Smyrna times., 1890-06-18
LlrrLE sroRIEs OF ANIMALS.
A Dog That Died for a Fool Master-Cufi-
Gus Death of Fox.

A Oor That Died for a Fool Master-Cuft-
Gus Death of "A Fox.
"T have never let any of my dogs re-
tr;eve birds since an experience l had
With a cruel sportsman over on the Della
ware river late one fall, said Scranton
bird shooter the other day. "The man
owned a splendid pointer that knew a |
good deal more about some things than |
his master did, and we were both shoot |
ing ouails over him along the banks OF
the river. He was harsh with the dog,
and the poor creature was often COM
Delled to do what he knew to be sense
less things, just because he felt certain
that he would be licked like the mischief
if he didn't obey. Each side of the river
was frozen over out to the main channel,
where there was a strip about foot wide
that wasn't covered with ice. One of
the quail that l shot started to fly across
the river and dropped dead on the thin
ice within few inches of the open chan
mel. Nv companion ordered the pointer
TO go and get it, and the Obedient dog
dashed out upon the ice till he got within
a couple of yards or SO of the dead bird,
when he halted, for the ice had begun to
crack under him. Then he looked back
Mt his master and waEged his tail, and
his actions told us as plain rs words that
he knew it would be dangerous for him
to proceed any further.
81 begged the man to call the dog back
and let the minks have the quail, but he
wouldn't listen to me. Again he ordered
the dog to fetch the quail in, and again
the dog made an effort to reach it, but
the ice cracked and he turned about,
whined piteOusly, and i'll every way that
he knew how begged his master to call
| him back. But the heartless man was
determined to make the dog do as he
! said, and he yelled savagely at the
pointer to get the dead bird. Then the
dog sprang forward and seized the quail.
! The ice gave way under him, the cur
rent was swift, and out of sight the poor
thing went, with the bird in his mouth.
That was the last the cruel man ever saw
of his obedient dog. He hunted down the
river for a long distance, but it was use
less, for the dog had perished under the
ice while faithfully performing his duty.
The man was sorry, then, of course, and
indeed the poor dogs death taught him
a lesson he never forgot"
While hunting partridges near Round
Swamp, in Clifton township, last fall,
Aaron Bidgood saw a fox scrambling
around in a mud puddle at a great rate.
He was interested III the animals queer
antics. and after he had watched the
lively fox for awhile he came to the con
clusion that it was catching frogs, or at
least trying to catch them. Its tail was
covered with mud, and it was hopping
and jumping around in mud and water
upon its belly when BidgOod stole vi
near enough to see that the sly fellow
was really gobbling up a frog every few
seconds. Bidgood said he didn't care Il
molest it Just then, and while he wa
watching its capers from the midst of ;
clump of bushes another fox, apparent,
the first ones mate, sprang into the muC
hole from the opposite side and went t.
catching the long legged occupants o
the puddle on its own hook. When Bid
good had looked at the cunning frog eat
ers as long as he cared to, he yelled an
the two mud covered foxes foundere
out of the puddle in a hurry and scam
pered directly toward the clump Q
bushes where the hunter was concealed
They were very much frightened, an
the mud on their bushy tails and in thei
/ long fur kept their speed down consiC
: erably, and when they came along Bic
good killed each of them with a charg
of bird shot.
3 A fox that had been chased by houn
2 for ten hours lost its life in a peculia
: way in the Lackawanna valley late on
5 day in January. Reynard had been pu1
t sued until he was pretty well tuckere
t out, and he ran down into the vale
!, from the Spring Brook side. He pointe
a for the Lackawanna river, bat near Il
/, bank he changed his course, swun
. around large coal breaker, and ran u
0 the steep incline to the head house at Il
S top of the breaker. Through the hea
Il house he dashed, and then ran along
s beam, sprang from the end of it to
S culnI pile, and scampered up the refu
r railroad track to the summit, where cul
was dumped. At the dump the fC
darted past boy and mule, and start'
- W SiluG QOWn bA6 bt66p plLCu VI 4OO
mine refuse toward the river. The ba
7 of the culm pile has been on fire for Sc
eral years, the fire extending up the si
;, for forty or fifty feet. When the f,
- had begun to slide down he couldn't ST
=. himself, and he slid right into the ma
- of glowing anthracite and was so bad
> burned before he got through it that
= lay down and died close to the riv
- bank. The hound, inside of half
~ hour, loped up the incline to the he
~ house. 1t nosed around and bayed fol
oo Oo few seconds, lost the scent, and tn
~ dashed down the slope 10 a spot where
II had left the level ground. There it {
~ ~ on the track again, and when it start
80 up the plane the second time one of
u men threw chunks of coal at it and
oo went yelping out of sight.-Scrant
- Letter in New York Sun.