Fort Worth weekly gazette. [volume] (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1882-1891, 1890-04-24
copyrighted 1890, by the Author.l

IkS Vi III
He had shown hints of feeling during
her sickness, and before she died he
solemnly promised, in Mrs. Seyton IS
presence, to care for the child as his
own. He did go so far as to take out
papers of adoption. Perhaps he thus
satisfied his conscience, for here any
kindness to Larry ended.
No more school, hard work all the
! days of the weeks, hard work and poor
fare; and, every day, the clothes which
his mother used to keep SO tidy, getting
raggeder.
At first, Dawsey was not actively bru-
tai. He kept the boy from school ,
worked him harder than an OK and fed
him barely; he was morose in his man
bers, soolded at any preIext, and made
hitting speeches without pretext. But he
did not beat Larry. OF late, however,
his bad temper had grown on him, and
passers by told of shrieks in child S
voice and the sound Of blows; and Larry
had a black eye, often, and once his
head was tied up, and when the cloth
came off there remained an ugly scar.
Nobody knew of his complaining, not
even to Alan Seyton, who was childish
hero of his. He was a quiet, patient
lad. If there were CLEANS of spirit hid
about him, nobody suspected them.
Something like this was the story Sally
told Cecil.
He was excited. Cobbs, who went
home with them, looked grave, saying
that he didn't like the looks of things;
people talked very "severe'' against
Old Man Dawsey.
''TheY re afraid of him, though, -
said Alan; he had joined the company
half way home and was trudging along
unconcernedly, as usual.
Gwen, you ain IT," Cobbs rejoined.
And Ally grinned.
al am, - said Sally. ''I'm 'fraid
he'll do US an awful meanness sometime &.
Do you reckon he could set the house
afire, Cobbs?'
''Now, sure, missy, - said Cobbs.
"I'd shoot him if he tried, - said
Cecil, laughing.
They went home in high good humor,
as far as the boys were concerned; but
Sally IS tender heart fretted over Larry.
Where was he? Had his cruel uncle
found him? Was he in the dismal re-
Cesses of the swamp, cold and hungry?
She cudgelled her brains all that day,
l am sure, to invent some plan OF sue
cor. And truth to tell the real reason
she went out on the coon hunt that even
ing was from a vague, wild hope that
they might find some trace of Larry.
Cobbs proposed the coon hunt. He
felt it on his conscience to amuse the
guest; and coon hunt struck the old
hunter as a peculiarly innocent, safe
sport.
moonlight night, Ally said he,
winking, "coons an 'possums thick as
hair. -
.''And We could take Henri, - said
Alan.
Cecil was feeling homesick again with
the nightfall; and hailed any diversion.
So, after supper, the moon being high
in the heavens, they started on the coon
hunt.
A coon hunt is favorite Southwestern
sport. Moonlight is required for the
hunters to see the coon, although some
times fire is built, which gives enough
light by which to sight a gun.
A dog is necessary, also, to find the
''coon'' or "possum; dog that IN
derstands his business.
Henri ", which Sally explained, was
their valued dog S name Given to him
because of the white tuft on his forehead,
the ''white plume of Navarro y was
not an attractive beast at first sight. He
was a lank, sneaking-looking Arkansas
hound that had lost one-half of one lop
ear in a fight and had half q dozen scars
as well. He tTOtted along in curious,
ungainly fashion, as If he were lame
which was not, and resented the ad-
vances of strangers by showing q ragged
row of teeth and growing.
'ss He really Is right sweet tempered -
said Sally, "but when we go hunting he
is so excited he forgets his manners. -
Cecil put Ally between him and the
fright sweet tempered dog shifting
suspiciously at his heels.
Ally was armed with rife as big as
himself. Cecil carried beautiful green-
sr, Sally bore an AK and Cobbs an an
Gent gun on his shoulders.
To do honor TO the occasion, Cecil had
donned his hunting suit, which Cobbs
eyed with vast but secret scorn. Sally
and Alan wore their shabbiest clothes
and rubber boots.
They walked very quietly through the
forest back of the house.
In fifteen minutes they were out OF
sight of the lights.
About them was only a forest as grim,
as dark, as wildly tangled with under
brush, as when the ak of the first settler
found it. Above them the full moon
rolled IN q steel blue, srarless sky.
Henri numbered ahead, his nose to the
ground.
Directly he began to bark.
CHAPTER vIII-THE COON HUNT.
X 'fHe's found him!2 announced Ally.
The dog 'ssclsmor filed all the silent
wood NOW, sharp, yelping barks. Away
down moonlit vissag they could see
him hurrying. His tail was straight in
the air, stiff as q stick Of wood.
Presently the bsrks changed. Howis,
sharper barks, the outcry of delight in
stead Of anxiety, reached them.
freed him?'' said Ally.
ashore, = said Cobbs.
Twas easy enough getting to the tree