The Tupelo journal. (Tupelo, Miss.) 1876-1924, 1907-04-05

evidences by the way side of the
devastation the fire had made.
Here was seen the smoking and
Sizing carcass of a dear, there
the jack rabbit sq1asJeu in his
last resting plac" Were he had
made his T. :. leap before the
smoke stiA / md the flame over
took him, IN the left some dis
tance from the main line vi the
hunters trail could - ,een a half
dozen wild hor31s nuddled to-
gether and lying in almost every
conceivable manner, as though
they had given up the fight and
flight for lie and surrendered TO
the inevitable; the smoking dots
here and there showed the buffa-
10 trails through the limitless
prairies, and not a thing of life
was to be seen in all the plain.
When they returned to their
camp they found the faithful dog
whining at their appearance,
and their horses and camp in
good shape, the fire not having
passed in that direction. Know
ing the impossibility of finding
any game for quite a while in
that section, they moved their
camp and travelled for several
days still westward far beyond
the burnt district into the regions
beside the streams where there
was some timber and more water.
Having established their camp to
their satisfaction. and spending
several days in getting accustom;-
ed to their surroundings, and
taken their bearings, as good
woodsmen should, they thought
to take a wolf hunt. Frequently
since establishing their camp at
this place, they had heard the
howl of the wolf near their camp
| in the dark hours of the night.
and sometimes they approached
uncomfortably near to their rest
ing place, making the faithful
dog uneasy and causing the
horses to send forth neigh o.
distress. Sneak, althougha a man
of wonderful good humor and an
enjoyer of a good practical joke,
and generally the leader in all
hunting and trapping enterprises
and expeditions, did not in this
instance father the thought OF a
wolf hunt in the night season.
But Joe, being so enthusiastic for
what he called the sport, Sneak
could not resist the pressure of
his old friend. The fire having
consumed the stocks of their old
trusty rifles, and not having as
vet had an opportunity to have
them repaired, and having only
the rifle they passed beside the
dead Indian whom they buried,
and an old single barrel shot gun
owned bv Joe, they were short OF
fire arms for the contemplated
hunt. Sneak had fired the IN
dams gun a few times, but did
not feel to rely on it as he had
| done for many years on his old
Betsy, and so he concluded not to
| carry the rifle in this night hunt,
as he was going more for the
sport than the game. Rejecting
on what he had heard Of some
old hunters many years before,
and possessing a vein of humor,
he said to his friend Joe, who
was anxious to come near the
wolves, and the more the better,
that if he wished to see and get
close to the varmints and have
them come near him, he should
thoroughly saturute his shoe soles
with the gum Of asafoetida, for
which the wolves had a wonder
full longing. Delighted at the
! idea. Joe used a profusion of the
gum on his shoe soles, and even
extended it to the uppers, as if
he were oiling his shoes. This
done, with the trusty dog at their
heels, the old hunters moved out
into the strips of timber, from
the direction Of which they had
| in several instances heard the
bowling of the wolves. The dog
was expected at least to bay the
varmints, and act as a guide to
their hiding places in the ledges
Of the cliffs and dense chaparal
by the side of the stream. Joe
had never seen a wolf Of which
he felt the least apprehension,
and only had in his minds eye
the number which he should be
able to stay, while Sneak, with a
mischievous twinkle in his eye,
was looking to the sport he was
I:;,+;nr ont Of loo whom tho