Republican news item. [volume] (Laport, Pa.) 1896-19??, 1899-08-10
eeedingly awkward obstacle for hur-

fylng wolves to scramble over.
Seeing only one figure, and that at
rest. the wolves came on again, but on
nearing the bridge they stopped short
on the edge of the washout, as if sus-
pecting the strange thing before them
was a trap. For several minutes
they stood there, 10 of them, with
their long, red tongues lolling ont,
and then with one accord all turned
and ran off along the top OF the bank.
Presently they disappeared; but in
another moment Henry saw them lop-
ing away, one behind the other, down
in the bottom of the washout. He
presumed they knew of some way to
get up the opposite bank and were in
tending to come back and attack him
from behind. At this wolfsh plan
Bunglewits chuckled, for he was bright
enough to see that he could put the
wagon-box between him and the
wolves again by simply crossing over
it; but he chuckled more at thinking
how the wolves were giving him time
to make better defence.
The washout was about 20 feet wide,
with perpendicular sides eight or ten
feet high, except for an occasional
break. The bridge was formed by two
big tree trunks lying from bank to
bank as stringers, across which were
set stout floor timbers, tightly jammed
down but not spiked to the stringers,
for in those days freightage was high,
and heavy things like spikes were not
used lavishly.
Bunglewits had helped to build the
bridge. No sooner, therefore, did he
divine the intention of the wolves to
come behind him than he dropped his
axe, sprang TO the far end of the
bridge and with one jerk wrenched up
one of the crosspieces and sent it
whirling into the washout. The first
enc being out, the rest came easily,
and for a minute or two the air
seemed to be full of flying timbers.
So hard, 50 fast and so intelligently
did the misnamed Bunglewits work
that when the eager pack rushed to
the end of the bridge, expecting in
another moment to make an end of
him, they found before them yawn-
ing gap ten feet wide and on the other
side the stout young German with his
axe, defyiug them to "come on.
One OF them, bolder than the rest,
did ''come on" but he was met in
mid air by such a crushing blow from
the axe that he went tumbling end
over end to the bottom of the washout.
At this a second wolf, which had crept
part way across one of the stringers,
thought better of it and backed care
fully Off again.
Then they all "bunched" on the
edge of the washout, howlinS in i'm
potent rage at Bunglewits, those near
est him pushing backward and those
behind leaping aud struggling TO get
to the front. If HanJy had ever read
thought their behavior to be strangely
like that of ''the ranks OF Tuscany"
more than 1000 years before.
This had been going on for quar-
ter of an hour or more when the
whole band suddenly dispersed in
every direction, and in twinkling
there was not wolf to be seen. Their
sharp ears had detected some thing to
alarm them. In another minute
Henry saw, coming down the hill tow
ard him, a sleigh drawn by two horses,
which were being urged to their best
pace by four shouting men.
Henry held up his ARM rs warn
ing to them to stop, and as soon as he
saw that they were slackening speed
he threw down the axe and turned his
sleigh over, and up rose Mrs. Benson
and her children, none the wo,se for
their temporary Imprisonment.
Then the four men, led by ''long"
Hank Marks, the keeper of the stage
stable, came balancing themselves
across the stringers. They had no
idea that it was not the regular stage
driver who stood with his back toward
them; when, therefore, Henry turned
and faced them they all, with one ac-
cord, exclaimed:
"Why, it's Bunglewits!"
"No" cried Mrs. Benson, stepping
forward and taking Henry by the
hand. cit is not Bun nglewits. 1t is
our very dear friend, Henry Smith,"
The men stood little abashed, see
ing the tears in her eyes, but they
were decent fellows, and seeing the
just ce Of her protest, they heartily
approved the tall stable keeper when,
pulling off his cap in a deferential
manner, he said:
eff you say SO, ma'am, it's so. It's
Henry Smith from now on"
The name of Bunglewits had died
with the wolf that lay in the bottom
of the washout Youth Companion.