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Show "I dared not descend to examine it, fin their we!l known tenacity ol litemat'e me tear that the result wou'd be a hand to-hand enc uuter. My skill in the use of a trifle scarcely warranted me In supposing that the creature hid bet n slain by one ball, so hasiily taking aim, I sent another leaden messei ger ol death after the fust. "L)o bears ever approach a camp fire asked poor Mrs. Merrigold getting close to her husband and trembling vis.bly. "No," said her husband leasuin.gly "What did you do next?" "Well I sat there and waited I. r half an h iur. and then, as the bear gave no sigi.s of Me I appr. ached it.very Cautious ly, trembling in eveiy limb with a specious spec-ious of nervousness, that hunter's call "Buck ague," but which should, in this case have been called "bear ag e." The belief that it Mas not a bear at all , but one of those inanimate objecs in na'.uie which oacasiui.a ly deceive the most practiced eye, had almost lurced itself upon me; but a neater approach set all doubts at rest, it was a bear. Fairly hugging myself with delight, when me Coiiv ctiou was fmctd upon me that myvrtyjirst shot had been true, that this monster had died without a groan, or a movement. 1 stood c er my prize ii just one mo nient thinking with a swell ng lieait.h. w proud 1 should be of my nisi bear! "I had stood there more than a mom-howevei; mom-howevei; not long enough to locate the ball, when a teuible smell arising Irom it caused me to remove to a considerable distance. In going up the ravine, and wondering wonder-ing how it was that bears got "sowei"so quick, I stumbled over a tin plate, to which still adhered molasses sprinkled with strchnine. The mysten was solved! The sheep herders had been putting out strychnine for beat, and I had been peppering into a bear, too dead to skin. There was just one spark of consolation consola-tion in it, no one but me knew anything about it. Now I knew wheie the thriving thriv-ing little monkey, Miers, had got Ins bearskin. Oh, no! I guess not, but I would wear him out when 1 got oack to camp! The cheating little scoundrel! It would not be necessary to teli about this afiair, of course. I would just say: ',1 saw a dead bear in a gulch, approach ed, discovered the cause ol death, and surmised the trick that had been played upon us. etc." "It is stiange that you never told me about this before." "Not at all, I did not care about be ing the butt of ridicule for a round year; now time and distance lends enchantment enchant-ment to the view." "What did they do with Mires when they found out the trick?" "Well just as I shouldered arms to go to camp, a mockng voice called out: "Your'ea fine shot Menigjld, "and there in the forks oi a low cedar, sat Miies, with his clun or his hand, and I knew he had seen me making a fool ui myself, my-self, and was glad lo compromise wuh him. If he would keep my sectet. I would keep his. so you see the b. ys at camp never suspected that he had lound a sirychnined bear, and skinned it; consequently con-sequently they did uot do anything with him. "What kind of a looking place was it Percv, where yju found the two dead b;r.?" "Something like this" answered l r husband, and cultl have bitten his tongue ofl ihe 11 -xl m mem fr be bl-.u-lf 1 l' an h ui he bad been patiently patient-ly lead n& her m:ud Irom tear, only t p unge it uack by one inaOveiiant wuh!. To be toi.tinued a Mr. M. fed his horses and kindled a fire; drew water from the keg with which he had provided himself.and got suppei with mucti belter success than the din . ner had been prepared. While they weic eating, the measured beat, of horses feet warned them that . horsemen hite or red were approach tug. "Oh, Percy! do you think it is Indians, gasped Mrs Merrigold.'urning pale. "No dear. I don't; and if it were they would not haim you. There is absolute ly no danger Irom India:. now, tnere hasn't been a rumor of Indian troubles lor years." But fiouniier bred Mrs. Meriigold was not going to take chances. Seizing her two children by the hand she hastened out of the circle of light cast by the fire, imploring her husband to follow them to a place of salety; not to sit there where Indians cou:d shoot him dwn from out the daiknessaud he never so much as see the enemy;toat least get his gun and show some evidence that he mont to defend his family. Tne tread was o alarmingly near by this time that without waiting foi a reply, the tottering w.iman.holdiug each terrified terri-fied child by the hand, disappeared in a clump of red cedars. Percy Merrigold's mustache twiched and curled as he tried in vain to con rot the smile that desired to become a laugh. He felt a great c.mtempt not unmixed with a certain indulgent fondness, such as a superior may confer upon au iner-ior. iner-ior. The horseman one solitary individual leading one horse and riding - another rode up to the camp file and salut'd the proprietor with a western "Hellow!" "Hellow!" said Mr. Merrigold, "better stop and camp." "Hell no," said the man shifting himself