The Van Buren press., 1898-04-16
| The Yanking of Joe Vail. !
! May Be the Victim Of a Deer and May !
J Be Only Liar. J
TT is puzzling me like everything"

sdlu oOlu oIlDtIlt TIC travelling
groceryman, trying to think it out
whether my old friend Joe Vail is lying,
or whether he is simply the innocent
victim of peculiar circumstances. I've
been trying for two weeks now to make
up my mind, and 1 can't, and it worries
me like fury.
"Once a year go up to spend few
days with Joe during the season of
pickerel fishing through the ice, and
this winter l didn't get up there until
late. l had sent word to Joe that
would be there on a certain day. 1t is
a six-mile drive from the railroad sta
ton in to Joe's place, ami Joe always
meets me at the train to drive me in.
This time, though, Joe wasn't there, but
a man that works for him was in his
place. After we had got started ways
| said to Joe's man:
"'Where's Joe? Why didn't he come
IMP
"'Why, said the man, didn't you
hear about it"
"'Hear about it?' I said. No. Hear
about what?
"'About joe said the. man, looking
at me as il he was surprised that l
hadn't heard about it.
"'No,' said I. What about Joe?'
"'Hes yanked,' said the man.
"'Yanked? said I. What do you
mean?
al mean he's yanked!' replied the
man, somewhat positively. "A deer bit
him, or hooked him, or kicked him, or
sumpin' or other like that, and Joe
killed it. 1t might been in the season
for deer to bite or hook or kick Joe,
but it don't seem to been in the season
for Joe to kill the deer for dom OF
it, and so they yanked him. That's
what l mean
Arrested him p asked, puzzled and
worried.
ayes replied the man. Took him
up. Yanked him. And it looks to me
as if they was goin' to sock it to him,
too
ISL u Ill JAIL, is ut L dShCu
"'No,' said the man. 'Leastways, not
Wit. But it looks to me as If they was
goin' to sock it to him, and if they sock
it to him / don't see but what he's jist
as good as in jail
"This wasn't very pleasant news to a
man who had come out for couple OF
days sport, but I thought l wouldn't
coax any more information from Joe's
pessimistic factotum. would wait UNI
til heard Joe's story. That might put
an entirely different face on the mat
ter, ! thought.
"When we arrived at Joe's place Joe
came out to meet me. I saw at once
that he was respondent. After greet
ings he said:
"'Well, s'pose you heerd I was
yanled?'
81 told Joe had heard so.
"'What be we comm to- said he
when deer kin come and chaw you
and rip you, and jump on you, and dc
anything else he durn pleases to you
to make your wife a wilder, and, if the
moon or the season don't happen to be
Jest right, you got to lay there and take
it without raisin' your hand ag'in the
deer, unless you want to git yanked
and be held for the grand juryP What
be we comm top
81 told Joe l didn't know, and asked
for particulars of this difficulty he
seemed to have got into.
allow did it happen, Joe 2 ] asked.
att happened the aggravatinest
Kind said Joe. You know Bushmiller's
pond, don't you? Well, / went ovel
there Yesterday TO git some pickerel
Say, John! never see 'em bite so!
I only had ten lines in, and them pick
erel bit so fast had to pull out five o
them lines cause couldn't git around
to any more quick enough to haul out
the fish. Tip-ups in the air all the time
and keepin' me on the run for more'r
an hour.
"'The way it was goln' l see that II
them pickerel didn't let up on me Ii
be so tired I'd never git home, so jest
pulled up all my lines and quit. Yot
ought to been there and seen the stacks
o. piekerel had layin' round there OF
the ice. see there wasn't no kind o
use O. me thinkin' o. gittin' anyways
nigh a quarter of 'em home by backin
'em in, so I was startin' for home Il
git Sam and the OK team when hearC
a noise behind me. I looked back owe
my shoulder, snd there Isee a slammin