The Fulton County news. [volume] (McConnellsburg, Pa.) 1899-current, 1904-12-07

! lnlnK, L says.
He looked at me like I'd insulted
him, so l didn't say no more. Only
thought to myself, Old boy, there'l
be something doing around here when
you do get your rope on him
| You see, l hadn't figured on doing
any fancy work with a rope when we
started out that mornin'. I'd picked
me horse that could go out and hit
| the trail with the best of them, but he
wouldn't stand for any rope work. l
! guess he thought it was degradin' to
be made snubbin' post Of. He was
a flea-bitten gray, with Roman nose
and big, bulgin' eyes. He had a way
or humpin' his back and side steppin'
when things didn't go to suit him.
Once or twice he's used his influence
to try and remove me, and the motions
he made was such that all | could do
was to pull leather and pray for the
end to come quickly. He was sure a
cOrker, and his name was Pop-Eye.
''Tony was ridln' a chunky little
chestnut--a mild-eyed little beggar
that paced along with his eyes half
shut-but he was there with the goods,
all right, all right, when it came to do
ing the tie-down act.
''Tony got his rope fixed and says to
me: You ride around that way and
attract his attention, and when he gets
TO watchin' you, I'll run In and rope
him.
$50 round I goes. Mr.. Bear didn't
take notice of me till | got around so
that he was right between me and
Tony. Then l lets ki-yi out Of me,
and he come alive. He looked up, and
when | let another yell lie started for
the river, smashin' through the sage
brush like one Of the Great Northern
moguls buckin' a snowdrift; but Red
swooped down on him like a hawk af-
ter chicken. Tony got him first
throw-you've seen him rope-and
| turned off sideways. The bear went
to the end of the forty foot rope on a
| high run, and the jerk he got turned
him head over heels He hit the ground
with a thump that should have
! knocked the life out of him, but it
didn't, for he got to his feet little the
maddest bear you ever saw, and made
| for Tony. Twice old Red went to the
end Of the rope and put him down,
and both times Brownie bounced TO his
feet lookin' for more.
TONY began to think he was up
against 1t, / guess. He'd throwed a
little too big loop and the bear had
got front foot in It, so he couldn't
choke him like he aimed to do; he'd
likewise tied his rope hard and fast
bein' from Texas, where such is the
fashlon-and couldn't turn him loose.
They was sure connected up in good
shape-red horse. white man, and
brown bear all on one string.
FINALLY Tony hollers to me: For
Gods sake, try and get your rope on
him, Jack. He'll jerk Red down If he
keeps up this lick, and it'll be all off
with me them
"'All right says I, I'll try and
starts to take down my rope. Now,
you know most all horses is scared to
death Of bear. You can't get any
ordinary horse near a bear If he's on
the windy side, where he can get the
scent. Red didn't seem TO mind, but
then he was an old rope horse, used TO
goln' up against all kinds OF forma-
tlons. But old Pop--he didn't have
no more sense than the law allowed
him, nohow-was sure stirred up. AS
/ said before, he had a constitutional
aversion to any monkey business with
rope, so when l took mine down, he
concluded he had business further up
the river, and started to go. I'd a big
| spade bit on him, though, and managed
to persuade him that his business
wasn't so extremely pressln'.
II spurred him up as close TO the
bear as could. Brownie was fightln'
the rope, yankin' Tony's horse this
way and that. clawin' up the earth,
and raisln' quite a disturbance His
mouth was all bloody froth from beln'
jerked down SO much, and he had n
savage look in his eye. After consld-
erable dodgln' about, run old Pop
up pretty close TO him. Brownie raised
on his hind legs kind o. quick, and
let the rope fly and took my turns
around the horn-there was no tyln'
In mine, you bet! Old Pop-Eye went
by him like shot. If my rope had
been cable guess 1t would "a broke
he hit the end OF 1t at about mile
a-minute gait. 1t snapped like piece
OF twine, and one end whacked him
across the rump like the fash Of a
four-herse whip.
"The things he did to me was eau
tion. I'd Stacked the reins when /
took my turns, and he'd got his head.
The hoochee coochee and the Boneless
Mans performance wasn't a cIrcum-
stance to the motions he went through.
Say, was beat across the back with
the cantlel The horn few up and
poked me In the solar plexus, hardl I
was slammed around like salt shak
er that won't work. Finally my feet
come out Of the stirrups and sailed
through the atmosphere much ths
same graceful way a sack OF potatoes
J does when you chuck It out OF the
mess wagon. Then the earth rose uI
sudden and put me out OF business.
when ! came to I was lyIn' In ths
J shade Of some cottonwoods. somethIn
wet droppin' on my face. ! was kind
a dased At first, and then / remem