A 'Coon-Hunt.
We might relate many more interesting events that transpired before
the hunting season set in; we might tell of the "tall times" the boys
had whipping the trout-streams, of the trials of speed that came off
on the river, when it turned out, as Archie had predicted, that
Charles Morgan's sloop "couldn't sail worth a row of pins;" and we
might tell of many more desperate "scrapes" that came off between the
bully and his sworn enemies the Hillers; but we fear, reader, you are
already weary of the Young Naturalist's home-life, and long to see him
engaging in his favorite recreations--roaming through the woods, with
his gun on his shoulder, or dealing death among the ducks on the
river.
Well, autumn came at length; and, early one chilly, moonlight evening,
Frank and his cousin, accompanied by George and Harry, might have
been seen picking their way across the meadow at the back of Mrs.
Nelson's lot, and directing their course toward a large cornfield,
that lay almost in the edge of a piece of thick woods, about a quarter
of a mile distant.
They had started on a 'coon-hunt. Frank and Harry, who were two of the
best shots in the village, were armed with their double-barreled
shot-guns, and the others carried axes and lanterns.
We have said that it was a moonlight night, but, so far as a view of
the chase was concerned, the light of the moon would benefit them but
little; and the boys carried the lanterns, not to be able to follow
the 'coon when started, but to discover him when "treed," and to
assist them in picking their way through the woods.
During a raccoon-hunt, but little is seen either of the dogs or the
game. The woods, let the moon shine ever so bright, are pitch-dark;
and the dogs rely on their scent and the hunter trusts to his ears.
The 'coon seldom strays far from his tree, and, of course, when
started, draws a "bee-line" for home, and the game is for the
dogs--which should be very swift, hardy animals, having the courage to
tackle him if he should turn at bay--to overtake him, and compel him
to take to some small tree, where he can be easily shaken off or shot.
But if he succeeds in reaching home, which he always makes in a large
tree, he is safe, unless the hunter is willing to go to work and fell
the tree.
The boys were accompanied by their dogs, which followed close at their
heels. Lightfoot was about to take his first lesson in hunting, but
Brave and Sport evidently knew perfectly well what the game was to be,
and it was difficult to restrain them.
A few moments' walk brought them to the corn field. A rail-fence ran
between the field and the woods; and two of the boys, after lighting
their lanterns, climbed over the fence, and the others waved their
hands to the dogs, and ordered them to "hunt 'em up." Brave and Sport
were off in an instant, and Lightfoot was close at their heels,
mechanically following their motions, and evidently wondering at their
strange movements.
The boys moved quietly along the fence, and, in a few moments, a
quick, sharp yelp from Brave announced that he had started the first
'coon. The boys cheered on the dogs, and presently a dark object
appeared, coming at full speed through the corn, and passed, at a
single bound, over the fence. The dogs, barking fierce and loud at
every jump, were close at his heels, and both they and the game
speedily disappeared in the darkness. The boys followed after, picking
their way through the bushes with all possible speed.
The chase was a short one, for the dogs soon broke out in a regular,
continuous barking, which announced that the 'coon was treed. The
hunters, guided by the noise, soon came in sight of them, standing at
the foot of a small sapling. Brave and Sport took matters very easily,
and seemed satisfied to await the arrival of the boys, but Lightfoot
had caught sight of the 'coon as he was ascending the tree, and was
bounding into the air, and making every exertion to reach him.
Frank and Harry stood ready with their guns to shoot him, and the
others held their lanterns aloft, and peered up into the top of the
tree, to discover his hiding-place; but nothing could be seen of him.
The sapling had grown up rather high, and all objects outside of the
circle of light made by their lanterns seemed to be concealed by
Egyptian darkness.
"He's up there, I know," said Archie.
And, laying down his ax and lantern, he caught hold of the sapling,
and shook it with all his strength. But it was a little too large for
him to manage, and, although it swayed considerably, the 'coon could
easily retain his hold.
"Well," said Archie, "if he will not come down to us, we'll have to go
up to him, I suppose."
And he commenced ascending the tree. Archie was a good hand at
climbing, and had shaken more than one 'coon from his roost, and he
carefully felt his way up, until he had almost reached the top of the
sapling, when, not wishing to trust his weight on the small limbs, he
stopped, and again shook the tree, and this time with better success.
There was an angry snarling among the branches above his head, and the
'coon, after trying in vain to retain his hold, came tumbling to the
ground.
Quick as thought the dogs were upon him, and, although he made a most
desperate resistance, he was speedily overpowered and killed.
The boys picked up their prize, and went back to the cornfield. The
dogs were again sent in, and another 'coon was started, which, like
the first, "drew a bee-line" for the woods, with the dogs close
behind, and the boys, worked up to the highest pitch of excitement,
followed after as fast as their legs could carry them.
