The Kenosha telegraph. [volume] (Kenosha, Wis.) 1860-1888, 1886-09-10

| whispered TO me:
gu see how strong the impulse is
in an old hunter to make sure of his
game, without even being civil to COM
pany. Look here. There is as hand
some shot as you will get in year.
Shoot him through the shoulders.
looked in the direction in
dicated, and saw the broad
side of buck, about ten rods
distant He was standing perfectly
stfal. in listening attitude, and though
was aware of considerable excitement
as raised my rifle, | yet felt as sure
OF my game as though my knife were
already letting loose the fountain of
his blood. | fired, and the buck leaped
away, frightened but unhurt.
" Is that possible!'' ] exclaimed.
Precisely according to the pro-
gramme, you see. Now, if you viii
walk to the spot, will show you that
you shot four feet over his body
The ball had lodged in a tree, and
an examination showed that the Cap
tain was right.
But know pretty well, however,
where to get another shot at the ami
nal. We will leave our trappings
here, as we shall not be absent more
than an hour. Follow me-"
This was arrangement of the pro-
gramme-a arrangement which we
both had cause to regret ere the hot
sun OF another evening led us to our
supplies again.
We went into the woods, reached
the place where Captain Whitney
hoped to get another shot at the deer,
startled him again, followed fur
ther and further into the forest,
climbed hills, crossed swamps, SWEET
cred on and on, talking but little, and
neither enjoying it in the least. / fol-
lowed the Captain in the most implicit
faith, and he went on, hoping to meet
with some familiar object which would
put him on the track again.
| In the meantime the morning of
promise had given way to a day of
clouds. The sun which shone so hotly
but an hour before, was now hid be-
hind the cloudy vapor. We were with
| out compass, and without a guide
of any description. 1t was eleven
II
.'We are lost, my boy!'
The Captain spoke with perfect cool
ness
81 have been thinking it likely that
such was the case this hour" I re-
piled.
My words did not express all that
felt, for [ did not like to acknowledge
to Captain Whitney all the emotions
that moved my soul. / was, moreover,
excessively tired and already faint with
hunger. My. life at. school had been
but poor preparation for the hardships
of the forest.
lit is something of mystery, and
yet not much of mystery, either.
There is a beaten track with which /
am perfectly familiar. Once out of
that, and the sun covered with Clouds
and | am as much. a stranger in this
great forest as yourself. -
Here was poor comfort. Especially
to me, who knew nothing of meetin 9
dangers and bearing burdens. We
killed some small game, ate our din
ners and went on again. / noticed
that the Captain was very careful in
choosing the direction as we started,
and very careful during the entire aft
ernoon to maintain that direction.
Lost though we were, he was too much
OF hunter to travel in a circle. So,
while the clouds thickened over our
heads, we made such progress as we
could over the rough ground, through
the tangled underbrush, over the soft
surface OF swamps, and through the
great forest in such aspects as it present
ed itself. When darkness came, we
gathered such material as we could,
built fire and lay down upon the
ground to sleep. The situation was
not entirely a new one to the Captain,
and in ten minutes after he stretched
himselfupon the moss, he was breath
ing heavily, and sleeping soundly.
For myself, though [ was worn
beyond any thing that | had expert
enced before in my life, and though
coaxed my eyelids and nerves till
midnight, found no sleep.
opened my eyes, and found the moon
rays stealing through the branches of
the trees. | replenished the fire, and
looked around me.
To my surprise and delight, 1
thought, through the trees, that [ dis
covered the light surface of water, and
| determined to reconnoiter, and as
certain whether we were indeed on the
shores of that pond, for which we had
toiled so persistently through the day.
Taking my rifle and ammunition,
walked twenty rods or more, and
stood on the shore of one of the most
lovely inland bodies of water that
had ever seen. 1t was circular in
form, and slept as peacefully in its
basin on that starry night, as ever in-
FAINT in its mother arms. l seemed to
stand on the verge of two worlds, the
infinite deep above me. studded with
millions of gems, and the same infinite
deep reflected in the clear water below
me, studded with the same shining
millions of gems. / walked little dis
tance along the shore, and found a
rude canoe, in the bottom of which lay
single paddle, broken midway of the
handle. The pond, then, was really
found, and the Captain sleeping upon
its shores all unconscious of the fact.
In retracing my steps, while
yet 1 stood upon the shore of
the water at the precise point
where first reached it, I was
sure that | saw something pass between
myself and the fire. It might have
been a dog; / could not see distinctly,
for the opening between the trees was
small. watched for moment, and
it repassed. Then it sat down and
fixed its glowing eyes seemingly upon
myself. 1t might be dog, thought,
yet no dog of ours, for none was with
us. Howl, howl, howl! Good heav-
ems! 1t was wolf, then And then
there was an answering howl to the
left, to the right, beyond the fire, across
tho pond-on every side, one after the
other, did voice anSwer to voice in that
chorus. ] know that my Imagination
doubled and quadrupled the number
for have reason to suppose that there
were not above half a dozen in all
But the sound was horrible to my ear.
as it woke the stiffness of that lovely
night.
And | was alone on the shore of the
/ pond Whether TO fire at the wolf anc