Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1899-03-08
CAPITOL STORIES.
The Story Of the Unfortunate Snow.
shoeing Judge.
Councillor Gordon Has Sport With Friend
With q Oseoy Duck.

Councillor Gordon of Fryeburg, repre-
senting the second district is man who
is thoroughly in love with all sorts of
sports of the field and Is noted for being
a fine shot and as a fisherman' He was
talking with former townsman. Col
e. c. Harrington. the other morning up
In the railroad commissioner Office and
their talk went to the subject Of the
weather and the "sap snow" that was
falling.
81 would like to be up at our camp for
about two weeks" quoth Colonel Far
rington, gazing longingly out UPON the
snow uncovered scene IRON the windows of
the department ut would do me good to
stay there in that syrup camp and assist
in making syrup"
This will be a good year no doubt
said Mr. Gordon. but the snow is lit
tie too deep in the woods to make any
sport in the way Of gathering sap"
.Is there a great amount of snow on
the ground in the woods:" queried the
reporter.
Fully three feet" answered the coun-
cilor. There is something like work IN
the gathering Of sap when the snow is
that deep in the woods for you take il
where the snow-shoes cannot be used, and
the wading about with yoke from which
two pals dangle, on the shoulders, /,
painfully near work. II you have or
snow-shoes there is danger of mans
forgetting all about his religion. for the
snow is sure to be slumpy when the time
to gather the sap arrives. One Is con.
tinually catching his toe or his heel or
twigs. or else he is slumping deeply
will take my sap gathering in the morn.
ing on the crust. That is the time wher
the sport comes in.
81 shall never forget the time tina,
Judge - and l went ice fishing. ana
the judge was hung up on the WALL We
had been fishing all the afternoon and
the Judge started off ahead of me for the
shore. He arrived at the place on the
shore where there was wall built. The
snow was slumpy and the judge was eau.
tiously moving along on his snow-shoes
lie placed one foot on one side of the wall
and stepped over with the other. no,
touching the wall in the least. AT the
same time both shoes broke through the
snow and the judge sank down so that he
sat upon the wall with a foot on each
side. Never was a man more thoroughly
affixed to a place. The snow-shoes were
tied on firmly and for half an hour until
! arrived where he was. he could nor
move. The snow had firmly come in over
the tops of the shoes and there he was rs
firmly on the fence as ever any politfcian
was accused of being. The forces to dra :,
him from the wall We're as equally divid-
ed as possible, so that he could not move
either way.
What are you sitting down for:' I
asked him when ! was near enough. Be-
cause l can't help myself he answered.
went to farm house and borrowed a
shovel and then dug out the judge.
believe he would have persisted there be-
fore he could have broken away from
those snow-shoes. ! never saw anything
like it,
Mr.. Gordon worked a great joke on the
judge one day during the duck shooting
season. remarked Col Harrington
Near our camp there is a small pond Of
horseshoe shape. 1t is not a very preten-
tlous place. but it contains water and
therefore place for the ducks.
The judge is not noted for being a very
good shot. and he is Furthermore not An
expert sportsman, though he enjoys him.
sell as well as the rest of us in hunting.
Mr. Gordon went out one day and threw
deadwood decoy duck into the pend
ana returned to camp. He suggested thar
IL was about the right time to see ducks
III horseshoe pond. and the judge thought
ne would go and look for them. saw
that Mr. Gordon was up to some trick nv
the expression on his face, but the Judge
did not see it. He picked up a 10 gauge
gun and sailed forth. Very soon we
heard two reports from the gun and then
followed two more. Gordon merely re-
marked that that decoy was having
hard time Of it and we knew what was
up.
The judge came back to camn with
our any game and no one spoke for a
Tune, until finally the Judge himself re-
marked that he hit the decoy, We all
mad to laugh and he told lis how he dill
1t. he said he was walking aieny the
point when suddenly he spied the bird.
Inc shot was good one and he blazed
away. The shot set the decoy to bobbinp
up and down and he let drive the other
parreh quickly rejecting both shells and
loading again to let both these barrels
ny at the supposed duck With all the
bobbing and the upright condition of the
duck, the judge thought he would inves-
tisate before shooting more and he found
out his mistake L. ie-