The Providence news. (Providence [R.I.]) 1891-1906, 1892-04-15


nrst. There were lots OF people on the
grounds that day, and as many a. hum
drsd were standin' round that pen when
Ben arrived. He went right up to see his
hog fust thing, OF course.
"Ths crowd all began to hoot an iesy
when they saw him comm, an he wasn't
long in understandin' 1t all. He had an
awful temper, got II naturally enough
minutes he 'peared to be bout crazy.
"With kick of his heavy boot he
knocked In one side of the pen and tho
hog ran out. The crowd scattered right
and left, an the porker streaked it off
across the grounds and ran like deer for
the woods.
"Cal Potter got Ben of the grounds be-
fore he got into q row with Pele Mann,
an they had quite q time kecpin' him
from sailin' right In ter the whole
laughin' an jeerin' crowd. They say Ben
and his father had terrible time over it.,
an IL it hadn't been for his mother, Ben
would have left home for good and all.
" He had to stand considerable chaffin',
now tell 20, about that hog, specially
rom such fellers as Pele Mann. But
after he got cooled down he stood 1t all
we'll enough, and hardly ever opened his
lips in reply. But twas all forgotten in
side OF six weeks, for folks had suthin
else ter talk about.
"There had been travelin' circus CIV
in a show to town just above Maiden,
and panther, a big feller they said, had
got loose, an taken to the woods.
alt run along into cold weather an no.
body seen the panther, an the prize pig
vas just about forgotten. One day a
party OF young fellers were fellin' trees
for the winter haul up in Dave Potter's
north lot. Pele Mann, Cal Potter an
Ben Holcomb were among 'em, an some
how they got to talking about the
panther. Is'pose they were blowing, boy
like, about it, when Pele Mann spoke up,
an says he,-
"'Now / tell We what'd beat shinnin' up
upa tree r runnin' for gun. Them paint
ers kin climb like cats an a feller wouldn't
have a ghost of show il he undertook to
run from one. tell ye what I'd do. !
jest stand right steady, and when the crit
ter sprung fetch it clip a-tween the eyes
with my axe. That would lay IL out,
kalkerlate.'
"'Yes, I'd like to see yer fight painter
with that axe o. yourn,' says some one.
"'Wal,' says Pele, Il amt one mite
AFRAID an know cd do it,
"The boys laughed at Pele's Dragging,
an kept on working. Seth Benedict and
Cal Potter were together near the upper
end o. the clearin, right at foot o. a
hill-huckleberry hill it is called.
{" Cal,' says Seth, hear suthin NOV
ing up in them bushe-, an I'm goin' ter
see what it is.'
$50 Seth crept up the hill back OF the
clump of bushes and threw a rock in
amongst 'em. Whatever 1t was in the
bushes came out on a dead run right
down the hill towards where the boys
were workin'. Cal seen the thing comm
but didn't sense what it was, it run SO
fast.
"fThe painter! the painterP yells Cal,
and he jumped behind a big tree out OF
the creatures path.
"His shout OF course scared the other
boys, an when they see the thing a-com-
n for 'em they scattered, now / tell ye!
Pele, he was scared more N any of 'em,
an he threw down his saxe-comin' within
an ace of hittin' Ben Holcomb = and
turned to run. But the critter got right
between his legs an upset him into a
ditch. Ben, however, kept his head
pretty well, an fetched the critter q welt
eight over the head with his axe that
knocked it over.
"Whsn they'd cooled down some, and
Pele had been pulled out of the ditch with
4 broken shoulder and the skin just about
oloughed off his face, Ben pointed to
where the critter that had kicked up all
the row lay dead. But 1t wasn't no pam
ther-'twas that prize hog!
"How them boys did laugh and hoot
A D. u
al rayther guess that 'ere hog has
turned out wuss for you, Pele, than it did
for me-
"And he was right, for 1t was years be-
fore Pele Mann got rid Of the nickname
of Panther Pele. '"-Yankee Blade.
Do you want n Room or q Tenement