The 'coon had managed to get a good start of his pursuers, and he led
them a long chase through a low, swampy part of the woods, to the top
of a ridge, where the heavy timber grew; and when, at length, the boys
came up with the dogs, they found them standing at the foot of a large
maple fully ten feet in circumference.
"There!" exclaimed George, "the rascal has succeeded in reaching home.
Good-by, 'coon!"
"Yes," said Frank, leaning on the muzzle of his gun, and wiping the
perspiration from his forehead, "we're minus that 'coon, easily
enough, unless we wait until morning, and cut the tree down."
"Look here, boys," suddenly exclaimed George, who had been holding his
lantern above his head, and examining the sides of the tree; "did you
ever see a tree look like this before?"
As they moved around to the side where George stood, Archie called
out,
"There must be a big nest of 'coons in here; the tree is completely
skinned."
"Yes," said Frank, "we've accidentally stumbled upon a regular
'coon-tree. There must be a big family of them living here. The tree
looks as if some one had taken an ax and cleaned off the bark. But,"
he added, "finding where the 'coons have been and catching them are
two very different things."
"What do you mean?" inquired Archie, "You don't pretend to say that
the 'coons are not in the tree?"
"Certainly I do. I wouldn't be afraid to stake Brave against any
little cur in the village that the 'coon the dogs have just followed
here is the only one in the tree."
"What makes you think so?"
"Why, now is their feeding-time, and all the 'coons in this part of
the woods are in the cornfield. It wouldn't pay to cut down this big
tree for one 'coon; so let's go home and go to bed, and early
to-morrow morning we will come back here and bag our game."
The boys agreed to this, and they whistled to their dogs, and started
through the woods toward home.
The next morning, at the first peep of day, they again set out, and in
half an hour arrived at the 'coon-tree.
The boys knew that they had something to accomplish before they could
secure their game, but they were not the ones to shun hard work. They
had frequently cut down trees for a single 'coon, and they felt
confident that there were at least three of the animals in the tree,
and they were willing to work for them.
Archie and George were armed, as on the preceding night, with axes,
and, after pulling off their coats, they placed themselves on opposite
sides of the tree, and set manfully to work. Harry and Frank stood by,
ready to take their places when they grew tired, and the dogs seated
themselves on the ground close by, with their tongues hanging out of
the sides of their mouths, and now and then giving vent to an
impatient whine.
The boys worked for an hour and a half--taking their turns at
chopping--almost without speaking. At length the top of the tree began
to waver, and a loud crack announced that it was about to fall. Frank
and Archie were chopping, and the blows of their axes resounded with
redoubled force, and the other boys caught up the guns, and ran off in
the direction in which the tree was about to fall, followed by Sport
and Lightfoot, and Brave stationed himself close behind his master,
and barked and whined furiously.
A few sturdy blows finished the business, and the tree began to
sink--slowly at first, then with a rushing sound, and struck the earth
with a tremendous crash. In an instant boys and dogs were among the
branches. The 'coons--some of which were not injured in the least by
the fall--scattered in every direction; and one of them--a fine, large
fellow--bounded off through the bushes.
Frank discovered him just in time, and, fearing that he would lose
sight of him, he hurled his ax at him with all his strength; but it
went wide of the mark, and Frank started in hot pursuit. He was very
swift of foot, and there seemed to be no limit to his endurance, but,
in running through the bushes, the 'coon had decidedly the advantage.
Frank was not slow to discover this, and he began to think about
sending his ax after him again, when he heard a crashing in the bushes
behind him, and the grayhound passed him like the wind, and two or
three of his tremendous bounds brought him up with the 'coon.
Frank knew very well that Lightfoot had something of a job before him,
for it requires a very tough, active dog to "handle" a full-grown coon
when he is cornered. But Frank thought it was a capital time to judge
of the grayhound's "grit;" so he cheered him on, and hurried forward
to witness the fight.
As Lightfoot came up, he made a grab at the 'coon, which, quick as a
flash, eluded him, and, when the hound turned upon him, the 'coon gave
him one severe bite, when Lightfoot uttered a dismal howl, and,
holding his nose close to the ground, beat a hasty retreat; and the
Young Naturalist could not induce him to return.
During the fight, short as it was, Frank had gained considerably, and,
as the 'coon turned to make off, he again threw his ax at him, which,
true to its aim, struck the 'coon on the head, and stretched him
lifeless on the ground.
Meanwhile Archie was endeavoring to secure his 'coon, under rather
more difficult circumstances.
As soon as the tree had begun to fall, Archie dropped his ax, seized a
short club that lay near him on the ground, and, discovering a 'coon
making for the bushes, he started after him at full speed.
