Daily Republican. [volume] ([Wilmington, Del.]) 1874-1890, 1886-01-05
s.COMvICT DOos.p
From the Atlanta Constisution.

~
came about In this way:
Mr.. williams claimed, and he was
backed by Capt. James, that any con-
vict could be selected out OF hundred
and sent off 90 q circle through the
woods, passing through dozen squads
OF convicts; thai, AN hour later, he could
put his hounds on that convict's track,
and they would thread him through the
sqads Of convicts, never be shaken from
his individual track, and finally bring
him mp. / remarked that I could under
stAod how the hounds might carry h
convict's track through crowd Of out.
sidera from some scent OF the camp, but
not how they could separate one con-
Wet from another.
"rhere may be . hundred convicts,"
he said. "clothed precisely alike, and
wearing precisely the same shoes. They
may be fed together on precisely the
same food. and sleep in hunks that
touch each other under precisely the
same cover, and yet each one OF them
has scent that marks him Just as dis
timothy TO my hounds from his fellows
MS his appearance marks him under
yonr deliberate study"
| "And do you expect me TO believe
that the dogs can catch this scent from
the flying touch OF his thlok shoes on
the hard ground 2"
Undoubtedly. And further. He
may stop in . squad and change shoes
with . convict and the dogs will still
follow him. On the hardest ground
his scent will be plain TO them, though
bis shoe soles are half an inch thick.
When he runs through the woods,
whore hia clothes touch the bushes,
they will trail him, heads up. In full
Icry, fifty yards, running parallel, but
IAway from where he ran"
"Do you mean that yon can take
Iffty conviots, all clad in convict suits,
let them run through the bushes, then
send the convict the dogs are trailing
through the same bushes, and the scent
Iof bis body, left on the yielding twiss
Is his clothes brush them. will lead the
hounds through the maze ?"
It parallel at full speed. To prove this,
will start q convict. will let others
follow him through the woods. / will
let him make \ semicircle in tho woods
with fifty yards radius. When the
hounds come 10 this, instead Of folio W.
ing the curve they will scent the oppo-
site ride OF the circle, fifty yards away,
cut across to y. take the track up there
land follow is.'
i A gaunt convict, long OF leg and
flank, WAS selected for tho run. he wal
told 70 put off quickly, circle In the
woods, take q swift run over fields
roads, and through every squad OF CON
victs he could find In his way. This b.
Ibid. The hounds were then loAhnf
| about the stockAde yard, ~ listless I
lot Of dogs as ever were seen. "I'n
I, tempted" said Mr.. Williams, ito 10
the convict ride horse for mile o.
, two after he has ran n while. hav,
had dogs trail Q convict on horseoacl
!. four miles, and then take the tract
where be jumped from the horse" By
this time the flying convict was small
Ispsck on the broad fields. and in mo
lment more had melted into the horizon
land was gone, Is II. indeed, he ha'
found that liberty for which his sou
'Ipanted aud had gone as the strong
II winged birds 20 when they vanish II
: the blue ether.
In an hour we mounted our horses
The hounds were loAhnR about In tn
sunshine. Suddenly Mr.. williams
: IsquAring himself In his saddle, bley
! three quick, short blasts ON the cow
q / orn that hung Ut his side. As II b.
o o agic the hounds awakened and char
cd st his ssddle-tagor, laying, franti,
4" NigRsrI'' he said sententiously. Lik
the Wind:they were OF, nose 10 Oh
lRround, tails up, circling like beaglei
= Larger the circles grew, the hound
T. silent ~ spoctres, eyes and nose eatin
h the earth for Its secret They wi
pass over the tyacks of con viot squads
IA bat will open on the fret single trsc
q they And. lit 10 the wrong track v
70 will simply sit still. They will run 1t
hundred yards or 30, and noting GU
lsilence will throw It of and scare
iagain. When they get on the rigi
L track we will halloo aud start after Il
Q, hound that has It. The others will joii
u and the race is opened"
- At last red hound, careering lib
% mad across the field, halls suddeDl,
tumbles over himself, faces about, nos'
tho ground eagerly, lifts his hea'
I" "A.a % o. w.u 70 and il of like an AFRO
from Q bowstring. That's the track
1, shouts Williams, and after the how lin
hound We 20. The other dogs Join
Ipell.mell at first, then each hound, tTT
- 10 the track, In full cry and at rattliI
~ gait. Away of TO the left Capt. jam
calls attention TO q moving speck again
the sky. "That 10 the convict oirclin
. back 70 camp" he said. On the do
went, keen as the wind, insxorAble q
fate, follow the track Of the conviC
as true as his own shadow.
Across the tracks Of hundreds OF otl
O. era, along high roads, over field
1t. through herds Of cattles, by other co
victs that smiled grimly as they pAsse
the bounds went, holding the track
= the flying convict where It had be,
laid as highly as thistle on the FIR
earth, but where 1t left It's telltale scel
all tina aama Nothiuu conld shal
them off-nothiDg check their furio,
rush. Over other tracks made by CO
victs wearing shoes from the same Ia
i hindrance, led by some intangible mir
Gle OF the air straight on single ira
"Now we'll see them wind his see
fifty yards away" said Williams,
Ia we neared q patch of forest. Close
,er this was q squad of convicts. The
on We had sent through the woods an no
before. We had made TRUSTEES
walking singly, touch every bush al
tree. Then the convict we we're ira
ing was run through, making q hi
circle, with at least iftg yards radiu
The hounds entered the forest at hui
lie. ing pace. small red dog leading. So
,er denly the leader faltered for an instar
To- with nose In air, then burst with fer
.i] cry 10 the left, ran obliQuely for {,
IN ffty yards, with head up, when he to-
RS up again the track of tho convict, aI
- lowered his head to the ground I
ga had simply made short cut across 81
ara semicircls, having caught scent of t
~ convict on the bushes more than q hu
= dred feet away. I am aware that Il
~ 10 incredible 70 those who have new
Of. seen It. cannot explain what 1t