him-self in his saddle and putting a huge piece of tobacco which he cut from a gummy plug, into Ins mouth. "Why didn't you dr. ve five or six miles further where my fol :s live. mile toth-er toth-er side of this box canyon drn sight better olace lo camp then here. Thev.d a made you perfectly welcome." "I have only been over this road once befoie, and have not made any acquaintances acquaint-ances or learned where the good camp ing places are yet," said Mr. Merrigold, with a smile. "On your road to the mines just discovered dis-covered at the Henry Mountain, I guess?" interrogated the stranger, "NoJ'm just going down to spend the three months ofculd weather. My home is in Rabbit Valley. "Well ca'l when vou find it agreeable," said the stranger gathering up the reii s and prepanng to depart. "Thank you." ' I.say you want to keep a pretty sharp lookout for bear. I killed a she bear about a quarter of a mile down that gulch over there one day last week; slmw you the hide when yu come pa-t to-morrow if ywu want to see it. Perhaps you'd like ter buy it its fer sale I never have anything that's too good for tradin' orsellin'. I'm positive there's another Kr a she never goes alone so look out that her mate don't take your hide. Good-night," and away he rode leaving Percy Merrigold distracted for fear his wife had heard the bear story. Mrs. M. emerged from the surroun l-iug l-iug gloom as the retreating steps of the caller grew faint in the distance. She r'id not refer directly to the bear storv. but she was pale, and there was a 1 s artled apprehensive air about her that wa distressing to witness and a great deal more so to exnerience. She sat by he fire,quileilei.tl until.the' In lie if. i Is nail Lee ii i.ii in Oi-U,a,.u w. ie fast asleep, and the vehemence with which she then aridrcnseiJ herself iu ih subject of bear prqved how great a strain she had been Uboring und r "Did you ever see a bear when you have been out hunting Percy?" Shej demanded. "Yes." "Where?" ' Once when I ivas up on the motin tains s .nth of Beaver with a party of gen ilemen," said Mr. Merrigold witn a sly twinkle in his eve, "we agreed that the one who should b4 the greatest number of deer the first day should "boss'' the the hunt fur the next Hay; and if anybody any-body should kill a bear he should, wi; flout fl-out question, rule the hunt supreme Irom that time." A dry twing snapped, one of the horses snorted, and Mrs M s!iudderingly looked out into the inky blackness of the night. Mr. M. threw on niorj Wjjd and as the flames shot up his wile, it a lsc n-1 ated h ir r urged h m to go on idling ! the sun v. "Well the firsi d tv.Tom Button killed one deer and the n -st of us did't 1 t ei a sh it. He ariam'fti the next d.iv that we siio. lu scalier out and a'thu.'gii that is lather a daneiutis way oi iiunnng, there are s.i mm y C;iss where men liae thus shot then cunvads, but there wis n thivig for it but to obey. ''I tramped around all tiny, and where the deer used to Mam iu druves there: was nothing but sheep Hacks, ' When I jot back to camp that even ing, (all the rest of the paitv were in be-fre be-fre me,)there wai manvcongraiu!ations being showered on Jack Miers lor having hav-ing killed a bear. knew the treacherous little whelp! and vou Id not believe it until I saw the skin, Sure enough it was a bear skin, I was very much astonished, for toe fellow fel-low was the biggest c iwaid that ever drew the breath of life. He would be barbarously cruel to a wounded animal, but scared to death if a buck turned on him, and throw his gun down and take to Ivs heels screaming for help. The kil'ing of this bear was a mystery, but as the lawyers, say here was circumstantial circum-stantial evidence of the very strongest description "The hide had been thrown down just out side my tent, and after I went to bed 1 detected a very bad smell, arising from it and requested Miers to move his property. Tom Button was sleeping with me.and he remarked that that bearskin had "spiled" the quickest of any skin be ever had seen in i'is life. "Nothing more was said about it that night, but next morning the boys actua-ated actua-ated by jealousy suppose began carrying him high about the skin spoiling so quick. "He told us that when he was hunting big game in Africa with Stanley that frequently fre-quently tne meat dressed and hung up in the trees would spoil iu a single night when the moonlight tell upon it. Similar st tries fell from his lips, in such variety, profusion and comic extravagance, that we laughed and subsided. According to our arrangement he was "lord" during our stay and at his command com-mand we again seperaied.and each went our different routes. "I had walked perhaps five miles, leaving leav-ing the point of the compass towaid which I ha. I been sent, when coming to the top of a high blurt I saw a bear, apparently ap-parently asleep in the narrow ravine at tne bottom. "It wits an immense s:z the fittest bvar. in fact iti.u 1 a is) ewr .een Cold with tear ie u I sti uld be discovered l-fuie 1 could get in a shot, I drew a bead on the