QUAIL SHOOTING 303 



tion, which consisted of six hundred acres of land. 

 For all this work he received the princely sum of one 

 hundred dollars per annum. Thien he entertained us 

 with many tales of the moonshiners — those defiant 

 breakers of the revenue law who ply their secret and 

 perilous calling in these regions. Two days before 

 our visit one of the best-known of the moonshine 

 fraternity had been shot in cold blood by a man who 

 had informed upon him and who alleged that in 

 consequence of his act his life was not safe, and there- 

 fore he killed him. The murderer was even then out 

 of jail on $500 bail, and our driver predicted that if 

 he lived to be tried he would surely get off ; but he 

 " allowed it war more likely he would be killed before 

 the trial was reached." 



Then the old fellow told us the story of a fight that 

 had taken place the previous evening, and which 

 ended in the possible death of one of the participants. 

 " You see," said the old man, " one of the fighters is a 

 chap known around these yer diggings as 'Ked 

 Angel.' He's a tough cuss to tackle, but when he 

 got through with that scrimmage, I tell you, stranger, 

 though there was plenty of red about him, he didn't 

 look much like an angel. Why, sir, he was so 

 battered, and hammered, and cut and slashed that his 

 best friends didn't know him. I never did think 

 much of that fellow, no how, and I'm darned glad 

 that for once he got a bellyful of his own med'cine." 



