Saint Mary's beacon. [volume] (Leonard Town, Md.) 1867-1983, 1897-04-08

moving and scratching on the part
OF the hounds when we appeared
on the scene. A council of war was
held and it was unanimously de-
termined that the fox must die, for
he was O mean cur and had taken
70 his hole when he had given us
but little over an hours sport. We
sent for spades and shoyels and
went hard to work sinking pits in
hope of lighting upon him but the
evening was half spent and we were
even more SO. digging holes in the
wrong places. While we stopped
for resting spell, the dogs were
working under the bank. but the
orifice was too small to admit any
of the master dogs. Some one sug.
gested trying my Slim, who receiv-
his name from his shape-that he
might reach The fox. Some one
snatched out by the heels. the oc-
cupant of the hole, and Slim was
put in his place, but in less than q
minute he hustled ont with a very
much scarified nose and a general
look of Sufficient for the day is
the evil thereof" Dukes Gano.
a strong, three-euarter hound, leap
ed into the breach, worked a few
minutes for an opening, which be-
ing gained. we heard a subterranean
disturbance miniature earth
quake as it were, which did not last
more than a minute, when Gano
backed out dragging by the nape of
the neck, a fox as dead as poor
Hector, when the Hellenic hero.
Achilles, was done manipulating
him.
In an instant Jim Combs made a
spring for the brush, seized and
swiped it off with his knife, the
point of which entered his pants.
just below his right pocket and he
stood still and as pale as a scatue
OF marble, declared he was badly
wounded and felt the blood run
ming copiously down his boot, and
with this declaration on his lips.
fell in dead faint upon the sand.
There was rushing and bustling of
friends to his assistance. his pants
were partly peeled off and a scratch
was found with scarcely trace of
blood, and then such a laugh as
went up and around. George
Duke moved off a little way from
the merry group, turned very pale
and dropped by the waters edge in
a swoon. There was a rush to him,
his cravat was pulled off, water
thrown into his face, and vitality
was reasserting itself, when his
brother Jim moved away a few
PAGES and fell upon the beach as if
he had been electrocuted . The
thing was growing serious. and the
end was not yet, for it was not two
minutes after the second Duke fell
when the cry rang out, "look at
Tom Price ~ Tom. broad
shouldered six-footer and inveterate
hunter. was staggering down the
shore like he was overloaded with
corn juice. Two friends ian to
him, each taking an arm, the one
nearer the river STOPPING down
from time to time, flirting salt
water in his face, which revived
him in about ten minutes time.
Jim Combs, George Duke and his
brother jim, were all sitting up
now on the beach about four feet
from the water and ten feet from
each other, their chins on their
breasts, and their hands clasping
their knees, drinking in the re-
freshing breeze from the broad
Potomac, George Duke, the mid
die man of this pallid trio, with
comical look upon his face, turned
toward Jim Combs and said "Jim,
what did You start this darned fool
ishness for, any how ?" His broth
or caught on, and with a sickly
smile. observed, "that's what say.
too, George" No response came
from the first Dromio; he was not
in a jocose mood, but the crowd
around broke out into a laugh that
was probably heard by our Virginia
neighbors, six miles across the blue
Potomac. When our dead COM
rades were all resurrected. and
sufficiently strong, we mounted our
steeds and galloped up to Frank
Stones where each of US got a good
strong pull of brandy, which was
good and bracing to our jaded hu-