The Irish standard., 1902-02-22

"You had better confne your tai
ents to painting California rainbows.
You can fool people that way all
right. But you needn't start in so
late in life to educate me on shoot
ing"
In about half an hour we were in
some higher hills and there we met
Bill Martin. another old companion
of mine. who was out after deer. AS
we sat down to rest bit Martin
pulled off his cartridge belt and laid
could see the end of the bullets. They
were hollow in the point and filled
with waX--sonlc of the first eNpan-
sive bullets used in this country. Bos-
we'll took out one from the belt and
began to examine the ball with great
interest.
whats this FORE" lie. asked.
CHATS the chamber for the anti
septic. It's capped with wax" l re-
piled very seriously.
"Antiscptic." he exclaimed, big
eyed.
eyes. In these big hills we have to
make such long shots sometimes on
wild deer we have to have something
to keep the meat from spelling in hot
weather before we can get to it. Mine
are that way. but they are all in the
magazine of the rifle
Martin took The cue in a twinkling
and, with an air quite as serious as
mine, asked me:
"What kind do you like best?"
"Why, concentrated creosote is the
best, if you are going to smoke VEN
son. But for fresh meat chloride of
zinc is the best" | replied.
81 don't like the idea of it, though.
Too much like emhalming," said Mar
tin, with an air of disgust. 'It's a
pity arsenic is poison, for it's SO sure
and don't taste a bit. You can notice
just faint taste from the chloride
if you have had to lose much time in
finding your game in the brush, or if
it's got away wounded" y
Boswell had started to pick out the
wax with the point of his knife, but
had suspended operations and sat
looking at us with big-eyed wonder.
Neither of us quiNcred, but we contin-
ucd the discussion in that line until
finally Boswell, with all the artless-
ness of a sucking lamb, gracing
chiltllikc smile OF bashful incredulity,
said:
"sny, you fellows are fooling about
that, amt you:'
Whereupon we took q roll on the
ground, but he didn't see anything
funny about it and kept a dignified
silence for the next hour, as he wan
dercd away by himself.
We finally bcclloned him to us, for
we had found the track of two big
bucks. We told him to go and get
a position on the top of the ridge
where he could get shot if they ran
around on either side.
"Pig tracks," he said with contempt
rs lie looked ut them.
''Wcll, you make goat tracks for
that ridge, and you may see some
thing
'Iou just want to get me to climb
that big hill in the hot sun for moth
ing
eth be nothing all right enough,
for you'll never hit anything, but it's
worth something to see good buck
run through the brush and rocks"
said I.
another California fake, I'll bet a
dollar" he mnttered as he went off.
After waiting awhile for my friend
10 reach the ridge, 1 sent Martin
around the hill one way while took
the tracks that led the other way, SO
that some one would have a chance
for a shot If we could start the deer
After following the tracks about half
an hour, rs they wound around hill,
reached the ridge that commanded
view Of the other side of the main
hill. AS | followed the trail up it's
side there was heavy thump of
hoofs from its top and a grand smash
of brush. l scrambled to the top as
fast as ! could. and reached it's crest
we'll out of breath in time to see two
big bucks in high riochet career, now
clearing brush with lofty bound, then
diving through the heaviest like a
dolphin through the wave, now skip
pine: a huge boltlcr as if playing fol-
low my leader, then twisting around
some smaller one at an angle that
would almost unjoint the tail of
rabbit.
1t WAS only a wild and desperate
chance of touching one, but whirlcd
the rifle from my shoulder and raised
it on the largest buck just as he rose
in curve of glistcning hair high
,hoyc the brush. aiming low so as to
DC safe against overshooting, because
his body would drop two or three feet
while the ball was making the trip.
| had the calculation made in great
shape. when. just as was about
ready TO pull he trigger, the buck
suddenly wi!tcd like Il wet rag at the
top of his bound and at the same time
the crack of Hoswcil's rifle came sharp
and clear from away up among the
rocks on top Of the ridge.
II was a much longer shot than I
had to make, and mine would prob
ably have been miss, since no
amount of calculation will make any
certainty in such shots | was so par
alyzcd with surprise that instead of
shooting at the other buck, which
was bounding away in plain sight,
stood waiting for Boswell to shoot
at it. But, like all tenderreet, he
had to take repeater down from his
shoulder to work the lever, and that
| little scrap of time is so valuable that