greenbacks, convoyed by his friend.

"'Wow-ow,' says I, givin' the distress signal so that the windows
rattled, and reachin' for my holster. I'd 'a' got them both, only
the gun caught in my suspender. You see, not anticipatin' any live
bird shoot I'd put it inside my pants-band, under my vest, for
appearances. A forty-five is like fresh air to a drownding
man--generally has to be drawed in haste--and neither one shouldn't
be mislaid. I got her out at last and blazed away, just a second
after they dodged around the comer. Then I hit the trail after 'em,
lettin' go a few sky-shots and gettin' a ghost-dance holler off my
stummick that had been troubling me. The wallop on the head made me
dizzy though, and I zigzagged awful, tackin' out of the alley right
into a policeman.

"'Whee!' says I in joy, for he had Murdock safe by the bits, buckin'
considerable.

"'Stan' aside and le'mme 'lectrocute 'im,' says I. I throwed the gun
on him and the crowd dogged it into all the doorways and windows
convenient, but I was so weak-minded in the knees I stumbled over the
curb and fell down.

"Next thing I knew we was all bouncin' over the cobble-stones in a
patrol wagon.

"Well, in the morning I told my story to the Judge, plain and
unvarnished. Then Murdock takes the stand and busts into song,
claiming that he was comin' through the alley toward Clark Street
when I staggered out back of a saloon and commenced to shoot at him.