Griggs courier. (Cooperstown, Griggs Co., Dak. [N.D.]) 1885-1902, 1899-02-09
Dan'l's uuss With Buck
UassagAbssly Aees q . esssal L.
~ Kaee Country
came out Of his house q
III was roin' nv. ~ said the man from

was &Ol0 tOleT Ole 1aSts IQ8LS SO,
and as I was feelin' riled yit at Gabe I
didn't answer him pertic'lar cheerin'.
It was only the day afore that I says to
Gabe: - ss.-'
"'You talk like durn fool, CADET I
says, cause he riled me the way he,
shifted and turned up his nose and said
he'd like to see deer treat him that
way. &
"'Ill bet anything you want to- he
says, that I kin lick the snortinest
buck, well or wounded, that ever run in
these woods, if he'll only wait till 1 kin
git my claws on him; and kin do it SO
quick he won't never know what lit on
hint '.-a-.'--< ss-s-
"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 consumed nigh gittin' the best O. me
that there want no fun in it. Iplinked
him all right, as he was runnin' quar-
term from me, and he went down like
an OK hit betwixt the eyes with sledge
hammer, and laid there not even a-quiv-
erin.
ga slemmin' nice shot, that, if do
say it myself, as hadn't ought toy
says. He died fore he fetched the
ground
"'I sot my gun ag'in the tree I was
standin' by and sa'ntered over to'rd the
deer, with an oh-I-guess-1'm-goin'-.o-
observation-disclosures 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 kerr
thump, fiat 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 spell,
but when I got some Of it back turned
my head and peeked up over my shout
der to see what the prospects was look
in like. I see the buck bracin' himself
agin me with his forefeet and glarin'
down at me with his eyes blazin'
worse'n the nvest kind O. Goals, and his
nostrils was jest actu'ly spurtin' steam.
Then know'd had only filmed him
jest grazed him with my bullet where
his backbone jined his head. That's fin
MIN deer. It drops 'em like 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 filmed him. It was
the ruttin' time o. deer, too, and bucks
is uglier then than wounded she bears,
anyhow. Known these things. I 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 moved and turned
my head back to see what the prospects
was the buck give a snort and r'ared up
almost perpendic'ler, SO as to fetch
them sharp hoofs O. his'n down on me
ag'in. Iknow'd that If they ever landed
they'd more'n likely pin me to the
ground as proper as a coonslsin nailed
to a barn door, SO I kept my eye peeled,
and as them boots begun to fall turned
over quicker'n my old woman ever
Topped pancake on the griddle. l
want second too soon, neither. One
O. the bucks hoofs jest grazed the front
o. my huntin' shirt as I went over, and
both of his feet sunk into the ground.
hard as it was, half way up to his knees!
II had an idee that them hoofs would
stick there, so that it'd kind o. stay fur
Their perceedin's on the part O. the deer
till l could git on my pins, grab my gun,
and sock ball into him where it ought
to be socked. But the idee want the
right kind. riz up all right, but some
how the deer's hoofs didn't stick in the
ground long. The deer got 'em out
soon enough to throw 'em ag'in me so
hard that it tumbled me more than six
feet away, and mixed me up in lot O.
wild grapevines that hung down from
a big oak tree. That was lucky tum-
BILE, tell you, for grabbed thick
stalk o. vine and elm up it in way
that'd made monkey think he wasn't
any great buuCkS al CllmUlu a1teT I'LL.
! got up in that tree, and the buck
danced and pranced and snorted around
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 elm down and went
home feelin' about as clipper, s'pose,
as TELLER mowt feel who'd been
ketched stealin' sheep. And that's
the little muss with o mad deer that
was tellin' Gabe about when he shifted
and turned up his nose and riled me by
sayin' that he'd jest like to see any deer
treat him that way, and that he'd bet
little somethin' that he could lick the
biggest buck that run them woods, we'll
or wounded, if the deer would only let
him git his claws on it once. So was
riled yit when was goin' by Gabeis
house and he hollers:
Where you goin' so fast, Danl?'
II didn't answer him pertic'lar cheer
in, feelin' riled at him yit, and I jest
says:
'Chestnuttin'.'
'Chestnuttin'! Gabe hollers. What
you got yer gun fer?'