Butler citizen. [volume] (Butler, Pa.) 1877-1922, 1893-04-07

he somehow felt his heart gong OUT
thankfully to the Maker of such a
beautiful world.
There said Tad. as, finishing trim
ming the pole, he rose to his feet and
brushed off the twigs, ''now for the
trout
The brook went dancing and laugh
ing along at his side, with here and
there mimic waterfall, at the foot Of
which the foam and bubbles drifted
about in frothy masses.
With fingers trembling little with
excitement, Tad fastened his line, with
its heavy sinker and hook large enough
for black bass, to the end of the pole
Adjusting the bait, he threw his line
into the deepest part of the pool.
Il guess it isn't very good day for
trout, any way" he murmured, after
about five minutes of letting his line
drift along in the current, and pulling
it up again. But stop! a little tug at
the hook sent thrill from his finger
tips to his toes! With a jerk that
would have landed three-pound trout,
Tad pulled out club about four inches
long, which, with hook, line and sink
er, was Immediately entangled in the
alder branches over his head, requiring
some ten minutes of perspiring effort to
clear it.
Trout amt as big as 1 thought for"
he said, half aloud, as he surveyed his
prize. at must take an awful lot of
'em to make mess" Tad added.
gravely, as he strung the small fish on
a twig, and 1u;rrle his way little fur-
ther upstream, in his ignorance pass
ing over the deep pools and swelling
eddies, which are generally the lurk-
ing-places of the spotted beauties.
Bv eleven o'clock, Tad, who had
caught seven chubs, each about afinger
in length, began to think that the
charm of trouting had been consider
ably overstated. 1t was rather early
in the season for mosquitoes, yet there
were quite enough of them about to
make it quite lively for a fisherman.
He had ascended the brook about two
miles, and was tired and decidedly
hungry; and, moreover, he found him.
self right in the heart of what seemed
to Tad's unaccustomed eyes bound
less forest.
Sitting down on stump, Tad gazed
about him, wondering at the solemn
silence. Overhead, the wind sighed
softly through the tops of the great
pines. Red squirrels chittered in the
spruce and hemlock trees, and a par
ticularly venturesome one dropped
cone from an overhanging bough at his
very feet, vanishing among the branches
with wonderful swiftness, as Tad
looked suddenly up. A partridge
drummed in the distance, and wood
chuck scampered rapidly through the
underbrush at little way off
Il wonder if there are any bears in
these woods" thought Tad, with an
uncomfortable thrill pervading his
frame at the bear possibility. I'D
either have to run or climb a tree if |
| saw one coming" he thought. land
| yet, what good would that do, where
bears can climb and run rather better
than most boys" In a juvenile paper
| he had read how one "boy hero, thus
surprised, had hastily lashed his open
| jack-knife to the end of a pole. and
boldly attacking the savage beast, had
slain him by fortunate thrust. Tad
neohanicaliy took out his own jack
knife, and opened the two-inch blade
| of the best cast-iron.
81 couldn't do much with that" he
| thought, .-but .'upPeso''
"G-r-r-T-r!'
A terrible growl, accompanied by a
rustling in the thicket of small pines
close at hand, sent Tad's heart into his
very throat! There was not even time
to splice the knife to the fish-pole, for
the growl and rustling were repeated
louder and nearer than before!
The hackneyed expression, ''to sell
his life dearly" flashed into Tad's
mind, and, bracing himself against the
tree-stump-som in the
| Come one, come all-this rock shall fly
From its firm base, soon as T.
attitude-he held his open jack-knife in
his hand, and awaited the overcoming
| monsteri