Daily Los Angeles herald., 1880-09-04
Yps Suesles ytrald.
A.TRuLY REMARKABLE STORY.
~ hlJlstIes Scott With an Air Of Trptbiul-
-nssi ifhat.is Quite Rsassuling.E
J TTrom ths Now york.sun. j

- >sl4fom tne new 1crk-Sun'l
Ex-Police Justice John Scott Of
THE city spends few days every
summer with his friend Ferdinand
n Clero, N Milfbfd; pike County,
~. He returned to New York q
foW days ago from his this seasons
ylnlE H6alWays has some remark
uble experience to relate after he
o6meu home.
~ don't think I can ever look at
A1ndnk 1nuf again without she'd
ding tears," says the Judge. "a
pArfY of US was camped twenty
l1sxfrena Milford, Ia the wilder
ness. Our tent was pitched near q
trout stream. We'd had terrible bad
lack, although some Of the fellows
Wtth ms wereabOut the best spert-
1nrducks In the country. One day l
STAYED In camp while the others
vent fishing and hunting. l was
otreChed out on tho grass in front
OF the tent, when I saw an animal
stick it's head up out Of the creek.
~ hooked around cautiously, and
then crAwled up the bank. 1t was .
mink, and steel trap was fast to
0no~ uf-its fore legs. / raised up,
and the mink dragged itself right
toward me. 1t stopped every few
seconds, laid its head fiat on the
gfonnds and looked at me with the
most pitIful look l ever saw. l
flrst thought I'd shoot the animal,
but / ChAnged my mind, as l want.
cd to see what Its arrange actions
meant. The mink crept up to within
two feet of me, and turning over on
~ Bkxk held up the paw that had
the trap on 1t. There was no need
Of saying a word if 1t could. for the
ab&fon sRid as plain as' words.
please, now, take this trap of,
wont your, You can bet that In less
time than 1t takes to tell it I had
tll1t mink freg from It's cruel en-
4 oum6fance. 1t limped back to the
creek and disappeared. -.
1.-THE Incident slipped my mind
In . short time. The boys came In
late In the afternoon. They had
about o dozen little trout and three
W6Ud1Cock.s There wasn't enough
tOmAke smell in the fryingpan.
We made up our minds that all the
trout we'd have for breakfast next
morning would be hunk of salt
pork. We turned in that night all
In low spirits determined to 60
hume thesnext day. !, <s-sss
81 gotup early in the morning
to get . piece. of sunrise in the
mountain that read so much about.
There was q big fiat rock on the
outside of the tent, near the en-
trance. When 1 stepped out and
my eyes fell OH the rock l was
startled, and no mistake. The fact
az the matter ia, we were afraid Of
rAttiesnakes, and had with us
festive demijohn of Pike County
antidote, which we had now and
thpp tasted, and when 1 saw on
that rock, as plain as day, o pile Of
the biggest trout ever set my eyes
on, I thought may be my nerves
were little off. went back and
woke up Baltus Westbrook and
asked him to come out and see If
tbare wasn't bear track along the
edge of The creek. Thinks /, IL
Baltus don't see them trout, l
strikes in for Milford and doc tor.
When Baltus stepped out of the
tent, the first thing he saw was the
rock. He jumped about ten feet,
and fairly yelled:
"Trout, by the Living Jingo!
Where did you catch 'em, Judge.
~ was saved, but where the
trout came from was the mystery.
/ suggested Providence, but hap
peped TO. remember the section of
country we were in, and knew that
couldn't be. There wasn't one of
the trout that weighed less than
pound. We didc't let our specula-
tions as to the source of their sup-
ply interfere with our appetites,
and there wss~ no salt pork fried
that moruIng. The episode raised
our spirits, aud We concluded to
stay another day. We had good
luck cunning that day, and when
we found another pile Of big trout
on the rock next morning we made
up our minds thatsome bark peel
ers to whom we had given supplies
Q day or two before were repaying
us with these delicious surprises.
But / made up my mind that L
would find out for certain. So that
night, after the rest had gone to
sleep, i csawled up to the door Of
the hut and peeped out. 1t was a
bright moonlight night, and I
could see almost as we'll rs If it was
day. About midnight 1 saw some.
thing black emerge from the creek.
It came stealthily toward the tent.
1t was q small animal, and as it
came near the tent 1 saw that 1t
was q mink, and that it limped. In
its. mouth was large trout, which
IL deposited on the rock and then
limped back to the creek. Every
thing WAS as plain as double six to
ne now, The mink had rescue d
from the trap was showing its graf
itudeiby catching the largest trout
IL could fad in the creek, and plac-
ing them at my disposal.
81 told the boys next morning.
Daltus Westbrook thought II. wa
very kind of the mink. Sheriff
Rid way said that 1t was no more
than the mink ought TO do, and
that ifit had done anything less
he would have had q very poor
opinion Of 1t.
''rhat day we concluded to break
camp and go home. One of the
party had taken young dog out
with him to give him some training
on woodcock. At the first fire of a
gun the dog had made for another
part OF the country, and We never
saw or heard Of him again. When
we packed up our things, we
couidn't find The Geg's chain and
collar II was fastened to, and we
started on without it. walked out
OF the woods behind the wa gon.
We hadn't got more than hum
dfed yards away from camp, when
/ heard noise behind me. look
ed back. There was that mink,
Itmping at my heels. He had the
dog collar about his neck, and
when / turned around, he raised up
on HIS hind feet a nd held the chain