Thomas County cat. [volume] (Colby, Kan.) 1885-1891, 1889-05-30

NORTHWEST No scu preferred 70 enjoy
his short hunting trips. unencumbered
with any troublesome equine.
Therefore, he left, on this particu-
lar occasion. the door of the little log
stable wide open. 80 that the sleek
sided, buckskin pony might be FREQ to
crop at will the short grass adjacent
to the corrals. confident that his well
coming neigh would be the first sound
| to greet him on his return.
Bruce Webster confidently hoped to
find the missing calf within quarter
of mile of the ranch. This was by
no means the first time the truant Tom
had wandered away from his little
herd of youthful companions, for it
would seem that he simply detested the
confinement to which he was subjected
during the day, and endeavored, to the
extent of his limited ability, to manage
his own particular affairs in a way
more to his liking. Bruce had always
| declared that Toms aristocratic no
lions regarding the superiority of blue
blood was ithe cause of his preferring
solitude to the society of the common
herd of Texan long-horns, which sup
position was based on the fact that old
Reddy, Toms mother, was full
blooded Hereford that the Websters
had brought with them all the way
from their old home in the North.
1t was, really, rather strange that
this highly-prized scion of an ancient
family should have been so prone to
make his owners trouble; since. for
the first six months of his life, he had
been pettAd by his owner, and allowed
to wander at will about the door-yard,
so that he might enjoy perfect inn
munity from the assaults of wander
ing wolf or Mexican lion; but al
though he still remembered some OF
the numerous accomplishments taught
him by Bruce in leisure moments, one
of which was to charge blindly at the
tantalizing wave of red handker-
chief, he was in other respects as wild
as any other young cattle.
As he had expected, Bruce found
the calf's tracks without difficulty,
plainly showing in the dusty path that
led down the valley of the little creek;
but he was somewhat surprised to find
that Tom had logged steadily along,
swerving neither to the right nor left,
for nearly mile, finally leaving the
trail at point where the rocky nat
ure of the soil and dense underbhlsh
rendered futile all attempts at further
trailing, and the most persuasive and
persistent calling failed to elicit any
responsive bleat from the little runa-
way.
For mile farther Bruce wandered
down the little valley. shooting now
and then green-crested duck. or one
of the numerous gray squirrels that
barked and chartered at him from the
limbs above his head; but, search as
he would. no further trace of the lost
Tom could be discovered.
Puzzled and disheartened. the lad
finally turned back, resolving to mount
his pony after dinner, and search out
the entire country for radius of three
or four miles
Crossing the stream, he hunted back
along the south bank, hardly expect
ing to discover the object of his
search, but adding occasionally to his
string of game.
Presently his attention was attracted
by an unusually demonstrative squir-
rel who was saucily bidding him de-
fiance from his perch on the limb of
large hollow oak. The shotgun was
brought to the boys shoulder. but, as
if aware of his danger, the threatened
animal lodged out of sight in a con-
venient orifice in the tree trunk.
Hello! you are sharp little fellow,
I see!' muttered our young hunter.
"Never mind, though! You can't
stay in that hole forever; and the next
time you show up you'll never know
what hurts YOU"
A fallen tree near by offered COM
Portable seat. and Bruce assumed an
easy position, with his back against
the moss-covered stump; and, resting
his gun across his knees, awaited the
reappeararce of the beleaguered squir-
rel.
Minutes passed, but nothing more
was seen of the sharp, rat-like ears
and beady eyes, although Bruce's
vigilance never relaxed.
Halfway down. mass of scarlet
and yellow ivy leaves hid a second
opening in the tree trunk, and here,
unnoticed by the lad. the cunning
squirrel watched his every motion,
with not the slightest intention of ex-
posing himself further.
Another pair of eyes were riveted
on the unsuspicious boy-a pair of
snaky. black orbs that cleaned dan
gerously near, in q clump Of verdant
foliage; for, by some unlucky chance.
the route to safety selected by Caddo
Bill. the red fugitive from justice, had