The Manchester journal. [volume] (Manchester, Vt.) 1861-current, 1875-03-18

yet.
Bus hawf / asked Tom said bI
would show me, lie brought a two
busheI basket aud went out ialo gh
fields Ia The stone heaps, aud besidp
the old Jog, aud stumps, there were don
ons OF deserted mouse nests, each q wa,
OF aae dry grass as large as q quart box
These be gathered up, and allcd lbt
basket
There, said be, t6umphsutly, don
them smell moasey'
They did, certainly; they sayored "a
strongly of mice IS Toms question Of bat
grammar,
Aud dou'I foxes catch mice demanded
Tom, con bdenuy,
Yes bat | don't see how that, going
to catch the fox. said.
Well, look here, then; III show lc
said he Play yous the fox; aud pIa,
twas night aud you were proving tounJ
the fields. Go Of, nov, out there by
that stump
Fall of wonder and curiosity, ! retired
to the stump. Tom, meantime, turned
out the mass OF nests, aud with IL com
I pIetely covered himself The pile now
resembled an enormous mousc-nest, ol
rather q small hay-coCk, Pretty soon
heard low, high-keyed squeaking noise,
accompanied by a slight rustic inside the
nest. Evidently there were mice In 81,
and, feeling my character asa fox at
stake, | at once trotted frward, then
crept up; aud, as the rustIing aud squeak
ing continued, made pouuee into the
grass AS hsd heard it said foxes did
/ when mOusing. Instantly two spry
brown hands from ont the na't c.utehei
me with a most vengelu grip As a fox
| struggled tremendously, But Tom
evorcame me forthwith, choked me near.
/ ly black IN the face then, in dumb show,
/ Knocked my head with n stone.
Dye see now? he demanded.
/ | saw.
But fox would bite you, objected.
Let him bite, said Tom; III resk him
when once get these breadhooks on
him. And he can't smell me through the
mice nests, either.
That night we set ourselves to put the
strategem in operation. With the dusk
we stole out into the field where the
stone heaps were, and where we had Of
tenost heard foxes bark. Selecting a nook
in the edge of clump of raspberry bri-
ats which grew about great pine stump
Tom Law down, aud covered him mp
completely with the contents of the big
basket. lie then practiced squcaking
aud rustling several times, to be sure
that all was in good trim. His squeaks
were perfect successes by sucking
the air sharply betwixt his teeth,
Now be off, said Tom, and don't come
poking round, nor get in sight, till YOU
hear me boiler.
Thus exhorted, went into the barn
aud established myself at crack on the
backside, which looked out upon the field
where Tom was ambusbed.
Tom, meanwhile. as he afterward told
me, waited till it had grown dark, then
began squeaking and rustlng at inter-
walls, to draw the attention Of the fox
when first he should come out into the
/ ,Ioorf,,, for fnxau haxy nara On tunnd dar-
fully acute that they are able to hear a
mouse squeak twenty rods away, it is
said.
An hour passed. Tom must have grown
pretty tired Of squeaking. 1t was moon
less evening, though not very dark.
could see objects At a little distance
/ through the crack but could not see so
! far as the stump. 1t got rather dull watch
| ing there: and being amidst nice, cosy
straw, presently went to sleep, quite
uniuteuloualIy. must have slept some
/ time, though it seemed to me but very
/ few minutes
/ What woke me was a uoise--a sharp,
suppressed yelp. 1t took me moment
/ to understand where / was, and why
was there, a sound of scuflling aud
tumblug on the ground at some distance
assisted my wandering wits, and ! rush
ed out Of the baru aud ran toward the
field. As ram, two or three dull wbacks
came TO my car.
/ Tom was holding and squeezing one Of
his hands with The other and shaking il
violently. lie said not Il word, and left
me to poke about and tumble on the
/ limp, warm carcass Of fox that lay
/ near.
/ Bite ye? / exclaimed, after satisfying
myself that the fox was dead.
Some, said Tom; aud that was all
could get from him that night.
/ We took the fox to the house aud light
/ ed a candle. lt was the silver-gray.
Tom washed bis bite in cold water aud
went to bed, Next morning be was in "a
sorry aud very sore plight. His Ieh hand
was bitten through the palm, aud badly
swollen. There was also a deep bite lu
fle,hy part Of bis right arm just below
the elbow, several minor nips iu bis leh
leg above the knee, aud a ragged grab ln
the chin. The.o numerous bites how
ever, were followed by 80 serious iil
effects
rbe next day Toln told mg litai lne fox
had suddenly plunged iu0 the 1ra.s,
that he had caught hold Of one of its Hlud
Dsgs, aud lhtt they had rolled yv~f aud
uy.f iu l8e gra,s together ile o~nr1
ta me that wBeu lhe fox bit tlm go tAr
-'#a. Doe .rt go Of lhe brute. sud wau.f
have gfyep uD tte agAf. but tH,at fHt. 2 .1