or directly
opposite hers and only six feet from her entrance.

As to appearance this old man was a jolly sight. He wore long and
tangled hair which had once been curly, but now hung in unkempt and
dirty shreds upon his shoulders, while his hat was an antiquated relic
of a former life in the States. A pair of old trousers generally hung by
one suspender over a colored shirt, which, the summer before, possibly,
had had a wash-tub experience, but not later; his footwear was
altogether unmentionable. He was called well-to-do, and there was no
necessity for him to cut such an abominable figure, so he soon became a
by-word, and was designated as "sour dough." At all events, he was sour
enough, and kept up a continual siege of torment until he received a
temporary quietus.

We three women were sitting in the tent one morning when there came a
voice at the door. Going forward to enquire what was wanted, a man said
gruffly, thrusting a piece of paper into my hand.

"A notice from the chief of police."

"For what?" I inquired.

"For you, to vacate these premises without delay."

"Indeed! Are they to open a street? Will the other campers about here
move also?" I asked.

"I don't know. My orders are that you shall move immediately. See that
you do it," said the man rudely.

While holding the paper in my hands I glanced over it hastily, and saw
the marks of a spurious document. It was poorly constructed, and bore
no official signs. I recognized it as a counterfeit.

"We have had permission from captain S., one of the aldermen, to put our
tents here, and we shall stay unless he orders us away," said I stoutly.

"You have permission from captain S.?" he asked in surprise.

"Yes, sir, from captain S. himself, and you can say to the chief of
police that we shall stay here until the captain orders us to leave,"
saying which I stepped back into the tent.

The man retreated, muttering to himself as he went, for he was utterly
routed, and never returned; neither did we hear any more for some time
about moving our tents. It was as I suspected. Mr. Sourdough had thought
to frighten us away, and the order from the chief of police was utterly
bogus.

Some time afterward, when madam attempted to put a floor into her tent,
"Sourdough" again put in an appearance. He threatened, but she held out,
when the obstinate and perverse old man trotted off down town and
secured an officer and four soldiers to come and put her off. The
offi