The star. (Reynoldsville, Pa.) 1892-1946, 1903-09-30
Gideon Marshall'S Hens.
By HELENA DIXON.


steeds to see the old horse exert his
feeble powers to gain the victory.
Gideon smiled proudly at the noble
efforts of his beast and slackened his
reins, giving every now and then an
encouraging word to the plucky ami
NAL.
Thus the race continued for about q
mile. when the young men darted
ahead like wildfire, shouting out to
Gideon:
Better look after your hens. uncle;
they need II by this time"
Gideon turned about anxiously to
follow this piece Of advice, and locke d
into the coop. But, alas for poor Gid
con; his hens were gone. A large
hole In the end Of the coop revealed
the manner of their egress.
The mean, low-lived scoundrels!
They smashed the coop, and then be-
guiled me into race on purpose to
let my hens escape; but they're some
where aback, ana I won't go home
without them II 1t takes me a week to
catch them. How l should like to
horsewhip them fellows!"
Thus muttering Gideon put his horse
about and retraced his steps.
Let's see. Twas somewhere near
the red mill that them rascals did the
damage, and let my hens out. 'Twould
serve me right If never see feather
OF them again. To go racing horses
like boy, and leave six of the finest
dorking hens that ever cackled to shift
for themselves"
Never starving hunter locked with
more eager eyes for the game by which
he hoped to appease his hunger than
did Gideon Marshall for his missing
hens. When he reached the little val
ley where stood the red mill, his eyes
wandered from side to side in anxious
search.
He passed the mill and drew near
pretty white cottage, surrounded by
fruit trees and Towering shrubs, wLich
were just beginning to put forth their
leaves. A lady, comely and dark
haired, though past the rosy bloom of
early womanhood, was standing before
the door, admiring a row of beautiful
white hens which had mysteriously
made their appearance on the prem
ises, and were quietly pluming them
selves on the front fence.
Gideon saw neither the lady nor the
dimphe-cheeked child which played
near her on the young grass. He had
found his hens, and now his mind
was wonderfully perplexed to contrive
some way to catch them; for, to use
his own words, they were as wild as
hawks" and quite at fond of their lib
erty, too.
He took an ear of corn from his
pocket, and shelling it on the ground,
called to them in every conceivable
way to come and eat; but the hens
were either too stupid to understand or
too wise to heed, and SO kept their
perch.
At length Gideon became convinced
that there was no way but to run them
down one at a time-no very easy feat
to accomplish, considering that they
would have all the time a locomotive
power in reserve, and could fly or run
as their need or fancy prompted. Act
ing on this conviction, he crept eau
tiously forward and made a lunge at
the nearest, sufficiently dexterous
enough to secure a handful of feathers,
while the hens fiuttered in concert
from the fence and struck out in diff
ferent directions.
Gideon was over the fence in a trice.
and in lively pursuit of the refractory
fowls.
Around the house he followed the
hindmost, and into a neat, newly-made
garden, over the smooth, even beds of
which he trampled without compunc-
tion. Round and round he ran, and
leaped and jumped until the hen, as
II desirous of wider field of action,
hew over the fence into q freshly
plowed field. This Gideon found less
adapted for race than the garden.
for with every step he sank ankle
deep in the mellow loan. After maxi
ing the circuit Of the field, the hen
flew into the top of peach tree, in
which her fellows were already con-
gregated. Her safe arrival was the
occasion OF a prolonged and trium-
umphant crow from the rooster, tan
talizlng enough to Gideon, who came
up wiping the perspiration from his
heated face. AS he passed the garden
he saw with some surprise the full
extent of the mischief he had wrought.
and wondered why somo one had not
come out to demonstrate against his
devastating flourishes over the beds.
Gideon was in sore preplexity. There
was no such thing for him as catching
the hens in race. He stood under the
peach tree in a brown study, scratch
ing his head vigorously to coax there
from some plan by which his dorkings
might be secured. He did not see the
dark eyes which watched him SO curl
ously from back window, nor the
mischievous smile that lurked around
the lady's mouth as she witnessed his
"I'm daehad 90 oar tht~t~ - -