The Milan exchange. (Milan, Gibson County, Tenn.) 1874-1978, 1886-10-30
NEVER SHOT A BUFFALO.

NEVER SHOT A BUFFALO.
How "a Chicago Boys Plans About wild
Life on the Plains Came TO Nothing.
Billy lived in Chicago. | dare say
you may have heard of Chicago,
though perhaps you have never heard
of my friend Billy, the buffalo-hunter,
who lived in Chicago, away down on
the South side, where he could hear
the waves of Lake Michigan breaking
upon the grayelly beach. In the win
ter these same waves piled up Curl
Gus ice-wall against the break-waters.
But Billy got tired of listening to this
thunder of the waves winter and sum-
mer. He did not care for the ice-wall
on the break-water. He just thought
Chicago was the most uninteresting
town fellow ever lived in. Many a
country boy would have been delighted
to see what Billy saw every day, but
Billy didn't care for it. We all of us
incline to think orr own surroundings
the dullest of all, and to wish we
were somebody else, or that we were
somewhere else, or that we did some
thing else, or knew somebody else, or
had something else, or that somehow
we could kick this world about us into
a cooked hat, and have things different
from what they are.
Billy thought he would like TO 90 20
Colorado and hunt buff Joes, or do any
other wonderful thing hat offered it.
self. He never stoppe29 to think how
much easier it is for EylCoy to build a
railroad, or commanA1 i canal boat, or
90 to sea, or kill an elk in a story, than
il is for n real boy to build a real rail
road. We folks who write stories do
not often feel sorry for our boys when
we get them into scrapes. We know
how easy it is to get boy out of a
scrape, if the boy is only story boy.
But when real boy gets into real
scrape, it is quite another thing.
But Billy was bound to 60 to the
plains and shoot buffalo. He had
saved his small change until he got a
quarter So one day it was made up
between him and Ben Clark and Tom
my Oates that they would 90 to Colo
RADIO. They were in the loft of Billy's
fathers stable when the plan was fixed
upon. Then they told all the wonder
full Indian stories and robbcr stories
they could think of. and when these
gave out, they came to ghost stories.
Poor Billy got his head so full of these
things that he was afraid to blow out
the lamp when ii came to be bedtime.
He awoke in fright, sure that burg
lars were climbing in at the window,
and he covered up his head, and kept
/ it covered for several hours; and when
/ atlast he peeped timidly out, he found
that'it had been daylight for an hour
/ The sun was blazing down on the
waves of Lake Michigan, and making
- il look like a sea of gold.
But Billy was bent on his "eXpcdi-
ton. Ben Clark had some money in
fhc bank, and it would not cost much
to 90 in an emigrant train. Billy had
y watch which his uncle had given him
because Billy was named for him. he
could pawn that for money.
Tommy had a good many plans for
raising money. but they never came to
any thing. He read over all the stories
about boys who had become sailors
and buffalo-hunters and railway build
ers, and money always seemed to come
to the boys IN the stories just in the
nick of time. Tommy did not doubt
that he also would find some old uncle
that he had never heard of, or some
benevolent rObber, or some doting
aunt, or somebody who would put the
money in his pocket before the APP
pointed time should arrive.
But when the first day of April came
1.-The time appointed for setting forth
Tommy had no money. Billy, who
had talked somuch about bufraloes and
hunters that the boys called him al
ready "the buffalo-huntcr," was all
ready TO go. Poor Tommy conld not
go! But never mind; the Others would
ship their buf'alo-skins to Tommy, who
could sell them and come to Colorado
on the proceeds. Then the three friend,
would form an invincible band, which
no Indian or buffalo could resist Of
evade.
Billy and his friend Ben were to 9,
on the midnight train. Tommy wa
coming down to see them off Bill
got IN old revolver out of the drawer
where the harmless thing was kept
and Put II under the head Of his bed