WESTERN NICKNAMES 9 



nose. He looked a hard character, and was the 

 drunkenest man I ever saw. The two men got off 

 the wagon, and dragged No. 3 up the bank and into the 

 car. There was a general cry of "Take him out;" but 

 they put him in a seat, one of the men staying with 

 him, the other going off with the wagon. All the miser- 

 able, intoxicated wretch could say was "Purpose," 

 and he went by that name the rest of the journey. It 

 is very amusing the way persons get nicknamed from 

 their peculiarities. Every one has to submit to it. A 

 fleshy fellow was called "Sockety;" one young man, 

 who was very attentive to a young schoolmistress in 

 the next car, went by the pet name of " Cupid;" a 

 large German who carried a revolver to match his size, 

 and was always talking of shooting buffalo, they 

 named after his favorite game ; there was the " Family 

 Man," who had a wife in California ; " Boots," a fellow 

 who made a great deal of noise, and could be heard 

 above the clatter of the moving train as he walked 

 about; " Grasshopper," who could out-jump any one 

 on the train ; " Rats," a Chinaman ; " Lily," a dark- 

 complexioned Spaniard, on his way to New Zealand ; 

 "John Bunyan," a fellow who sang hymns, played 

 cards, read Scripture, and swore alternately ; and 

 " Sphinx," an old Irishman, who never spoke but once 

 to my knowledge all the way to San Francisco. To 

 me they gave the name of " Special Artist." There 

 were two or three platform cars in front of us loaded 



