The Fulton County news. [volume] (McConnellsburg, Pa.) 1899-current, 1906-03-28

| my 1atner promptly TOOK
him In. Coon hunting being one of
! my fathers favorite sports, which q
| young man named Bacon shared en-
| Enthusiastically with him. a few evenings
later they started out to try the new
dog
full moon shed mild radiance
over the forest and enabled them to
note the actions of the dog, and in a
! very short time he had an animal of
some kind up a big tree which stood
! alone In an opening in the woods, and
as Bacon was famous climber, up
the tree he went and soon made out
the dark figure among the limbs above
him, but as he approached the creature
1t climbed higher and higher until, at
the very top, it turned and greeted
| Its pursuer with deep warning growl.
Dan stopped climbing, and in a tone
of voice which trembled in spite of
himself, he called out: "It is a wildcat,
! Mr.. Belknap."
well cut club and knock him of, /"
replied my father.
Cutting and trimming a linz of the
tree TO make n suitable weapon, Dan
slowly crawled up toward the brute,
which finally took refuge in the top
most tuft of branches and slowly and
carefully raising the club above the
limbs above his head, where he could
have full sweep for the blow, he struck
with all his might, and-never touched
| him.
Right out into the air the cat sprang
as it saw the club coming, and so pow
erful was it's jump that the limbs of
the tree were cleared entirely, and
with reeounding tnump it struck the
ground at quite a distance from the
foot of the tree, and to my fathers
amazement sprang to its feet and ran
like blue streak for another tree.
The Cog happened to be at the other
side of the tree. and the cat was en-
abled TO get quite a start in its new
race, but so swift was thu dogs pursuit
! that the cat was overtaken ere the tree
was reached, when, whirling suddenly,
the brute sat up and with open paws
| outstretched waited The onset. Know
ing nothing OF the dogs fighting quail
ties my father instantly concluded to
let him entirely alone and note the re-
suit Coming with a rush, and bark
ing furlously, the dog dashed almost
into the cats face, but stopping just
short of the cats grasp, as its paws
snapped together like the jaws of a
steel trap, backed away a few steps
and repeated the threatening maneu-
yer.
Again the cats paws snapped TO-
gether just in front of the dogs nose.
Again and again was this repeated
until the cat appeared to think that
the dog was not really IN earnest and
omitted to slap its jaws together
Again the dog backed away, and this
time the jump was in earnest. Once
inside the guard of the wildcat he seized
it across the chest, and that cat was
dead IN ten seconds, and that dog
could not then have been borght for
money.
In long days ago, in Western Iowa,
my old friend Jim Files found stray
dog at his door one morning, and as he
was what Jim called "sech an ornery
lookin' brute" Jim deliberated quite
q while before finally accepting him.
1t was in the fall of the year, and as
Jim went FOR his cows down in the bot
tom land below the house, the dog fol-
| lowed at his heels, and reaching the
| edge Of what had been a shallow pond
in the spring, small rattlesnake
coiled suddenly in front OF them, in n
i lrtn ,,sk hol
time stepped in the mud, leaving a de-
preston five or six inches deep. Its coil
was completely hidden, leaving the
head and a few inches of the neck
raised theateningly above the surface,
while it ratified warning defiance
against all comers.
The dog sprang forward to attack.
and though it was apparent that the
! snake had every advantage, Jim stood
quietly watching, as he afterwards
said. 'jest to see what the little cuss
would do"
Approaching within q few feet the
dog stopped and cooking his small
head to one side for moment, studied
the problem. Walking slowly around
nc uOM CliCltu lnt just ptNOhu
his reach, but so close as to engage
all the reptiles attention. and as it
strove TO be in continuous readiness for
the dogs attack, and as round and
round the dog continued TO walk, in
short time the snake seemed to grow
! dizzy, and its head began to wobble
from side to side, when, quick as a
fash, the dog jumped in and inserting
paw into the hole LUG the rattle
snake into the air. catching him in his
mouth as he came down, SHOOK him to
death without receiving a scratch.
At another time Jim was the owner
of two dogs. One was of medium size,
active and feroclous, and good hunt
or, and the other great overgrown
good natured brute. could hardly be
made to lay hold OF anything. When
ever he could be induced TO seize hold
of another animal he always shut his
eyes first as he took hold and keR
them tightly shut until he let go.
Jim was hunting along the bank of
the river one day wit both dogs along.
when he saw an otter swimming in the
river. and promptly put a rifle ball into
him, aiming at the head.
The otter was hard hit, and though
1t struggled and swan awkwardly
around n coon haoap, annarant tho 4