American citizen. [volume] (Canton, Miss.) 1864-1890, 1875-04-10

me nearly black in the face, then IN
dumb show knocked my head with
stone.
Dye see now?" he demanded.
/ saw.
:" But fox would bite you," 1 OBJ
jected
Let him bite" said Tom. "I'll resk
MN when L once get those two bread
hooks on him. And he can't smell me
through the mouse-nests, either"
That night we set ourselves to put the
st-atagem in operation. With the dusk
we stole out into the field where the
stone heaps were and where we had
oftenest heard the foxes bark. Select
ing nook in the edge of a clump of
raspberry brier5 which grew about
great pine stump Tom lay down and
covered him up Completely with the con-
tents OF the big basket He then prac-
tlced squeaking and rustling several times
to be sure that all was in good trim His
squeaks were perfect successes-made by
sucking the air sharply betwixt his
teeth.
"Now be off" said Tom, aand don't
come poking round nor get in sight till
you hear me holler."
Thus exhorted, l went to the barn and
established myself at a crack on the
back side, which looked out upon the
field where Tom was ambushed.
Tom, meanwhile. as he afterward
told me, waited till it had grown dark,
then began squeaking and rustling at in
tervals, to draw the attention of the fox
when he should first come out into the
clearing, for foxes have ears so wonder
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
moonless evenig, though not very dark
L could see objects at little distance
through the crack, but could not see SO
far as the stump. 1t got rather dull
watching there; and, being amidst nice,
coy straw, presently went to sleep,
quite unintentionally. must have slept
some time, though it seemed to me but a
very few minutes.
What woke me was a nOise-a sharp,
suppressed yelp. 1t took me a moment
to understand where l was and why /
was there. A sound of scuffling and
tumbling on the ground, at some dis
lance, assisted my wandering wits, and
rushed out of the barn and ran toward
the field. AS ran two or three dull
whacks came to my ear.
SCOT him, Tom?" l shouted, rushing
up.
Tom was holding and squeezing one of
his hands with the other and shaking it
violently. He said not word, and left
me to poke about and stumble on the
limp, warm carcass of a large fox that
lay near.
"Bite ye?" exclaimed, after satisfy
ing myself that the fox was dead.
SOme," said Tom. and that was all I
could get from him that night.
We took the fox into the house and
lighted a candle. 1t was SILVER
gray"
Tom washed his bite in cold water
and went to bed. Next morning he was
In sorry and very sore plight. His left
hand was bitten through the palm and
badly swollen. There was also a deep
bite in the f1eshy part of his right arm,
just below the elbow, several minor nips
in his left leg above the knee and a
ragged grab in the chin. These numer-
Gus bites, however, were followed by no
serious ill effects.
had suddenly plunged into the grass, that
he had caught hold of one of it's hind
legs and that they had rolled over and
over in the grass together. He owned to
me that when the fox bit him on the
chin he let go of the brute, and would
have given up the fight but that the fox
had actually attacked him. "Upon that"
said Tom, II just determined to have it
out with him."
Considering the fact that a fox is q
very active, sharp bi ting animal, and that
this WIS an unnaturally large male, /
have always thought Tom got off very
well. l do not think that he ever cared
to make a fox-trap of himself again,
however.
We sold the fox-skin in the village,
and received thirteen dollars for it,
whereas a common red-fox skin is worth
no more than three dollars
How or by what wiles that fox got the
turkeys out of the high butternut is
secret-one that persisted with him. 1t
would seem that he must either have
climbed the tree or else have practiced
sorceIy to make the turkeys come down.
g. A. Stephens, in st. Nicholas.