The Red Cloud chief., 1900-11-23

Nfah
~ fall. and rather a deep and an
m curly one. too, for the Piney
Woods co intry. and Col. Bill
" WIS turning the interior Of his
cabin blue on account OF II.
Tor IL had ibterfered seriously with a
grand 'possum hunt he had planned, and
which was to have com of over In Gum
swamp that night. His language. In fact,
was so extremely warn, that Sam Nc
Ray remarked.
"Ef you'd jes' turn III, take a sally
from hyer to the swamp. tunnel. un keep
yer sw'ar talk hct Up TO the pint whar
us het to now. ] reckon you'd melt all
that ar snow like lire in the woods. un
we'd hunt that 'poss um. whether or no"
Before Col. Bill could re ,iy to Sam. In
came Angus Dun, from way on the cas-,
side or the swamp. and Col. Bill said:
wal. boys, CT we CANT go out AFTER
any game. hyer's Angus, un you kin bet
that he'll set right hyer a-keepin' his feet
het. un slaughter enough fer us In the
next duarter'n hour TO rise our ha'r. even
ef we don't git none on It 20 eat"
Angus had a reputation In the Piney
woods. and he had hardly drawn I'D to
the fireplace before he started In to keep
that reputation good.
Its a mighty good thing fer me, I
want ter tell you. sab. ut I didn't have
four traps said he, ser ef I had I'd n
lost EN- all. un the wiiecat. too. Yin TIA
a ben s~lanchways luck fer me ef I'd a
lost that ar wilecat. I wan ter tell you.
sab. Any wilecats on this hyer side o.
the swamp"
Hadn't see none not till you come
over" replied Col. Bill.
SINS continued Angus, ignoring
Gil. Bills pleasant insinuation. "Dunno's
It's. nuther. They've ben mighty skeerce
over on t'other side, too, but thur
skeercer now. though. than they was
last week. Not much. nuther. Only by
one. which amt a heap. ef you go by
count. but ef you calc'late 'cordin' ter
grit un cussedness an'sitch, I reckon you
mowt set II down as skeercer by about
nine than they was last week.
ITS rale astondin' what a cat that ar
wilecat was continued Angus. "It
beats oil Hickory Jackson. I want ter
tell you, sab! ! know a heap about VILE
cats. un the minute I seed this critter I
know'di II wa n critter stitch as had never
sot foot anywhar' around Gum Swamp
bIfore-not In my day. sho'ly. The minute
] seed II? Why. I wanter tell go sah. I
knows that ar cat was a mighty wonder
"A good many mute afore | seed II at
al. You see. Cunnel. I wasn't lookin' fer
wilecats. not a mite. My oil woman she
hain't been totin' herself very peert fer
mar furder than a week back, UNI pears
like her pone un bacon don't gree with
her right smart. I'M t'other day she de-
clar'd to me ut she must sho'ly have
some pattidge meat OF rabbit. I'M so I
tuck my gun un went out along the aidge
o. the swamp TO shy up a pattidge or n
rabbit. un thar ! see the track o. that ar
wilecat In the snow. You never could
a-know'd from that ar track. Cunnel-
nobody would a.kno w'd-ut the critter ut
sot 1t thar In the snow had ay more p'nts
"a" hangin' to II than mowt be stickin' to
why | shoun't make 4 sorty side show of
II. not forgettin' the oil wooman's pat
tidge or rabbit. so I foIiered on the trail.
follered II a mile, un | want ter tell
you. sab. ut yer Uncle Angus was tuck
back a heap to see that ar trail come to
an end jes' ez sedden ez II there hadn't
never been no trail in that ar snow. Yes,
sab, gone like sQueezin' a tetch-me.not-
pod. sah Sho'ly!
81 looked up. UNI I looked down. un I
looked sideways, un I looked stanchways,
but thar wasn't no sign nowhar OF any
more wilecat track. un thar wasn't a hole
nor a tree nowhar nigh thar whar the
witch of a cat cud n stuffed itself: les
only n stretch o snow. without a mark
or a spot o N ter II. nowhar round thar ut
l could see.
This hyer cat a I. : pears like is
dom miracles. IN that ar amt the kind
o wilecat ut shud be runnin' loose in the
piney woods. says !. 1T behooves me-
! says, ter sorty look a leetle furder inter
the doin's of it, | says.
while l was cogitaterin' I looked a
right smart ways furder ahead than I
had looked afore, un ! seed a bunch o.
somethin layin' on the snow. Bein' some
thin Gurus to larn what thai ar bunch
mowt turn out to be. I walked up thar,
un as l drawed nigh I seed ut was a
bunch o feathers, un thar was a right
much OF a sprinklln' o. blood around II,
un the snow was sheltered about Goa
sid'able. When ! got clean ag'in the
spot ] seed ut them ar feathers was
pattidge feathers. I'm arguatln' from tina
ar pint l fggered 1t Out ut natch'ly that
ar blood was pattidge blood. I want ter
tell you, sab. ut I was tuck back then a
mighty sight furder'n I was when I
struck the end o. that ar wilecat's trail,
VII . ~ Y ~ NtuP " ldTptUtlHt Ut tndT
aim a man hyer. sab. but what'd ben
tuck back ez fur ez I was"
II amt see no sorty reason what fer a
mar shud be- tuck back a mighty sight
jes' by seem a bunch o. feathers un a
sprinklln' o blood on the snow. l CANT
said Col. Bill. II CANT. r'aly!"
"Sarin you CANT" admitted Angus.
Feathers un blood on the snow wasn't
what tuck me back. I var ter tell you,
sab. I'm h you reckon It was what
tuck me back? Jes' only 'kase that ar
wilecat's track started In ag'in right
whar them ar feathers un blood laid In
the snow. What did hat mean? 1t
didn't mean nothin' only ut from whar
I come to an end o. that ar wilecat's
trail To whar l found II ag'in was as
nigh to sixty foot ez l could pace 1t out.
sah. Kin wilecats fly? l hahn never
heerd o. none doin' It. Thar wasn't no
water twixt the endin' o. that ar trail
un It's beginning ag'in, an so I declsr' the