bid him good night and went to bed; but I could
not sleep, because I knew the one I beat last would rob me if he
got a chance. I laid in my bed a long time. Presently I heard
some one feel the knob of the outside door. I was in the upper
berth, and had my pistol under my pillow. My partner was in the
lower berth, for he had not been well that night, and went to bed
early. Pretty soon, bang went the lock, and a piece of it fell on
the floor. Then everything was still for some time, and at last
in he came. Just as he commenced to look about him to see how the
land lay, I pulled down on him with my gun, as I could see him
plainly by the light through the transom. He saw the gun, and did
not stop on the order of his going, but he went at once. I got
up, dressed myself, and went out to the bar. There was Mr. Thief.
I accused him of being in my room, but he denied it. I knew he
was lying, but I thought best not to do anything with him, for fear
I might have to give up the "stolen money," and I had not lost any
myself.

SIGNAL SERVICE.

Before the war they had an old steamer fitted up as a wharf-boat
and lodging-house at Baton Rouge, to accommodate people that landed
late at night, or would be waiting for a boat. This old boat was
headquarters for the gamblers that ran the river. Many a night we
have played cards in the old cabin until morning, or until our boat
would arrive. When thoroughbred gamblers meet around the table at
a game of cards, then comes the tug of war. We would have some
very hard games at times, and we found it pretty hard to hold our
own. My partner proposed that we fix up some plan to down the
gamblers that played with us on the old boat, so we finally hit
upon a scheme. We bored a hole under one of the tables, and another
under one of the beds in a state-room opposite. Then we fixed a
nail into a spring, and fastened the spring on the under side of
the floor, so that the nail would come up through the floor under
the table. Next we attached a fine wire to the spring, and ran it
up into the state-room. Then we bored a hole in the bulkhead of
the state-room, just over the top berth, so that a person could
lie in the berth and look out into the cabin. Now we were ready
for the thoroughbreds. When we would get one of our smart friends,
we would seat him at our table in his chair, which was always on
the side of our state-room. We called it ours, for we had fitted
it up just to su