OCR Text |
Show Hunters' Problems: Parenthood, Safety Lock Hunting anyone? Of the 173,-000 173,-000 smiling faces that reported yes Friday night, four-fifths returned re-turned home last night with dimmed smiles and empty hands. Reasons? Well, there were many. Weather, of course, is an old standby. Many just couldn't compete com-pete with the cold air that swept in on Saturday morning. Others in the Manti' region stuck it out until they were finally turned home by the snow. Complex Excuses In a great many cases, the excuses were far more complex. One hunter was standing below a low cliff as a buck jumped off the ledge directly over the hunter's hunt-er's head. With a calm, assured air, the hunter lifted his gun, realized he just couldn't miss, cocked his gun, and shot only to hear the familiar click when the safety is left on. Another fellow finally had the ideal shot Saturday afternoon. As he lifted his gun a friend dashed up to disconcert him with "You're a father as of ten minutes min-utes ago!" Try Again One college student got his big chance Saturday. A four-point stood just seven feet away with his head turned the other way. The hunter shot and the deer turned around to look at him. He shot again, and again. He finally did get his deer twenty-one twenty-one shells marked the spot. One proud father winked at his ten-year-old son as he spotted his mark and fired. When the deer finally fell to the ground, the father walked a little behind to see the admiration in his son's eyes as he ran ahead to check out the big catch. He turned red when his son snickered and he realized the dead animal before them was a cow. Empty Hands And then there is the young husband 'who returns home with empty hands and a bewildered shake of his head as his 100-pound 100-pound wife proudly displays her 300-pound four-pointer. His excuse ex-cuse was unusually complicated. However, no matter what the reason the empty-handed four-fifths four-fifths give, one can be sure they will try again this season. And more than likely, they will have another tale about the "big one that got away." |