The independent-reporter. [volume] (Skowhegan, Me.) 1909-1955, 1922-09-14

s"celllcdGl, passing through tnls var
ley, had occasion to circle. this noun
tain. The Indian maiden made light
of the story that il WIS unsafe to go
To the left. She darted away among
tile trees, and her lover had not the
courage To follow her. She vas new
er afterward seen either living or
dead, but her spirit was said to haunt
The place, and 10 call out in tones oi
entreaty all through each night. 9th
CT stories We're TO the effect that one
could approach the hill in perfect safe
ty on the sanlit side, but an attempt
to go around in the shadow either
way was equal TO self-destructiOn.
About noon the dogs commenced
baying. and we soon found they had
a fox ON the run. They eircled
around the valley for while, and
then got onto the mountain | have
been describing After waiting a
while we could ssee them come out on
what afterward proved to be bench
OF ledge. and we could trace them on
this almost half way around. We got
interested in the matter, and taking
ont our watches determined that they
were making the round Of that quite
considerable circle every % minutes.
There was Something mysterious about
il II looked as if it nust be six
mile, but il probabiye could not have
been more than half that. How
ever. we were sure the dogs had new
CT set any such gait before.
The sun was just passing the meri-
dian. and we did not dare to 70 near
81 oh IL
We gave it quite a wide berth and
crossed around the north end of the
valley. When we got over there
about the same thing WAS to be seen.
The dogs with that ioX well in the
lead in making the round OF the
mountain were way mp on cliff two
thirds the way to the top We want
ed the fox, but we did not either one
of us at first dare go near that hill.
although all reports had told IL, it was
safe to do so On the sunny side. We
finally got over toward it only to dis
cover that there was no trail up to
the cliff where the foS passed. If
we stood close tot the hill he passed
where we could not s4e him. If We
got back where he came into view he
was we'll ont of range.
Blake had been pfecocious fellow
since q very early age. lie had de-
veloped marvellous knowledge of
everything in mathematics BY the
use of a compass which contained a
level and quadrant like affair
which he was able to make, he deter
mined that if we could drop a bullet
on the trail whore that fox passed Il
minutes after he went by the point
over our head we would get him.
In those days as ] learned from
Blake the maximum muzzle velocity
of the best rifles was 1900 feet per
second. Our own rifles he said had
velocity of about 500 feet. He
explained to me. however, that he
would count only on a muzzle velocity
of 400 feet per second in the expert
ment he was about to attempt. With
that speed he found that by giving
the barrel an elevation of 10 degrees
the bullet would strike the ground
just one-half mile away in "a seconds.
He then proceeded to bend the barrel
with his rifle putting it between two
closely set yellow birch trees for the
purpose. | recall that it was not a
simple curve. 1t bent first one way
and then the other. Toward the
muzzle however, it curved good deal
the shape of the hill. After this pre-
paraton he fixed the rife firmly in the
two birch trees which had served for
vice, gave it the proper muZzle Gle
Walton and with watch in hand waited
for the fox to pass. We could hear
the dogs every time they went around,
loud when right over us, and of course
fainter and fainter until their baying
died away on the further side to be
renewed again as they came around
the other end of the mountain. Pre-
yious observations had taught us just
how far that fox would ket } ahead of
them, and we were near enough so
that we could hear him scratching
along and painting as he passed on
the ledge above us.
our problem was 10 land the bullet
on that half-mile spot just the time the
fox got there. We knew ii would
take him three minutes or $50 sec
onds to run that half mile, and as il
would take the bullet "a seconds to
70 there it was necessary to dis
charge the rife 1G6 seconds after the
fox passed over the ledge above US.
This we did, and having Strengthened
the rifle as best we could retired from
the cliff calling now and then to the
dogs. We we're none too certain
that our experiment would be success
full. but it proved to be, for very short
~ afterwards the dogs came in, one
of them bringing Mr.. Fox.
All this had taken most of the af
lernoor and enormous shadows from
The mountains TO the West were fall
ing across this haunted region. We
made haste to get out of it. We
told, of course, of our exploit ON get
ting home but strange to say some
we're rather skeptieal about it. We
had the foa for proof, but they seem
ed to require a good deal more. 1t
aroused interest enough in the mat
ter, however, so that many an argu
ment pro and con took place. It
added at least one more story to the
long list OF legends woven about
"Hell-an a-Half' Valley.