Newport weekly independent., 1902-08-22

Wasn't it funny for me to make such a mistaken" And at the thought he held his sides with laughter.
 "What is her name?" he managed to ask between paroxysms.
 ''Bellona," l said.
 ''He! her' he Uttered. "What a funny namev'
 1 gritted my teeth, for his mirth put them on edge, and snapped out. between them: "She was the wife of Mars, you know"
 Then the light of the full moon be- gan to suffuse his face, until he ex- ploded with: ''Well, guess she's widow now! Oh! Ho! ho! E! he! he! HoH' he whooped after me, and I turned and fled swiftly away over the hill.
 The week passed by, and on Sat urday evening l said to him: "4ou go away Monday, don't you?"
 He nodded his head and grinned.
 '"Then you won't have another chance to get mess of those trout you just 'dote' on."
 But he did not notice the sheer. "Oh, I don't know,'' he chuckled. ''Pm going up tomorrow to try pretty hard.''
 Thus was assurance made doubly sure, and l went back to my house literally hugging myself with rap- ture.
 Early next morning l saw him go by with the dip net and gunnysack, and Bellona trotting at his heels. l knew where he was bound, and cut out by the back pasture and climbed through the underbrush to the top of the mountain: Keeping carefully out of sight, l followed the crest along for a couple of miles to a nat ural ampitheater in the hills, where the little river ramped down out of a gorge and stopped for a breath in a large and placid rock-bound pool. That was the spot! l sat down on the croup of the mountain, where l could see all that occurred, and light ed my pipe.
 Ere many minutes had passed John Claverhouse came plodding up the bed of the stream. Bellona was ambling about him, and they were in high feather, her short, snappy barks mingling with his deeper chest notes. Arrived at the pool, he threw down the dip net and sack, and drew from his hip pocket what looked like large fat candle. But I knew it to be stick of 'giant;" for such was his method of catching trout. He dynamited them. He at tached the fuse by wrapping the "giant" tightly in piece of cotton. Then he ignited the fuse and tossed the explosive into the pool. Like a flash, Bellona was into the pool after it. l could have shrieked aloud for very joy. Claverhouse yelled at her, but without avail. He pelted her with clods and rocks, but she swam steadily on till she got the stick of giant" in her mouth, when she whirled about and headed fol shore. Then, for the first time, he realized his danger, and started tc run. As foreseen and planned by me, she made for the bank and took out after him. Oh, l tell you, it was great! As l have said, the pool lay in a sort of amphitheater. Above and below, the stream could be crossed on stepping stones. Anc around and around, up and down an6 across the stones, raced Claverhoust and Bellona. l could never have be- lieved that such an ungainly mar could run so fast. But run he did Bellona hot-footed after him, an( gaining. And then, just as sh' caught up, he in full stride, and sh' leaping with nose at his knee, there was a sudden flash, a burst of smoke and terrific detonation, and where man and dog had been the instant be fore there was naught to be seen bu 1 ln1A 4I