The Camden chronicle. (Camden, Tenn.) 1890-current, 1902-07-04
Al CLAYTON WIS the son


Henry Clayton, Esq, was q
New York lawyer 81 was his habit 10
80 with his family every year into the
Adirondack woods where for about
two months he could enjoy the hunt
Ing, fishing, rowing and tramping
which that wild and picturesque re-
gIon afforded him. His son, Hal, I'M
herited his fathers love OF outdoor
sport. and was already a fairly good
fisherman and very good shot, and
be enjoyed the Adirondack life quite
as much as did his father.
Hal had a little room Of his own ut
home, which he called his study. and
which was furnished according to his
own ideas. There were a good many
pictures on the walls, but over his desk
was n vacant space where it was Halls
ambition to hang the head and antlers
of deer which he himself should
shoot His father encouraged him i'm
this ambition, and gave the boy on his
fifteenth birthday fine new rifle; it is
certain there could be no greater en-
couragement than this
A few weeks afterward Mr. Clayton
and his family were established In their
camp in the woods. Early one bright
morning Hal and his father started
out on their first deer hunt Mr. Clay
ton was a good woodman, and needed
no guide to the ordinary haunts Of the
game in the vicinity of his camp At
ter a walk of three or four miles he
and Hal came to the edge of an arm
of a lake. Here Mr.. Clayton stopped.
NOW, Hal" said he, Il am going to
leave you here to shoot your first buck
THAT is, if you should be so lucky as
to see one That open space down
there, about 200 feet away, is a place
where the deer come out. Settle your
self behind this big, fiat rock, and wait
until a buck comes down to drink The
wind is all right, so he will not be apt
to discover you if you lie hidden. Then
you will have an opportunity to show
whether or not you are a good shot.
am going off to another spot for deer,
and / think I shall be back about
noon."
When Mr.. Clayton had departed Hal
began to prepare himself for work.
Laying his rife on a depressed portion
Of the rock, where 1t was concealed
from view, he settled himself comfort
ably where he could look over the rock
without exposing more than his eyes
and gray felt hat, which was nearly the
color Of the stone.
He had heard a great deal Of deer
hunting, and he knew very well that
in order to get a shot it was often
necessary to wait a long time at a place
where deer might show themselves,
consequently he had brought his cam
era with him. He was very fond OF
taking photographs, especially of out
of-door scenes.
Z The first thing he did with his cam
era was to take a picture of the spot
where he hoped a deer would appear
and having done this he watched and
waited for a while. and then, when he
became tired of this he took a photo
graph Of another pretty scene near by
For about half an hour after this ht
sat behind the rock and waited anC
watched and just as he was beginning
to think it would be well to take On,
other photograph in order to beguil,
the tedium of this very slow sport hC
saw a decided movement of the leaves
in a mass of bushes at the edge OF tn,
wood near the place his father had tolC
him to watch. He laid his hand upol
his rifle ard held his breath.
Now from the bushes a head ap
peared, then a neck, but it was not th
head and neck for which he had beer
waiting and hoping; it was the head 0
doe, on which grew no branching
antlers But 1t was a beautiful head
and Hal was near enough to see til
beauty Of the large, lustrous eyes
Out into the open space between III
woods and the water the doe stepped
revealing the whole of her graceful
form. She looked to the right, sh
looked TO the left, then she looked OF
over the water, and when she ha
made these prudent surveys she turne
her head toward the bushes frol
which she had just emerged.
Then in an instant, as If she ha
said, 1T is all right; come along, m
dearp' out skipped a little fawn. III
too, raised his small head, looked /
the right to the left, and out over I'll
water, as if he wished to assure hin
self that his mother had been corret
in telling him he was quite safe
leave the shelter of the forest.
The mother deer now walked dow
to the edge of the water and lowere
her graceful head to drink The faw
4roffad affar hnr and Inrrnrnd l,ic nun Z.