The Cambria freeman. [volume] (Ebensburg, Pa.) 1867-1938, 1869-06-24
shittbts, 5nrtNotts, &t.
Gymnastics In the Adirondacks.

For nearly two miles we crept through
the damp and chilly fog, up the Marion
river, hearing nothing to interrupt the pro-
found silence save the occasional plunge
of muskrat or the sputter Of frog at
ing along the surface of the water But
all of sudden, when heart and hope be-
gan 10 fail, some distance ahead of Us we
heard the well known sounds, kNgplasb.
k-splash, and knew that deer, and a
large one too, was making for the shore
Here our adventure began. | signaIled
Martin, by a desperate "hitch" on the
! thwart, to run the boat at full speed to-
ward the sound. He did. The light
shell shot through the fog, and when in
swift career struck the bank, bow on
| Martin was tremendous at the paddle,
and a little more force would have divided
that marsh from side to side as it was,
| the thin, lath-like boat was buried third
of her length in the bogs and marsh
| grass.
With much struggle, and several sup
pressed but suggestive exclamations from
| Martin, we extricated the boat from the
meadow, aud showed out into deep water.
We had heard nothing from the deer since
he left the river. Thinking that possibly
he might have stopped, after gaining the
bank, to look back, as deer often do, l
rose slowly in the boat, turned up the
jack, and peered anxiousy into the fog.
The strong reflector bored lane through
the fleecy moss for some fifty feet, per-
haps even at that distance objects min
gled grotesqueIy through the fog. At The
extreme end of the opening, detected
bright, diamond-like spark. What was
it! l turned the Jack up, and l turned
it down. lowered myself until my eyes
looked along the line of the glass. rails
ed myself on tiptoe. Nothing more could
be seen.
at may be the eye of deer, and it
may be only drop Of water, or a vet
leaf" said to myself Still it looked
gamy. | concluded TO launch bullet at
it anyway. Whispering to Martin to
steady the boat, l sunk my eye well down
into the sights, and, holding for The CLEAN
amid the marsh grass, fired. The smoke,
minglng heavily with the fog, made all
murky before me, while the explosion,
striking against the hills on either side,
started dozen reverberations, so that we
could neither see nor hear what was the
result of the shot. After waiting in si-
lence few moments, hoping TO hear the
deer ''kick," without any such happy re-
suit, told Martin l would go ashore to
load, and see what had shot at, He
padded forward, and seizing the tall grass,
while he forced the boat in against the
bank with his paddle, L clambered up
| Being curious TO see what had deceived
me, / strobe off into the marsh some forty
feet, and turning up the jack, 10 and be-
hold dead deer lay a t my feet MAR
tin," shouted /, ''here the deer is, dead
as tick !"
s"The d-l!" exclaimed the guide from
the fog.
"What did you sayl" again shouts
| ed.
81 said 1 didn't believe it, returned
Martin, soberly.
"Paddle your canoe up here, then, you
old sceptic, and see for YOURSELF" 1 re-
Joined, taking the deer by the ear and
dragging him to the bank. 'IIere he is,
and a monster too.' Martin did as di>
rected.
"Well," exclaimed he, as he nnbent his
gaunt form from The curve into which two
hours of padding had bent and cramped
it, and Strengthened himself to his foil
height, until his eye rested upon the buck,
! l-"weIl, Mr.. Murray, you are the first