Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1875-06-10
TRACKED BY 4 WOLF.

WHEN little boy stayed for a long
time with my father and mother in
little valley on the northern slopes of the
Pyrenees One fine afternoon in August
| started on ramble among the
mountains all by myself, meaning to be
out till tea-time. AS was going up |
met Jean Baptiste coming down.
"Take care you don't go too far, Mon
sieur Henri" said he; Pierre Martin
has just come down from the upland
pastures, saying that he's lost couple of
sheep lately, and he thinks there must be
wolves about. Better keep to the lower
slopes, or, if you will go higher, take one
of the dogs with you"
But l only laughed and went on, say
ing l wasn't afraid. I got past the lower
slopes pretty early in the afternoon, be-
ing in light rig; for when went hill
climbing always put on the tartan suit
had worn in the Alps-kilt and stock
ings, with a Glengarry cap. So, finding
that had plenty of time left, went, of
course, straight to the very place where
had been told not to go, the upland
| pastures.
Suddenly saw, right ahead of me, a
thick, dark wood, lying between two
high ridges. [ couldn't recollect ever
having seen it before, and plunged in it
at once, quite set up with the idea of
breaking fresh ground. Up till now |
had no more thought of danger than of
| !. = I Il
! got little way into the wood, whether
it was that it looked so black and dismal
or that old jeans warning about the
wolves came back to me all at once, |
certainly did begin to feel rather queer.
It's true that I'd always thought of
run if you only cried "Shoo" but now
| it suddenly struck me-suppose he didn't,
what then? And at that very moment,
as if to answer my thoughts, heard
rustling and cracking among the bushes
| as if something heavy was forcing it's
way through them!
This, Of course, might be only Wait,
our old hound, seeming me out; but |
seemed to know, somehow, that it wasn't;
it came upon me like a flash; what must
it be? | flew up the nearest tree like a
wildcat, and had barely got out of reach
when there came a great crash in the
thicket and out burst a huge gray wolf,
and leaped after me more than his own
length off the ground, with @ snap Of
his great white teeth as loud as the fall
OH R17+ IIybo ho
that he couldn't reach me he lay down
at the foot of the tree with his great
tongue lolling out and his ugly, greenish-
yellow eyes glowering wickedly up at
me, as much as to say: "NOW that I've
got you here, my boy, mean to stick to
you, and no mistaken"
SO here at last was regular Mayne
Reid adventure of the real old ''up
tree" sort; but now that [ had got it
didn't like it so very much, after all. In
all the fanCies | ever had about it [ had
always made it out that was to get the
better of the wolf; but now, somehow or
other, the wolf seemed to have got the
better of me. At first was so frightened
that couldn't think Of anything, but
just sat staring down at him like fool;
but after bit began to get my wits to-
gether and tried to recollect how all the
fellows I'd read about, when they got
into such fixes, mana ged to get out
again. But I didn't get any great COM
fort out of that. Basil, when the bear
went UP the tree after him, got his
brothers to throw him a rope from be-
low; but l had no rope and no brothers
to throw it. That fellow in 'The Des-
ert Homes" when the peccaries freed
him, peppered 'em with his rifle; but
then l hadn't got a rife. RUDE,
and Carey and Capt. What's-his-name,
when the Mexicans surrounded the rock
they were on, were saved by their own
side coming up to the rescue; but there |
was no sign of anybody coming to rescue |
me. And even if Waif did trace me out |
las perhaps he might, who was to say
whether the wolf mightn't be one too |
many for him, after all? Altogether, |
Mayne Reid didn't seem to help me |
much; and the wisest thing could think |
OF was just to sit still where | was.
/ don't think was ever more glad in |
my life for, if it came to matching a
VOLTS endurance of hunger against mine. |
/ knew who was likely to get the worst |
OF the bargain) than when I suddenly |