A dispute between two men at a Bloomington saloon with a Wild West motif led to one stabbing the other, authorities said Monday.

Now a 39-year-old man is in jail and a 30-year-old man is recovering after surgery for what police said were life-threatening injuries inflicted outside Cowboy Jack's, a bar and restaurant whose website invites patrons to "Come back to the Wild West!"

The altercation began shortly before midnight inside the establishment on W. 79th Street, east of Xerxes Avenue S., according to Cmdr. Vic Poyer.

The two men went outside, and that's where they got into a scuffle. One man stabbed the other in the upper chest and ran away, Poyer said.

The suspect was quickly caught and jailed.

The man who was stabbed underwent surgery at Hennepin County Medical Center, Poyer added.

PAUL WALSH