The Democratic press. [volume] (Ravenna, O. [Ohio]) 1868-1901, 1890-09-24
Boys Squirrel Story.

With some of the war gossip of to.
day has appeared the remark that the
American boy inherits very little of the
sturdy traits of character that marked
the heroes of the Revolution" In
other words, that in courage the
Americans are degenerating. Young
America believes this is all nonsense.
All over the land there are evidences,
they say, of superior culture and
strength, and if foreign foes should
come they will find that in the char
acter and courage of the American
boy there is nothing wanting. An ex-
ample:
The Berskeart family of seven boys,
living south of the city, compares favor
ably with their great-grandfather who
was hero in 1912. Their grandfather
was one of the early settlers of Indiana,
and he delights in relating to the boys
the adventures of their ancestors. But
the other day the boys forced their
''grard-pap," as they call him, to adj
nit that they are not inferior in cour-
age. They have a single-barreled shot
gun that will throw shot about thirty
yards, and they have killed young rab-
bits and squirrels with it; but have also
wasted about five pounds of shots and
powder on an old squirrel that lived iD
large oak tree. The other day the
boys saw this veteran of the wood in a
mulberry tree helping himself to the
delicious fruit. The oldest boy, who
is Just fifteen, crawled up to the tree,
leveled the gun and fired at the coveted
prize. The shot knocked off a few
leaves and tickled the squirrel, but he
did not fall.
He ran up the tree frisking his tail.
Then he jumped from the mulberry
into the branches of beech, and from
the beech he crossed into tall maple
sugar. The top branches of the latter
crossed a large limb of the massive
oak. The squirrel mounted the link
of the oak, and ran down about fifteen
feet to a curve. Then he looked cum.
ningly at the boys and disappeared in
a hole.
The younger lads looked at the squir
rel's vanishing tail with considerable
| dismay, but the older ones exclaimed
"If he kin do that we kin, toom One
boy ran home after climbing material,
| and in another half hour the two Older
boys came sliding down the large OAK
| limb with all the material necessary
! for capture. A cage was placed
over the hole. One boy sounded alons
the limb, and then cut open small
cavity. Then he inserted slim stick
into the den, and in moment more
the old sly squirrel ran out into th
caoe a prisoner A ball of twine wa
then fastened to the cage, and it wa
lowered to the ground. Then there wa
nothing for the boys to do but to conn
down, but first they had to go up tha
limb.
Probably any other persons in tn
same position, supplied with hatchet
would have fallen off OF cut notches t.
climb up by, but not so with the boys
They had tried cutting notches with ;
dull hatchet before. One boy drew
from his pocket a number of larg
nails that are used in building bridges
He then drove them into the limb
like the iron hand-holds on the tele
graph poles. Then, in about ten min
utes more, the boys, including grand
dad" who had come out to see wha
they were up to, gathered around tn
cage to view the prize. The old vetera
turned his eyes up at the dizzy hight
and as the tears twinkled under hi
glasses, he said:
Boys your grand-dad would abb
afeared to done it"
The boys are now supplied with
Winchester rifle, and they are practit
ing on squirrels eyes hundred yard
with remarkable success.
They will soon be ready for the IL
vaders. Indianapolis Ne1US.