The Calhoun chronicle. [volume] (Grantsville, W. Va.) 1883-1984, 1907-05-14

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and waited.
He had no idea, OF course, what he
was waiting for. unless he had some
dim expectation that his dead mother,
or his owner. or the man on the
ferryboat. would come and lead him
home. His instinct taught him that
the dark OF the wilderness held I'M
! known perils for him. although his
| guarded babyhood had afforded him
no chance to learn by experience.
Young as he was, he took up the po-
sition which gave his peculiar weap-
ons opportunity for exercise.
Instead OF backing up against the
trees and the rock, and facing such
foes as the dread dark might send
upon him, he stood with his back
toward the danger and his formidable
heels in readiness. while over first
one shoulder, then the other, his
eyes and ears kept guard. The stu
alton was one that might we'll have
cowed him completely; but the blood
in his baby veins was that of mettled
ancestors, and terrified though he
was, and trembling, his fear did not
conquer his spirit.
Soon after he had taken his stand
in this strange and desolate stabling,
a great booming voice startled him,
calling hoo-hoo-oo, hoo-hoo-oo! not
very far off. He strained ears and
eyes in vain to discover the source of
the dreadful call. A moment later
he seemed to feel. rather than see or
hear, something float over him in the
dark. Then little way back in the
underbrush there came a scufie and
a squeal, more scuffle, and silence.
He could not even guess what was
happening, but whatever 1t was, It
was terrible to him. For some mo-
ments there came, from the same
spot, little, soft, ugly. thickish sounds.
These stopped abruptly Immediate
ly afterward there was a hurried
beating of wings. and again some
thing floated over him. The big owl
had been disturbed at It's banquet.
few seconds more, and the
watchers ears caught a patter of
light footsteps approaching. Then he
saw a faint CLEAN of eyes, which
seemed to scrutinize him steadily,
fearlessly. indifferently, for perhaps
the greater part of a minute.
Then they vanished, with more pat
ter of light footsteps; and as they dis
appeared, a wandering pun of night
air brought to the colts nostrils a
musky scent which he knew. 1t was
the smell of a red fox, such as he had
seen once prowling round his owners
barnyard. This smell, from its asso-
Citations. was comforting rather than
otherwise, and he would have been
glad If the fox had stayed near. For
some time now there was stiffness all
| about the big rock, the OWLS kill and
the passing of the fox having put all
the small wild creatures on their
guard
Little by little the colt was begin
ming to get used to the situation.
lie was even beginning to relax the
tense vigilance of his watching, when
suddenly his heart gave a lean and
then seemed to stand still. Just
| about ten PAGES behind him he SAW
pair of pale, green-gleaming eyes,
round. and set wider apart than those
of the fox. slowly floating toward
him. At the same time his nostrils
caught a scent which was absolutely
unknown to him and peculiarly ter.
rifying.
AS these two dreadful eyes drew
near, tho colts muscles grew tense.
Then he distinguished a shadow
crouching form behind the eyes; and
he gathered his launches under him
for a desperate defense.
But the big lynx was wary. This
long-legged creature who stood thus
with his back to him and eyed him
with watchful, sidelong glances was
something he did not understand.
Before he came within range of the
colts heels he swerved to one side
| and stole round at a safe distance. in
vestigating. He was astonished. and
| at first discounted. to find that
whichever way he clrcled, the un-
known animal under the rock per-
sisted in keeping his back to him.
For perhaps half an hour. with oc-
casional intervals OF motionless
crouching, he kept up this slow cir
cling, unable to allay his suspicious
Ihen, apparently making up his mind
mat the unknown was not a danger
Gus adversary, or perhaps in some
subtle way detecting his youth. he
crept closer. He crept so close. in
| deed. that he felt emboldened to
spring; and he was just about to do
so.
Just at this moment, luckily lust
the right moment. the colt let loose
the catapult of HIS strong launches.
His hoofs struck the lynx fairly in the
face, and hurled him backward
against neighboring tree.
Half-stunned his wind knocked
out Of him, the big cat picked himself
up with a sharp splitting and snarling.
and skunk behind the tree. Then
| he turned tail and ran away. thor
oughly beaten. The strange animal
had a fashion in lighting which he did
not know how 70 cope with: and he
had no spirit left for further lessons
After this the night wore on with
out great event. although there were
frequent alarms which kept the colts
nerves Ceaselessly on the rack. Now
/ 1t was the faint. almost imperceptibIe
sound Of a hunting weasel: now Il
was the erratic scurrying Of the
wood-mlce; now II was the loud but
mufled humping Of a hare. aston
ished at this long-llmbed intruder
upon the wilderness domains.
The colt was accustomed to sieep-
/ inc UunfI fhr.raarr. a.. .H-na