The animal appeared to run heavily, as if he had been partially
stunned by the falling of the tree; and Archie had followed him but a
short distance, when he had the satisfaction of discovering that he
was gaining at every step. The 'coon seemed to understand that his
chance of escape was rather small; and, after various windings and
twistings, commenced ascending a small tree. Archie ran forward with
all possible speed, with the hope of reaching the tree before he could
climb out of the way. The 'coon moved but slowly, and Archie felt sure
of his prize; and, as soon as he came within the proper distance, he
struck a powerful blow at the animal, but he was just out of reach,
and the club was shivered to pieces against the tree.
Archie, however, did not hesitate a moment, but, placing his hands on
the tree, commenced climbing after him. The 'coon ascended to the
topmost branch, and looked down on his enemy, growling and snapping
his teeth, as if to warn him that he intended to make a desperate
resistance; but Archie was not in the least intimidated, and, reaching
the branch on which the 'coon was seated, he shook it violently, and
the animal tumbled to the ground, and, as soon as he could regain his
feet, started off again.
Archie descended as quickly as possible, and started in pursuit,
hoping to overtake his game before he could again take to a tree.
There was an abundance of large trees growing in the woods, and, if
the 'coon should take it into his head to ascend one of them, Archie
might whistle for his game.
The young hunter well understood this, and he "put in his best licks,"
as he afterward remarked, and, in a few moments, had almost overtaken
him, and began to look around for something to strike him with, when
the 'coon, as if guessing his intention, suddenly turned and ran up a
large tree that stood close by, and, crawling out on a limb, about
fifty feet from the ground, he settled himself down, as if he had
concluded to take matters more easily.
This was discouraging; and Archie seated himself on a log under the
tree, and for a moment thought seriously of giving up the chase. But
the 'coon was a fine, fat fellow, and his skin would make a valuable
addition to the museum, and, besides, he had followed him so far
already, that he was reluctant to go back to his companions without
him, and, on second thought, he concluded that he would _not_ go back
unless he could carry the 'coon with him.
He first thought of ascending the tree, but, after taking a hasty
survey of it, he abandoned the idea. The tree was partially decayed;
in fact, there was but one sound limb in it that Archie could
discover, and that was about four feet above the one on which the
'coon was seated, and stretched out directly over it.
Archie did not like the idea of trusting himself among the unsound
limbs, and, besides, the cunning animal had crawled out to the extreme
end of one of the decayed branches, which bent beneath his weight,
and the young hunter, of course, could not follow him.
There was only one way that Archie could discover to bring him down;
and he straightway opened upon the devoted 'coon a tremendous shower
of clubs and sticks. He was a very accurate thrower, and, for some
time, had hopes of being able to bring down the 'coon; but, although
the missiles frequently hit him, Archie could not throw them with
sufficient force; and he again turned his attention to the tree.
Throwing his arms around it, he commenced working his way up. The bark
was very smooth and slippery, and the lowest limb was the one on which
the 'coon had taken refuge; but he kept steadily at work, and his
progress, though slow, was sure, and he reached the limb; and, bearing
as little of his weight as possible upon it, he drew himself up to the
sound limb above.
After testing it thoroughly, to make sure that it would sustain his
weight, he commenced walking out on the branch on which the 'coon was
seated, keeping a firm hold of the limb above his head. He had made
scarcely a dozen steps, when there was a loud crack, and the branch on
which he was standing broke into fragments, and fell to the ground
with a crash, carrying the 'coon with it, and leaving Archie hanging
in the air, fifty feet from the ground.
Not in the least terrified at his dangerous situation, the young
hunter coolly swung himself up on the limb, and, crawling carefully
back to the tree, slid rapidly down the trunk, and, as if nothing had
happened, ran to the place where the 'coon had fallen, hoping that at
last he was secured.
But he was again disappointed. Nothing was to be seen of the animal,
and only a few drops of blood on the leaves indicated the direction in
which he had gone. This quickly caught Archie's eye, and he began to
follow up the trail, which led toward a creek that flowed close by.
But when he arrived upon its bank he was again at fault--the trail was
lost; and, while he was running up and down the bank, searching for
it, he happened to cast his eye toward the opposite side of the creek,
and there was his 'coon, slowly ascending a tall stump that stood at
the water's edge.
Archie could not refrain from giving a shout of joy, for he was
confident that the chase would soon be over; and he hurried,
impatiently, up and down the bank to find some place to cross, and
finally discovered a small tree lying in the water, whose top reached
almost to the opposite bank. The 'coon had undoubtedly crossed on this
bridge; and Archie sprang upon it. It shook considerably, but he kept
on, and had almost reached the opposite side, when the tree broke, and
he disappeared in the cold water. He rose immediately, and, shaking
the water from his face, struck out for the shore, puffing and blowing
like a porpoise. A few lusty strokes brought him to the bank, and, as
he picked up a handful of stones, he said to himself,
"I guess I'm all right now. If I could only have found some stones
when I treed that 'coon in the woods, he would not have been up there
now, and I should not have got this wet hide. But we'll soon settle
accounts now."
