MORE CAMP-FIRE YARNS 225 



named her the Duchess. She was not as big as the 

 Duke of Wellington." 



" Now, Mack," said Charlie Smith, as Mr. Phillips 

 finished his narrative, " tell 'em about the Duke o' Well- 

 ington and old Blucher." 



DEATH OF THE DUKE OF WELLINGTON 



" Well," said Mack, slowly and bashfully, " we shore 

 hunted that old Duke for a long time, and we didn't get 

 him at all as we expected. As Mr. Phillips said, we 

 were powerful anxious to bust old Duke, for he was the 

 biggest b'ar we ever got track of up here." 



" Did you bait him with an old horse, as first 

 planned? " 



" Yes ; and it never took a trick. The b'ars never 

 went nigh it. Could they smell it? Well, I should say 

 they could. We could smell it a mile; and finally we 

 had to move camp on account of it. Somehow a b'ar 

 never means to do what you want him to do." 



A long pause. 



" And how did you finally outwit the Duke? " 



" Oh, just by huntin' for him, climbin' and huntin', 

 early and late. Late one afternoon Mr. Phillips and 

 myself happened to spy a couple of old-timers up on a 

 mountain-side, eatin' their supper of roots, in a small, 

 grassy spot in a bushy slide. They were across Wilson 

 Creek from us, and half a mile up a steep mountain. I 

 told John we'd shore have to pull our freight quick to 

 get them b'ars before dark, and we went right at it." 



