New-York tribune., 1905-11-05
IPARSON and PORCUPINE
Effort to Secure the Latter Gape
the Former a Netting.


seated on the front porch of his Adirondack
home, "I had lot of experiences. Once 1 had
young minister up TO Black Creek Lake hunt
ing deer. He was just out of college, Harvest
| think he said the name Of it was. Any way, II
was some name like that. We hunted and
hunted, and didn't get deer for he wouldn't
let me go off by myself. 1 had to stick to him.
and he made noise like ten hemlock trees was
| falling when he walked through the woods. OF
course we couldn't expect to see no deer.
zone day, when had finished day1
hunt, we was coming down the mountainside 70
the lake, where we would get into the boat and
row across to camp. When we got almost to
| the edge of the water the parson up and begun
to run down the edge of the lake like he hAd
gone plumb crazy. I looked to where he
was running to, and just gon to yeIl 70
him, when see whopper OF a porcupine reach
ing up to the side of big spruce Shoot him.
called and started run, too. No said the
fellow, I want to kill him without hurting tfs
hide, I stuff him. Well, by the time We
got to the tree the hedgehog was well up and
had ambled out on the end of a limb and WIS
looking down the edge, sort of grinning lkn
the way they do when they think they have got
away from you.
"'Now,' said the minister, I'll take a cub
and climb up there and whack him over ths
head and when he falls down you finish him.
Here's some fun' said to myself, and said
aloud: All right The parson evidently DIDN'T
know that porcupne has nineteen more lives.
than a cat The tree being close to tho
lake, the limbs had grown right down to the
ground, so it was easy enough to climb
"I went back little way and sot down on tho
ground The parson began to go hand over fist
up the spruce He looked Iaughable tell you.
for he was tall and lanky, and he had broad
fro,,, I,~ht -
limb. 1 wondered what his congregation would
nave thought to see him When the beast saw
him coming he, too, began to go up and he went
till he got to clean to the top of that big sprnce
The parson went right along, but when he gos
pretty near to the top he stopped, for When
the hedgehog see himself cornered he started
down the tree the opposite side. Now, there
wasn't room for two such as them, and the fsl-
low just had to get out the way. The animal
came crawling down the trees trunk and he
switched and jerked his tail about and filled the
bark so full of quills that he left trah OK
needles When he got about halfway down he
went out on a limb The young fellow now bad
him. and began pounding him over the head, and
shaking the branch. Pretty quick the animal
dropped head first to the ground He's oohs
for said l. and 1 smashed him one for Sooo
measure. but not hard enough to break the skull
for the minister didn't want that broke.
1--WE got into the boat he a-roW1ng, ana
a-steering and the porcupine between US Wnen
we got close to the middle Of the lake. which is
mile wide the parson began to increase speeo.
and he said he was a-rowing thrty-slx TO tne
minute or something like that I didn't just
understand what he meant, but tell you ne
could row. The bow of the boat was smashing
through the water and the stern left waves
foot high All to onct the hedgehog STOOD
straight up, began to windmill his tall around
like a waterwheel and made bee line for under
the parsons seat. Every time the tail went
around it would strike the side OF the boat and
leave bunches Of quilts in the wood. The parson
lest had to get out the way and quick. too
He made the slickest summerset over BACK
wards into the bow Of the boat and grabbed MS
double barreled shotgun loaded with buckshot
and let both barrels drive. He missed the beast
clean and the worst Of it was, the kick OF the
xun knocked the man kersouse into the lake,
gun and all. Worse yet, the buckshot had
ploughed a hole through the bottom Of the boat
so that you could have drove team Of horses
through Well, 1t all happened in a wink
came down with my paddle on the nose of the
porcupine It stunned him so that with both
hands could pick him up by his forward feet
and HIT him over into the lake Then stuHed
my hat into the buckshot hole.
~The parson had cooled Off considerable by
r yof irtn Nna