Butler citizen. [volume] (Butler, Pa.) 1877-1922, 1892-02-05

smith, wcll-knOWn ranchman OF
Gonzales county. Although he stopped
over but day. he had one large pack
age taken to the hotel, and looked
after it so closely that one of his
acquaintances finally rallied him
about it, inquiring what relic he was
guarding SO carefully. The inquiry
WIS repeated SO often by various ac-
quaintances that Col Abner finally, in
the presence of three or four chosen
straps, raised the lid of the long box
and disclosed a magnificent pair Of
moose horns, fully six feet from tip to
tip, and bearing twenty points When
the ordinations of surprise and de-
light were over. he was urged TO tell
all about it; and having lighted pre-
paratory cigar, helremarked musingly:
''Its very nice thing to have those
horns in box taking them home, but
those same horns came very near get
ting me into box, which would have
been quite another thing, let me tell
you. AS the story happens to have this
kind of an outcome, though, am, for
tunately, in position to tell about it,
SO here goes:
From southwest Texas to northern
Maine is good long way. It's little
difficult to believe, having seen them
both, that they belong to the same
country. don't mind telling you that,
though have seen good deal of the
United States, this was my first visit
to New England. My little sister.
Nellie, you know-the pretty one, Ben,
that you used to fancy-oh! you re-
member, do you-well, she married a
Maine man three years ago, and this
summer paid her my first visit. She
lives in Bangor, and her husband is q
big lumber dealer there. with interests
in half dozen mills in different parts
of the state He's fine fellow-Felix
Andrews is his name-and he spared no
pains to make my visit delightful
one. We spent several weeks on the
coast fishing and bathing and having a
royal time generally, and were really
intending to stay longer when Felix
received a message from one of his
managers, calling him to come up i'm
mediately as his presence was neces-
sary to settle some disturbance and
bad feeling that had arisen among the
men, who threatened revolt. 1don't
like to go away and leave you, Ah,'
said Felix, obviously; but an idea had
presented itself to me, and 1 replied:
Felix, think I'll go with you il
you don't object. I have always
wanted to see the northern part of the
state. I'll just seize this opportunity.
Felix was only too glad to have
company, and so we started on that
memorable trip. | think that one
journey included more variety of con-
veyance than any / ever took We
travelled by boat, by stage coach. by
OK wagon, and finally took the last few
miles horseback, arriving at the great
mill about as nearly frozen as any two
people you ever saw. ! forgot to tell
you that this rs the first week in Oc-
tober had lyed past the summer
because ! va 4 to get taste of
real Main, .cr; just to see what it
was like auu Dy the time / reached
was apparently no bottom to the snow,
fences were out of sight, and it was
desperately cold
"Well, we stayed at the mill until
Felix got everything Strengthened up
among the men. 1t was the fourth
day, ! think, that the manager said:
Mr.. Andrews, some of the men have
been saying that there's moose about
ten miles up the river, near the mar
rows. There were several yards up
there last winter, but we hunted them
out pretty we'll 1t good grazing
place, though, ard they say the moose
are gathering in again You may
imagine what thrill went over me at
the mere suggestion. The bare idea Of
me, native Texan, going on a moose
hunt away in Maine. Felix laughed at
me and said that / would find 1t was
not SO much fun at last, but he was as
eager as !. Maine man as he was, he
had never been moose hunting but
twice in his life. We prepared for q
hunt, however, a wagon load of camp
ing materials being made up by the
manager and two or three Of the men
who were going with us. Guns and
hunting-knives were put into first
class condition and everything was ar
ranged for n three-days' stay in the
woods i kept hearing them talk
about good hunting dog they were
going to take with them, but when
they brought it out on the morning of
our start ! couldn't keep from laugh
ing 1t was a little shaggy mongrel,
about as large as rat terrier and the
most undoubted pleheiau Of the dog