The Manitowoc pilot. [volume] (Manitowoc, Wis.) 1859-1932, 1908-04-23
BILLS FOX HUNT
As DESCRIBED By 4 MAN WHO
RODE WITH
BY NORMAN n. CRoWELL

| houldb. lhNullSu LILO 6AoSCiy NiCl
in an attempt to draw attention from
the prune barrel into which the upper
third of Boggs had disappeared. Al
the query the prune chaser straight
ened up and busted the mold off his
vest front.
Eth? Ride two hounds he repeat
ed in mild surprise. Il should hope
not, son; I'm no juggler."
Il heard you were quite a fox hunt
er once. Just thought I'd ask, you
know" said the clerk, as he put a
handful of desiccated cabbage leaf
| into the free tobacco box
Fox hunter Well, | calklate
same that | was! Why son, l was
| chasin' the animals years before you
was born,
Il suppose you've hunted foxes with
Bill Fikes?" asked jim Hallett, as he
peered around the stove.
Hunted with Bill? Yes, once, | re-
member that time very particular-it
finished poor Bill for fox huntin'
You see, Bill had always swore he
was a regular ringmaster at hossback
ridin'. Even went SO far as to let on
he'd been refusin' big offers once a
month for tn past ten years from
circuses all over tn country just to
ride bosses. | never seen m straddle
| boss, though, till we went down to
Squire Eatons fox hunt. Bill had to
| go, seem he was some maple sugary
on tn squire's daughter, an tn
daughter had egged tn squire on to
invite Bill SOS she could see how he
looked in highwater pants.
After we'd got down there tn
squire pulled me off to one side an
| says, in a whisper:
1 hear Bills an old circus eques-
trian, an I'm dunn glad of it, I've
got a regular devil of boss for i'm
to ride, an an ordinary man couldn't
manage i'm
Is that So? says I. Well, | guess
my pardner is tn one to make that
boss feel 'is oats if anyone can. You'll
enjoy watchn' Bill ride that boss,
squire | says.
When the stable bridegroom led out
Bills noble steed my poor pardner
nearly fell down. SO did |, after one
look at that nag. | see then that
Squire Eaton was professional
joker with capital letters a foot high.
That animal was so high up from
tn earth it was jest like lookin up at
tn Masonic temple. Away up on tn
roof Of i'm he had a backbone that
looked like tn map of tn Rocky noun
tains done up in bone. Bill run is
hand loyin'ly over tn critters spine
an said he'd seen worse, but couldn't
recollect jest where.
"Th' first thing Bits boss done was
10 jump tn pump an then hurdle a
row o beehives. In dom this a half
dozen beetlebrowed honey-producers
anchored to Bill an tn boss an done
a lively business. Bill took tn lead
Jest like I'd said he would-an he
held it. He showed us some ridin'
that you don't often see even in cir
Gus rings, too. | never see a Teller
ride so far away from is nag an still
stay with i'm. Most o tn time Bill
peared to be sailin' along in tn sun
shine jest like a butterfly, touchin'
is boss occasionally to give i'm a
pointer where he wanted to go.
Some O tn boys who got up near
Bill said tn remarks he was castin' of
was ekal to any 'Spartacus to the
Gladiators they'd ever listened to-
About every third time Bird come
down he'd meet tn boss goin' up on
tn next jump, an tn sound was sim
liar to a man poundin' hollow stump
with a sledge hammer.
In about 20 minutes Bits boss had
overlook tn dogs an waded through
IN bunch, putin two of them on tn
hospital list with onjointed backs. In
a minute or so more he'd caught up
with tn fox. an, after runnin' i'm
neck an neck for half mile, passed
i'm easy. TIL fox was so disgusted
he tried to bite Bill in tn leg as he
went by, but Bill was too high up TO
be reached.
"Th' squire blowed a few toots on
is foghorn to advise Bill to come back
an be sociable, but we see that boss
just tuck in his tail good an careful
an stretch out like hOmeSick Jack
rabbit. Bill was hangn' on like
porous plaster to tramp's back.
''Th' last we saw O my pardner he
was just toppin' a rise In III far dis.
lance with tn hose skippin along IKE
a scairt catamount bout five feet be
low. Tn squire was sort o melan-
choly for awhile, thinkin he was a
boss out, but | told i'm to bear up
brave an begin preparin to get boot.
ed clear across CataWba county IL
poor Bill never showed up again.
But next day BIZ sent word from
a town 20 miles off that he was alive
an hungry, but that tn boss was In
difficulty through breakin' an enterin
hotel Office an attemptn' to regis
ter. forget what It cost tn squire
to settle for tn bric-a-b rac that ami
NAL had maltreatcd but 1t was moth
IN small. Bill walked like a pair o
carpenter calipers for six weeks an
threatened to sue tn squire for per
manent injuries to is beauty.
That was tn last fox hunt | ever
see Bill Fixes engage in-the identical
last one. He sort O. lost 'is hankerin'
for it, | guess"
The narrator paused yawned deeply
and drummed lightly with his fingers