The Winslow mail., 1899-04-08
Dan'l'S MuSS with a Buck
'CABE came out of his house as
UnEeiGhboriy Acts of Friend in
the Knob Country

didn't answer him pertic'lar cheerin'
1t was only the day afore that says tc
Gabe:
"'You talk like durn fool, Gabe!'
says, cause he riled me the way he
shifted and turned up his nose and said
he'd like to see a deer treat him that
way.
"i'll bet anything you want to- be
says, that l kin lick the snortinest
buck, well Or wounded, that ever run in
these woods, if he'll only wait till l kin
git my claws on him; and l kin do ii SO
quick he won't never know what lit on
himi'
"And that's what riled me, for the
deer that had the little muss with
wasn't pertic'lar big one. but he come
so consarred nigh gittin' TIE best o ne
that there want no fun il il. plinked
him all right, as he was runrin' quar-
term from me, and he went down Like
an OK hit betwixt the eyes with a sledge
hammer, and laid there not even a-quiv-
erin
say it myself, as hadn't ought to!' l
says. He died fore he fetched the
ground
Il sot my gun ag'in the tree | was
standin' by and sa'ntered over to'rd the
deer, with an oh-I-guess-I'm goin'-to-
have-venisonfor-su sort O. way.
an, standin' straddle of him, stopped
over to cut his throat, l hadn't more
than put the pint O. the knife ag'in his
throat when he riz up as if a blast o
powder had been sot off under him. |
shot over his head and come down ker-
thump, fat as founder. Fore could
make any sort of a move. chug! come
them two fore hoofs O. the deer's down
onto me right where my hind gallus
buttons fastens on. That rather
knocked the wind out o. me for a spell,
but when 1 got some OF it back turned
my head and peeked up over my shoul-
der to see what the prospects was look
in like. / see the buck bracin' himself
agin me with his forefeet and glarin'
down at me with his eyes blazin'
worse'n the livest kind o. Goals, and his
nostrils was jest actu'ly spurtin' steam.
Then l know'd had only finred him
jest grazed him with my bullet where
his backbone jined his head. That's fiji
nin' deer. 1t drops 'em like a stone
and stuns 'em awhile, but don't kill 'em.
But it makes 'em as ugly as sin. So
see at once that hadn't killed this
buck, but had only finned him. 1t was
the ruttin' time O. deer, too. and bucks
is uglier then than wounded she bears,
anyhow. Known these things. 1 be-
gun to wonder if any O. the boys'd ever
run ag'in my bones there in the woods,
and lug 'em in and give 'em a home
plantin'.
jest the minute I moved and turned
my head back to see what the prospects
was the buck give a snort and r'ared up
almost perpendie'ler, so as to fetch
them sharp hoofs O. his'n down on me
ag'in. 1 know'd that if they ever landed
they'd more'n likely pin me to the
ground as proper as a coonskin nailed
to barn door, so kept my eye peeled,
and as them hoofs begun to fall 1 turned
over quicker'n my old woman ever
fopped a pancake on the griddle. I
want second too sQen, neither. One
o. the bucks hoofs jest grazed the front
o my huntin' shirt as l went over, and
both of his feet sunk into the ground,
hard as it was, half way up to his knees!
Il had an idee that them hoofs would
stick there, so that it'd kind o stay fur
ther perceedin's on the part O the deer
till could git on my pins, grab my gun.
and seek ball into him where it ought
to be socked. But the idee want the
right kind. I riz up all right, bu. some
how the deer's hoofs didn't stick in the
ground long. The deer got 'em out
soon enough 10 throw 'em ag'in me so
hard that it tumbled me more than six
feet away, and mixed me up in d lot o
wild grapevines that hung down from
big Oak tree. That was lucky tum-
BILE, l tell you, for grabbed a thick
stalk o vine and elm up it in d way
that'd made a monkey think he wasn't
any great shucks at climbn', after all,
| got up in that tree, and the buck
danced and pranced and snorted arounu
for a minute or two, and then went
boundin' away up the ridge. Soon as
see his white tail whisk out O. sight in
the scrub oaks I elm down and went
home feelin' about as clipper, s'pose.
as a feller mowt feel who'd been
ketched stealin' a sheep. And that's
the little muSs with q mad deer hat l
was tellin' Gabe about when he shifted
and turned up his nose and riied me by
sayin' that he'd Jest like 0 see any deer
treat him that way, and that he'd bet
a little somethin' that he could lick the
biggest buck that run them woods. well
or wounded. if the deer would only let
him git his claws on il aace. So was
rilsd yit when l was goin' by Gabe's
house and he hollers:
Where you goin so fast, DanI?'
II didn't answer him pertic'lar cheer
in, feelin' riled at him yit, and l jest
says:
'Chestnuttin''
'Chestnuttin'! Gabe hollers. What
you got yer gun fer?'
Il kept goln' right along, and hollers
back:
az thought maybe there mowt be
some chestnuts so high on the tree that
Id have tor cut, the stems with a rifle
ball. | hollers.
"'Say, Danl!' Gabe hollers. Kin go
1Cng?'
Course had to be neighborly, riled
or no riled, and l hollers back:
"'There amt no law to prevent you,
as ever heerd on!' | hollers.
so Gabe he came along. and we went