As we have said, the 'coon had taken refuge in a high stump. The
branches had all fallen off, with the exception of one short one,
about two feet from the top; and the 'coon, after trying in vain to
squeeze 'himself into a small hole, about half-way up the stump,
settled down on this limb, and appeared to be awaiting his fate.
Archie took a favorable position, and, selecting a stone, hurled it
with all his force at the 'coon. It whizzed harmlessly by, close to
his head; but the next brought him to the ground, dead.
"There!" exclaimed the young hunter, as he shouldered his prize, and
walked up the creek to find a crossing-place, "I've worked pretty hard
for 'coons, first and last, but this beats all the hunts I ever
engaged in."
He at length reached a place where the water was about knee-deep,
waded across the creek, and started through the woods to find his
companions. When he arrived at the place where they had felled the
tree, he saw Harry sitting on a log, with Frank's gun in his hand, but
nothing was to be seen of the other boys.
As soon as the latter discovered Archie, he burst into a loud laugh.
"No doubt you think it a good joke," said Archie, as he came up, "but
I don't. It isn't a funny thing to tramp through the woods, on a cold
day like this, with your clothes wringing wet. But I've got the
'coon."
"You must have had a tough time catching him," said Harry. "But let us
go down to the camp."
As they walked along, Archie related his adventures; and, when he told
about being "dumped in the creek," Harry laughed louder than ever.
A few moments' walk brought them to what Harry had called the "camp."
It was in a little grove of evergreens, on the banks of a clear,
dancing trout-brook. A place about forty feet square had been cleared
of the trees and bushes and in it stood a small, neatly-built,
log-cabin, which Frank and some of his companions had erected the
winter previous.
Near the middle of the cabin a hole about four feet square, had been
dug, and in this a fire was burning brightly; and a hole in the roof,
directly over it, did duty both as chimney and window.
On the floor, near the fire--or, rather, there _was_ no floor, the
ground serving for that purpose--stood some tin dishes, which one of
the boys had just brought to light from a corner of the cabin, four
plates, as many knives and forks, two large platters, a coffee-pot,
four quart-cups, and a pan containing some trout, which George had
caught in the brook, all cleaned and ready for the spit, and there was
also a large plate of bread and butter.
Frank, who always acted as cook on these expeditions, and knew how to
get up a dinner that would tempt an epicure, was kneeling before the
fire, engaged in skinning some squirrels which Brave had treed for
him.
George was in front of the cabin, chopping wood; and close by the door
lay five 'coons--the fruits of the morning's hunt; and near them lay
the dogs, fast asleep.
Such was the scene presented when Harry and Archie burst in upon the
camp. The latter was greeted with a loud laugh.
"Well, boys," said he, as he threw his 'coon down with the others,
"you may laugh, but I wish some of you were obliged to go through what
I did. I was bound to have the 'coon, if I had to follow him clear to
Moosehead Lake."
"That's the way to talk," said Frank. "Now, throw yourself down by the
fire, and I'll soon be ready to give you something to eat. A cup or
two of hot coffee will set you all right again."
Archie's ducking and his long walk in his wet clothes had chilled him
completely through, and he was very willing to comply with his
cousin's suggestion, and he drew up as close as possible to the fire.
When Frank had finished skinning the squirrels, he stuck them up
before the fire, on spits, to roast. The trout he served in the same
manner; and, raking out a few live coals from the fire, he placed the
coffee-pot upon them, when the work of getting breakfast began in
earnest.
In the course of half an hour the impatience of the hungry hunters
(whose appetites had been sharpened by the savory smell of the cooking
viands) was relieved by Frank's welcome invitation--
"Now, boys, you may help yourselves."
And they _did_ help themselves most bountifully.
Archie kept his place by the fire, and a plate filled with bread and
butter, and roasted squirrel and trout, and a cup of coffee, were
passed over to him; and, supporting himself on one elbow, he did them
ample justice.
The dogs were well supplied with what remained of the breakfast; and,
after washing the dishes in the clear water of the brook, and placing
them carefully away for future use, the boys seated themselves around
the fire, and Harry exclaimed, as he settled himself back into a
comfortable position,
"Give us a story, Frank."
"Well," answered Frank, after thinking a few moments, "I remember one
that, I think, will interest you. You will probably remember, Archie,
that, during the last visit we made at Uncle Joe's, we met his brother
Dick, who has passed forty years of his life among the Rocky
Mountains. You will remember, also, that he and I went mink-trapping,
and camped out all night, and during the evening he related to me some
of his adventures, and wound up with the following story of his
'chum,' Bill Lawson. I will try to give it, as nearly as possible, in
his own words.