The Chickasha daily express. (Chickasha, Indian Territory [Okla.]) 1899-current, 1905-05-12


Left alone the professor with hair
on end, paused moment to collect his
scattered thoughts, but only moment.
Another scream. long drawn out and
apparently but few yards distant
set his plump body in motion. and the
next moment he was streaking it
across the country as fast as his duck
legs could carry him.
Tumbing over a log lying on the
edge Of a bank some twenty feet high
and nearly perpendicular, down which
he rolled, he landed in a mud hole at
the bottom.
Gathering himself up he began look
ing for his hat, which had parted com
pany with him on the way down the
bank. when another scream breaking
upon his ear he struck out once more
on his race for life, hatless and Gov
cred with mud from his head to his
heels.
Coming to a briar patch he was on
the point of diverging from his course
in order to try and go around it when
another scream precipitated the terror
stricken professor into the patch like a
catapault
Emerging from the brier patch with
his coat-tails torn into ribbons, the
mud-begrimed professor held on the
even tenor Of his way without any
diminution of speed for a hundred
yards or so. when his pace began to
slacken a little. Another scream. how
u ever. put him on his mettle again, but
as that was the last, and as he was
about exhausted. he soon settled down
to walk, and presently stumbling
over log, he picked himself up and
seated himself thereon.
After resting a while, plunged in
the meantime in a deep cogitation. he
finally concluded to try and seek
shelter for the remainder of the night.
SO, starting forward, he wandered
about, first in one direction and then
In another. and it was not until day
light began TO streak the eastern hori-
zon that he stumbled on a clearing in
the woods, in the midst of which was
q log cabin.
4 Cautiously approaching fae cabin, he
had reached the foot of sapling some
fifty steps from the door, when big
dog came dashing around the corner
Of the house, barking furiously.
No sooner did the professor catch
sight of the dog bouncing along in the
direction of him and the sapling. than
he was seized with such a sudden
panic as TO cause him to grasp the
sapling in his arms and start up it,
though, owing to want of practice,
with hardly the agility of a squirrel.
After a tremendous effort, he succeed
ed in reaching a fork some ten feet
from the ground, where he seated him
self. and awaited the issue of events.
He didn't have long to wait. The
furious barking Of the dog soon
aroused the inmates of the cabin.
Scarcely a minute had elapsed after
the professor had succeeded, by almost
superhuman exertions, in seating him
self comfortably in the fork of the
sapling, out of reach of the dog. when
the door of The cabin opened and
huge six-footer of a backwoodsman,
somewhat airily attired, with a long
rifle in his hand, emerged therefrom.
"What you got thar. Bull?" said the
man, as he approached the sapling, at
the root of which the dog was barking
vociferously. "What is it. old feller?"
he continued. "Bar, painter. ur cata-
mount?p
Bulls response was an abortive at
| -, ali -. oannaaarRnrffnn
by a furious outburst of barking.
BE quiet, old feller." said the man;
"we'll soon see what it is" at the same
time raising his rife to his shoulder.
Hold on therer shouted the profess
sor. who was beginning to realize the
perilous position in which he was
placed, and the imminent danger he
was in of being shot for a bear or a
catamount. i am no varmint. I'm
Nicodemus SQUAD, professor Of orthog-
raphy in the Skunkville district
SCHOOL,
"Hello" said the backwoodsman, as
he lowered his rifle ''is that so? Well,
that gifts me. What in thunder ur you
doin' up thar"
Nalt till L get down and III tell
you" And crawling out of the crotch
in which he had been seated the pro
fessor slid down the sapling, when he
soon succeeded in explaining matters
to the satisfaction of that thinly-clad
backwoodsman and his savage bull
dog.
1t was now bread daylight. and when
be reached Skunkville the sun was
some distance above the horizon,
climbing upward toward the zenith.
OF course. every man, woman and
child in the place beheld, with wonder
depicted countenances, the advent Of
the mud-begrimed. hatless professor,
and a thousand conjectures were in
dulged in as TO the cause Of his singu-
lar appearance.
The professor was disposed to be
retieent on the subject. answering in
terrogatories in relation to the matter
, evasively. but the joke was too good
to be kept, and in less than twenty
four hours his approach toward any
i. / n~.,rr-7 rr-n- errantal 1,x- q tra.d evt.iY,