Show A YANKEE E story the following story is 13 founded upon ah occurrence which actually took place in vermont some forty years ago the facts are almost literally related is Rs foll follows aws my brother heman herman liked the business of carrying the mail better than I 1 did and so I 1 went to work in a new clearing I 1 had commenced about a mile and a half from home and not quite so far from the house of a brother iii in law aused I 1 ased to stay as often at one place as the other it was a bad arrangement as in case of accident neither family would be alarmed or go to look for me it if I 1 should not come home I 1 felt the force of this in the course of the winter as you will see directly there had fallen one of our old fashioned northern new york snows crusted over hard enough to bear a man I 1 was getting on fa with my clearen clearing g p getting ready to bu id a house in the spring I 1 was ambitious and worked early and late going without my dinner some days when the piece of bread and meat I 1 had brought in my pocket was frozen so hard bard that I 1 could not masticate it without taking up too much of in my y time one day it was intensely cold with the prospect of a storm that might hinder my work the next dagand so I 1 worked on as imy long iong ong as I 1 could seep seey see bee and after twilight I 1 felled a tree which in its descent lodged r against another I 1 could not riot bear the ide idea a of leaving the job half finished and mounted the almost al most prostrate body to cut away a limb to let it down the bole of the tree forked about forty feet up into two equal parts with large projecting limbs from both it was one of these I 1 had bad to cut away to bring it to the ground in my I 1 haste perhaps I was not so careful as I 1 should have been at any rate the blows eased the lodgment 0 m ent so that the he tree bezan besan to settle and I 1 w was a s just going to jump off when the fork split and as it ald aid did so one foot dropped into the space so that I 1 could not extricate it for a moment but I 1 felt no alarm for I 1 knew that I 1 could cut away the tree in a minute or perhaps draw my foot out of the boot as the pressure was not severe at the first blow of the ax the tree took another start rolled over and the split closed with all the force of its giant strength crushing my foot till the very bones were werd flattened and there I 1 hung suspended just able to touch the tips of my fingers in the snow with nothing to rest upon for a moment the air at zero and aud growing colder n no 0 prospect ibe ite act of any one coming that way that night the nearest house a mile away no friends to feel alarmed at my absence for one would suppose me safe with the other my aly ax in its fall fali rested upon the snow crust about ten feet off if I 1 could only tet get geb that I 1 might yet save myself I 1 did not think ink how I 1 was to cut myself loos ioos efrom the body of that great tree suspended as I 1 was head down and summering suffering with the rushing current of 0 disordered blood but I 1 thought in that keen kee n blade my only hope of life was fixed jil just at forward of me grew a slim bush which I 1 thought if I 1 could obtain I 1 could form into a hook book by twisting the limbs to together 0 ether and draw the ax within my reach although the bush was out of my reach I 1 atlant at last succeeded in getting ettin hold of it by means of a loop made bg by y tying my ray suspenders together I 1 drew it tw towards ads me and cut it off with my pocketknife pocket knife one of that sort so long iong 0 k known as barlow knives havin having a single 1 I ap e blade about two and a half inches in C hes long fong a and t three eights of an inch wide with eba eta equal width all its length set in a handle of peculiar form half its length iron and halt half horn or bone I 1 succeeded e eded admirably in fashioning in my T mook kook hook and almost f felt feit elt eit the handle of the ax within thin my grasp so certain was I 1 of success 8 from the tree that imprisoned me the ground descended rapidly for a dozen rods or more to a small creek my isly ax lay u upon on the brow of the hill the first movement movement I 1 made towards twisting handie handle t the loop of my stick around the handle handie hani bani I 1 1 so as a s to draw it within my reach loosened I 1 it from its icy ley rest and away it went down I 1 the hill crushing through the little frost brittle Itle itie bushes down upon the ice of the creek down to a little fall a few rods below an and over that into the unfrozen unfroze en pool with a surg 1 ing sound as it fell feu into the water that seem beem ed to send its icy chill through every vein in and artery jn in my whole body I 1 still had my knife true it was wag a rough surgical instrument but hope and the love of life gave me strength to climb up b by my fast ened leg and cut away the boot and ani stocking I 1 and then with that knife I 1 my ancle ancie i and fell to the ground my left leg a foot footless lessi lesso bleeding stump the intensity of the cold coid saved me from bleeding to death I 1 tore offa part of my coat and with my band handkerchief kerchief i aid and suspenders managed to bind up my leg with a handful of snow and started to crawl forborne for home I 1 succeeded in reach reaching within reaching s sight ned lit of the house and then strength ini I 1 utter utterly ay f failed I 1 me I 1 tried my voice in in vain I 1 could make no one hear I 1 exerted myself once more and crawled towards the road that I 1 knew heman bieman must come coche it was a painful task for besides j I 1 my exhaustion I 1 was perishing with cold just then I 1 heard the sound OF of my brothers sta stage e horn and the jingle of the bells coming do down don n the hill I 1 strained my voice to the ut tit most pitch but he did not could not hear but there was another friend mans faithful friend who did hear old hunter the noble j dog had insisted on accompanying him this trip and brother said sald let him go who 1 knows what good may come of it good did come of it for his liis ear was quicker than he j I 1 mans arll aril and he roused up at the he first cry and j as the second cry reached his ear he leaped out andin and in a wai waa was agthe at the spot where I 1 lay upon the snow he smelt all around and I 1 held up my footless leg just then th the sleigh had got up the hill hunter sprang back into the path ut barked laidly and as the horses came up he jumped up seized the reins and would not let go till heman called a halt hunter let go his hold on the horses jumped lumpe d back to the sleigh caught hold of If hemans emans hand band pulling off the mitten and away he ran back where awas I 1 was and commenced barking furiously but I 1 heard nothing the effect upon me when I 1 knew that I 1 was discovered by that faithful old dog and that he never would desert me nor cease his bis efforts until he had bad obtained help had caused me to faint taint my brother knew that hunter was not at play that something curious was the matter and ana he dumped jumped jumped out of the sleigh and ran after him in a little while I 1 nassaf was safe e at ho methe doctor was sent forand my wound properly dressed I 1 eventually recovered but was h horev ever a cripple for life |