Comstock Lode (Nev.) -- Fiction; Miners -- Fiction; Virginia City (Nev.) -- Fiction
About four o'clock in the afternoon of the day appointed for commencing
housekeeping, our miners gathered at this new home. The provisions,
bedding and chairs had been sent in advance, in care of Miller, who had
remained above ground that day, in order to have things in apple-pie
shape. The chairs were typical of the men. Brewster's was a common,
old-fashioned, flag-bottomed affair, worth about three dollars. Carlin
and Wright each had comfortable armchairs; Ashley and Harding had neat
office chairs, while Miller and Corrigan each had heavy upholstered
armchairs, which cost sixty dollars each.
When all laughed at Brewster's chair, he merely answered that it would
do, and when Miller and Corrigan were asked what on earth they had
purchased such out-of-place furniture for, to put in a miner's cabin,
Miller answered: "I got trusted and didn't want to make a bill for
nothing," and Corrigan said: "To tell the truth, I was not over-much
posted on this furniture business, I did not want to invest in too chape
an article, so I ordered the best in the thavin' establishment, because
you know a good article is always chape, no matter what the cost may
be."
The next thing in order was to compare the bills for provisions.
Brewster drew his bill from his pocket and read as follows: Twenty
pounds bacon, $7.50; forty pounds potatoes, $1.60; ten pounds coffee,
$3.75; one sack flour, $4.00; cream tartar and salaratus, $1.00; ten
pounds sugar, $2.75; pepper, salt and mustard, $1.50; ten pounds prunes,
$2.50; one bottle XXX for medicine, $2.00; total, $32.60.
The bill was receipted. The bills of Wright and Harding each comprised
about the same list, and amounted to about the same sum. They, too, were
receipted. The funny features were that each one had purchased nearly
similar articles, and the last item on each of the bills was a charge of
$2.00 for medicine. It had been agreed that no liquor should be bought
except for medicine.
The bills of Carlin and Ashley were not different in variety, but each
had purchased in larger quantities, so that those bills footed up about
$45 each. On each of the bills, too, was an item of $4.75 for demijohn
and "half gallon of whisky for medicine." All were receipted.
Corrigan's bill amounted to $73, including one-half gallon of whisky and
one bottle of brandy "for medicine," and his too was receipted.
Miller read last. His bill had a little more variety, and amounted to
$97.16. The last item was: "To demijohn and one gallon whisky for
medicine, $8.00." On this bill was a credit for $30.00.
A general laugh followed the reading of these bills. The variety
expected was hardly realized, as Corrigan remarked: "The bills lacked
somewhat in versatility, but there was no doubt about there being plenty
of food of the kind and no end to the medicine."
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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