418 BUFFALO LAND. 



He '11 figlit Injuns, or wild cats, and take any amount 

 of blows on his head, if they '11 only avoid his mis- 

 fortin.' " 



We remarked that he seemed to have been shot 

 in the side, some time. 



"Yes, got a whole charge of quail shot slapped 

 inter him. You see the way it was, wer this. Most 

 every section has one or two scraggy, rattle-brained 

 fellers, allers loungin' round, takin' free drinks, and 

 starvin' ther families. Whar we come from was 

 one of this sort, never of no account to no one. We 

 had a temperance meetin' one day, and this Hib, as 

 they called him, wer opposed to it. He was afraid 

 they 'd shut up Old Bung's whisky shed. Well, we 

 was all a gathered, listenin' to the serpent and its 

 poisoned sting, and that sort o' thing, and had about 

 concluded to go for Old Bung, when that contrairy, 

 ornery Hib broke us up. He goes and gets a fresh 

 coon skin, and sneaks all round the school-house, 

 draggin' it arter him, and makin' a sort o' scented 

 circle. Then he goes and gets Shed Tail there, 

 who was powerful on coons, and sets him on that 

 thar track. Shed give just one sniff, and opened 

 right out. The way he shied round that school- 

 house w^er a sin. In five minutes, all the dogs of the 

 village were at his heels, and goin' round that circle 

 like the spokes in a wheel. 



"It was just a round ring of the loudest yelling 

 you ever heard. Every dog thought the one just 

 ahead of him had the coon. All the meetin' folks 

 come a pourin' out, with sticks and chairs, and what 

 with beatin' and coaxin' they got all off the trail but 



