Show tue THE axne AMME musket one of mark afar elern twains kwains fellow passenger 1 in I a we wearn stage was bantered about his timidity whereupon he stated that he had never been scared but once and that was when lie he fired an old queen anne musket belonging to the old man says he be you see the old nian man was trying to learn me to shoot bla blackbirds ck and beasts that tore up tip the young 9 corn and such things so BO that I 1 could coald be of af some use about the farm because I 1 bip big enough to do much my bly gnu was a little single barrel shotgun shot gun gua and the old man carried an old queen anne mus et that weighed hed a ton und and made m a a report ort like a thunder and an d kicked like like a mule the old man wanted me to shoot the musket some time but I 1 was afraid one d day though I 1 got tier her down and so BO I 1 alo took a yi her 6 to the hired man and asked him how to load her because the alie old man was out in the field hiram said do you see them marks on th estock an X and a V on the queens crown well that means ten felt balls and five slugs her load but how much pow powder derl oh he says it dont matter put in three or four handful hand fulls Is so S I 1 loaded her up that way and it w was Is an awful charge chir gi I 1 haa sense enough to see that and started out I 1 leveled on a good many blackbirds but very time I 1 went to pull the trigger I 1 shut my eyes nud and winked I 1 was afraid of her kick jo towanda v a I 1 dh sundown db up P A at th C ehouse and L nd there was tho the old man resting 0 on the porch been out hunting liun ting have ye yc I 1 yes yc sir anys 1 what did you kill P kill anything sir dian didn t shoot shoo t her off I 1 w was as afraid shed kick 1 I knew blamed well she would gilmus that gurla gun the old man says niad mad as sin anabe and he took aim at a sapling 0 on n the other bide of the road and I 1 brgan began to tn drop atop back out of danger arid and th the e next minute I 1 heard an all cai th quake and saw the queen anne end ovar end in the air and the old man spinning i around on his heel with one leg up and both hands on hislaw hie jaw and the bark flying from the tree the old mans shoulder was set back three inches and his jaw turned black and blue arid and he had to lay up for three days cholera nor nothing else can ever scare me the way I 1 was scared that time |