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Show THE COYOTE AHEAD. HU Dimension Were a Trifle Larger Than the Strainer Suppnued. One night in the early days of Lincoln, Neb., .in eastern man arrived with a fair sized dog at his heeb, mid it was plain enough to every one who looked the canine over that he was a fighter. After supper we began to chin the man about his dog, and the way he did brag that animal np was something wonderful. wonder-ful. It was so wonderful that some of tha boys conspired to put up a job on him, and by and by one of them led off with: , 1 "Stranger, did you ever see a coyote?" "No," I never did." "Do you know what they are like?' "Why, I've always understood that they were a sort of wild dog aud very cowardly." . ' . : "You wouldn't want to match that dog of yours against a coyote, would you?" "I don't want to insult my dog, sir!" "Well, now, mebbe you don't want to pee your dog git licked iuto the grass in about three minutes!" "By a covoto?" "You bet!" "For how much?" , ... . "Say twenty dollars."' ' . ' "Where's your animal?". ' "Down behind the barn in n pen. He was captured only two days ago." . . '.'I'll go twenty dollars that my dog licks him inside of two minutes." "Done!" Tha hotel man owned a Newfoundland Newfound-land about as big as a calf, and to disguise dis-guise him the boys had dashed him with Hour until he was as white as a sheep. He was in a dog house back of the barn, and when all was ready wa took lanterns and went out. There was a rail pen about twenty feet square in the rear of the barn, and it was agreed that the stranger should turn his dog into thiii. "You see," explained the chief conspirator, con-spirator, "a coyote must have room to maneuver. He may want to run and he may want to fight." "Oh, he'll want to run fast enough," replied the owner of tho dog. The dog in the house was loolring out. Ho made no move until he saw the other canine. Then he shot out like a cannon ball, uttered one roar, and the little dog was flung five feet high. When he came down he took leg bail and circled the pen, yelping in fear and dismay, and when he found a place he could squeeze through he wriggled out. It all occurred in less than a minute, and as the stranger realized what had happened, he gasped: "Great Scots! but the coyote has licked him!" "Square and fair," added the conspirator, con-spirator, "and I presume you are ready to give np the stakes." "Oh, certainly, certainly, but" "Out with it. This is a square deal." "Well, I see my mistake. I had got things mixed. It is the grizzly bear which is a skulker and a coward, while the coyote is a holy terror to anything. The money is yours, gentlemen, but you can bet thpy don't catch me on this lay again. Why, your durned coyote is big enough to eat up three dogs like mine!" New York Sun. |