The Arkansaw traveler., 1888-10-20


 had plenty of meat in camp, one ham would be enough, 90 split the hams apart, and left one ham, and carried the other few miles. was near dead, and concluded I didn't care much for meat, anyway, and if I carried the hide to camp would get credit for killing a deer, SO l throwed the last ham away, and carried the hide for few miles, and that got heavy, SO cut off the tail and put it in my pocket, and left the hide, and just before dark stumbled on to camp, and found I had been walking around camp all day. The boys said tails did not count, and 1 could not make them believe had killed deer, and went to bed with out any supper. The mosquitoes had eaten me alive, and the deer flies were worse than. the mosquitoes. The boys gave me some asbestos roofing, or tar of some kind, to rub on my face, to keep insects of, and I looked like a plantation darkey that had been tarred and feathered. Some of the boys went out nights, with a light fastened to the top of their heads, to "shine" deer, and shoot them, and I tried it, but l got lost, and every noise scared me so my hair turned white. You have no idea of the solitude of the forest at night. It is so still your own breath ing sounds like the putf of locomo- tive, and the noise of partridge ying sounds like cyclone. In the midst of my night tramp I heard panther on tree, right over my head, and he gave vent to the most unearthly noise ever heard, and on looking up saw his eyes glaring at me, by the light of the torch, and Iexpected every second he would spring on me and drink my blood. I was too frightened to fire my gun, and I dropped on my knees and prayed for strength to get away fiom there. While 1 was on my knees, expecting to die within 6 minute, l heard & snicker behind me, and a couple of the boys appeared. They told me that the panther was little screech owl, not bigger than bantam rooster. I wanted to kill the boys but it is just as bad to murder any. body in the woods as anywhere, SO let them take me to camp and laug b at me all night.
 Ibid you catch any fish?" asked the insurance man, who had finished hii lunch, and was going to leave the ta- ble.
 "Yes, I caught one, but had rather catch a yearling calf, on 8 rope, and drag it, or let it drag me all over tho city," said the old kicker. "One ol the guides offered to take me out ir the canoe and let me catch 8 musca- longe, and I went. I put out big spoon hook, and pretty soon it struck a snag and the snag began to drag the boat all over the lake. The guide told me had 6 mascolonge on my hook and l sawed on thes line for half ar hour, until my hands were raw and the skin worn of, and just as wal going to give up the guide saw the head of the fish on top of the water and fired revolver at it, which fright ened me 30 that tipped the boat over and had to catch on to 6 tree top and hold on by my teeth till the guide got the fish ashore and emptied the water out of the boat and come after me. must have hung on to that tree tor four hours, and I was 30 mad wouldn't eat any of the fish. I didn't have any dry clothes, SO had to build a fire in the woods and take of my clothes and dry them and stand around naked, with the mosquitoes playing tag on my hide. While was drying my clothes heard several shots in tht woods and the whoop of Indians, and three of our party came rushing by yelling that the Indians were after them, and told me better follow them to camp, and my hair raised right up, and I started of after them to camp leaving my clothes hanging by the fire in the woods. When got to camp the boys wrapped me up in { buffalo robe and hid me under 6 bunk while they went out and kept up the firing and whooping, pretending to hold the Indians at bay. Alter l had died four or five natural deaths from fright, the firing ceased and the guide brought me my clothes, and when asked him about the fight with the Indians, he said there hadn't beer any fight and had not been 6 shot fired, and he said I must have jim-jams. When the boyi came back to camp at night they said they hadn't heard of an Indian and there had been no unusual excite ment. asked them if they meant to tell me there had not been running fight with Indians, and they looked d me with astonishment and ordered the guides to hide the rest of the whiaky in the woods % I couldn't find it. ] would swear there was . fight with Indians, but have since learned that the boys were playing tricks on me Tho vnu kunyv fhay aes1k m, f<, q anrfno