creatures eai and pulled the trigger. A deafning volley of echoes bounded back fro.n rock and tree and m luntain side; but the bear, to my great astonishment astonish-ment did not move. - - HE HAD HIS CHOICE (continued) W ritten for th. Rkcister It was altogether to funny to see Papa cook, and when the stream of honev, tipped over by his impatience ran over the lower edye of his vest and down to one knee, the little gu Is clapped their hands and laughed aloud. Mrs. Mtrrigold shut her lips and did not speak, neither did she offer with swift devtrous hands to repair the mischief. mis-chief. Mr. Merrigold held his hands out and leaned over in order that thesiicky drops might fall on the ground, and uot cover any m ne pants' suif re "Come litre Nellie." he exc aimed, as the elder of the two girls recovered from her first spasm of laughter. Take the drihrag out of my pocket and wipe this honey off" Nellie did as she was bid, while her mother gasped in a whisper: "Wipe the honey off with the dishrag Dishrag in h'9poekel "Good heavens Nellie! That is not wiping it eff that's wiping it in. It's Kone clear through my clothes now.what shall I do?" "You will have to change." suggested his wife in a tone unnaturally subdued. "I'll be hanged if I will!" with which exclamation he began heaving things back into the h.tmpei, "Percy" said his wile, you are acting - just like I was to blame I 1 this accident i ii.iv- never nested you so shabbily iirn you were sick, never! If you aie crt ss because 1 didn't drink the lea you in.tile from t!te lioise bucket, why give it lo me; for I l-el like I j Could bear anytime any-time belter than you should be angrv jh mi- Hint the teats began to run down over the pale cheeks. He loved her and the sight of those tears, brought back ihe memory of thn days, so slior.lv passed, when they two had wept together over the little white coffin that was so small, and yet had reeined large ennugli to absorb all the lopeof die Iu ure.allthe light of Heaven all the woild uf happiness for .'Km when the tiny lid was closed! Ashamed of ins petulance, and '.Item per, Percv Merrigold took the weeping woman iu his arms and kisser! her, and apologized. It was all so womanly and perfectly natural, and yet well there was no comfort and nj Companionship in a person like this no matter how blameless thev might be. "I think, Pecv, it would h ive been bcnei it I iiad died a in : I was so sick; britei than to live to be l ji:h a burden to y u as I amw'vv.- " ':uv n ai wuc! n&t aie you saying!" Then he scolded hei in a loverlike wav lot hei lack jt faith iu the unselli-hness of ns affi c::;;a. his coiiMaitcv and tlev i linn He is ivioie vehement pel Imps Itecanse the thuulu had just crossed bi mind. V hat kind of a hie would ( ny years ol this suit of ihing be? He did n t resent it iu the I'ast when she burned the dislnag, and insisted j;e.snl tint ii should cli itie his clothes. He meekly obeyed hei, an I , finally afur a two or three hour halt thev weie again on the load. Mrs. Merrigold was really very much fatigued, and her husband persuaded hei to lie down on a bed spread comfort ab y in the back of the wagon, and trust herself to his caie. After a great deal of coaxing and many assurances that the road was "perfectly safe,"that they did not have to cross the liver once during the af'ernoon'ihat he would waken her if there was a particu-, particu-, . lar bad place in the road," (though it would take a' philosopher to tell what for) he got her comfortably tucked in, where she soon fell asleen, and slept peacefully through the ivhoia afternoon. after-noon. The little girls sat by P..pa on '.he high spring seat, and "Kc.s;- somewnat subdued sub-dued by a d.iy's work walked more sedately. se-dately. just as the sun was setting they came to a lovely little round knoll and by various indications Mr. Merrigold 'knew they u ere-t,euing the- mouth, of the Gtai d Gulch, and as it is never sale to camp in a box canyon, he decided that this would be a suitable place to stop all night. He pulled the wagon out of the road, and up near a grove of such fresh look-ng look-ng evergreens, and came to a halt; lift-. lift-. ing the children out to run about and limber up their legs, and pi ic gum fro.n the trees, ne began unl.i'xhing his team The pause waked Mrs. U . rifold who sat up and surveyed t'e landscape, where the dusky green oi the trees was fast blending with the dusky shadows of the night. It was j ml where r;ne mountain chain running North and South ended arainst a line whose parallells were stretched Irom East to West. The result was a wild and broken landscape, full of deep gulches, abrupt cliffs w j ded spurs, bald angles, and m isses of I glu r.,ck, thrown up betwtt.-r the rees. ' Twas a (lean iful iiicunr of wild and untamable-rna the -nee r.ieic was a solemn aim st a tragic tepuse in tne savage sav-age sublimity. Did Mrs. Merrigold's artistic and spirit ual nature drink deeply ot this rare opportunity? op-portunity? No, she only saw in it the ! possibilities of Indian ambuscade.or wild ! peasts haunt. - |