Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1888-10-11
Yesterday, as I was vending my way


Yesterday, as was vending my way
campward at noon, hungry and tired, an
old buck, five pointer-roused from his
siesta under the pines-trotted leisurely
across the trail and along the slope. 1
sent a ball as we'll aimed as I knew how,
but he neither slackened nor increased
| his gait. Oae, two, three, with the same
result. What did it mean? Was my eye
| warped, gun barrel crooked Or was this
| old resident impervious to lead? As /
raised my gun for the fourth round he
suddenly stopped, shook bis massive ant
lers and dropped in his tracks dead as
stone. Upon examination 7 found that
every ball had struck him in vital part.
In dressing him I came to hard, girls
| fly lump under the skin. Cutting it open
| l found battered ounce bali Of lead. On
closer inspection I found that it had
| gone clear through him between the heart
and liver, struck against q rib On the
other side, and nature had covered it
| over, and there it remained for years.
| What hunter ''cussed" and blamed his
bad luck as that old buck bounded away ?
| And old Mr.. Fiveprong might have had
another story TO tell his grandchildren
about one OF my balls, but the breech-
loader With its little arsenal was too
many for him.
Three more days of this glorious sport
Headache all gone, appetlte-why We
could have digested medium sized grid
iron. Our camp looked like regular
packing stablishment-hams and shout
ders and "bsck straps" smoked just
enough to keep nice and sweet, presents
for our city friends. That last day-how
we'll l remember it! We had been far
down the valley for last grand hunt.
Toward evening the fog from the plains
below, came drifting toward Us. We
turned our faces campward. AS it settled
round Us, the air grew almost as dark as
night. In crossing the canyons, somehow
we got separated from each other.
| Heavily laden with a saddle Of venlson
apiece, We labored up the rocky steps
times crawling on our hands and knees
| under the dense underbrash, and around
| awful chasms, through which the waters
roared and Numbered. The wet fog
struck Us in the faces, almost binding US.
l halloed for my friend-but no answer;
the wind was against me and my voice
died away in the echo of the moaning
pines. Still labored on, up and up. It
grew lighter; at last, laundering the last
rocky height, I suddenly came into the
| glorious twilight. I had gotten above the
fog.
I turned my eyes toward the west.
Never shall forget that sight Like great
pillows of snowy foam, undulating, rising
and falling, transformed at times into
silver, gold and sapphire by the rays of
the setting sun, rolling on and on, came
that ocean of fog, with drops Of mist
4 r,l5 hrS NH On
beyond, 200 miles distant, lay the grand
Pacific, its waves glittering like pearls, a
mighty sea of glass. I sat long, and
gazed like one entranced upon this beau
| titic vision-I never expect to see another
such this side the shore of the sea of life.
| Suddenly I was awakened from my revery
by the we'll known voice of my lend
''Hello, there,"-not 100 yards away,
Parted from each other in the mists and
darkness Of the valley below, We met at
! last in the bright sunlight Of the noun
tain top far above the fog.
That evening ominous clouds gathered.
and the next morning flakes warned us
| that it was time to turn our faces toward
| the warmer regions below-none too
soon; as we reached lower ATTITUDES We
could see the hills surrounding our old
camping ground white with snow. If we
had stay ed another day we would prob
ably have been prisoners in that little
valley for months.
Soon after this I sailed for trip to
the Hawaiian islands. When / returned,
on opening my budget Of letter I came
to one black-edged. It was from s.,
my old hunter friend. My breath caught
in my throat as l read-dead! Struck
down in the prime of his manhood. And
then I thought of our last evening TO-
gether-the dark valley below-the
partirg-the fog-the meeting in the
sanshine above.