him, an stops an turns round,
heed no gun nor nothin wotsomiver wid him, havin left all the tools at
the place he was digin. in a moment round the corner cums the bar ful
swing, it was a sharp turn, and the site o the mate kuite took him
aback, for he got up on his hind legs and showed al his grinders, mister
cupples was also much took by surprise, but he suddently shook his fist
in the bar's face, an shoutid, ha, yoo raskal, as if he wor spaikin to a
fellar creetur. whether it wos the length o the mate's face, or not bein
yoosed to convarsashun, no wan nos; but the bar he 'bout ship, clapt on
all sail, and stood away up the gulch at the rait o 15 or 20 nots, while
mister cupples he looked after him chuklin, an bunco and big ben too was
larfin fit to bust their sides, the they larfed inside, like, for fear o
diskiverin thimselves, but when big ben see the bar cleering off like
that he up wid his gun, let drive, an put a bal kuite nate in the bak of
his skul if mister cupples wasnt afeerd o the bar, he got a most awful
frite by the shot, for yoo must no theres bin a dale o murtherin going
on at the digins of lait, tho, be good luk, its not cum our way as yet,
so he turned and run like al posesed. yoo no what long leggs hees got,
faix, he cleerd the ground wid them like a peir o kumpasses, an he was
out o site in no time, an cum heer pantin and blowin like a
broken-winded steem-ingin. soon after that, big ben cum in wid the skin
o the bar over his shoulder, and bunco caryin his too hams to smok, for
bar hams ant bad aitin, let me tel yoo, if yoor hungry an not
partickler. of koorse mister cupples hasnt had the life of a dog since,
for the boys are for iver jokin him amost out of his siven sensis about
that bar.

"This is about all iv got to tell, mister osten, not but that i cud go
on for paiges an paiges yit, given ee odds an ends o smal tawk an ginral
nuse, for whin i wance begin wid the pen i niver no when to stop--its
awthership il taik to, maybe, if iver i git into diffikultys--but its ov
no yoos spinin out a yarn when its done, so il stop now, wishin ye all
helth an hapines, wid the saim from all yer owld frinds at the grizlie
bar gultch digins. they bid me say thail never forgit the hapy days
theyve spent wid ye in the south says, an the forests of south ameriky
an the roky mountins. but them days is all past an gon now. sure i
sometimes feel as if the hole thing was a draim. do