
In a remote cabin on Sleeping Creek, three very different frontiersmen gather around a pine table lit by a smoky kerosene lamp for a night of pitch. Magpie Simpkins, the lanky scholar with a ribbon‑tied pair of glasses; the burly, bearded Tellurium Woods, whose shirts blur the line between cloth and skin; and diminutive, gold‑toothed bread‑making champion Bantie Weyman, all bring their own quirks to the game. Their informal club, meant to keep the sparse community lively, spirals into a comic showdown when a fourth, curious presence—a wolf‑sized bear—steps into the room.
The bear’s sudden appearance turns the card‑playing session into a chaotic dance, as Magpie drums on a rusted gold‑pan and the others react with a mixture of awe and dread. Bantie’s nervous antics, Tellurium’s booming song, and the bear’s unexpected agility create a whirlwind of slapstick frontier humor, leaving listeners eager to hear how these unlikely companions navigate the wild, uproarious night.
Language
en
Duration
~24 minutes (23K characters)
Publisher of text edition
Project Gutenberg
Original publisher
United States: The Ridgway Company, 1916.
Credits
Roger Frank and Sue Clark
Release date
2021-10-21
Rights
Public domain in the USA.

1883–1969
Best known for lively Western stories full of humor and frontier action, this prolific pulp-era writer helped shape the feel of popular cowboy fiction in the early 20th century. His work later reached new audiences through film and television adaptations, including stories featuring Hashknife Hartley.
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