SOME EARLY EXPERIENCES. 47 



he could get the bear without much trouble as he believed the bear 

 would still be in the laurels close to the road. 



Mr. Nelson told Mr. Holman to get his groceries while he 

 would come to see if I would go along to look after the team while 

 Mr. Nelson and Mr. Holman went into the laurels after the bear. 

 Of course, I was ready for anything that had hunt in it. The 

 sleighing was good and Mr. Nelson was soon ready, taking his 

 dogs into the sleigh so that they would not break off on the track 

 of a deer or some other animal. 



When we came to where Mr. Holman saw the bear or cub, 

 Mr. Nelson, or Uncle as we always called him, said to Mr. Hol- 

 man before he got out of the sleigh : 



"Perry, that is no cub's track; that is a big cat and I think 

 we will find him in the laurel patch." 



Uncle told me to stay with the team and that they would not 

 be gone long; that if the track led off he would come back to the 

 sleigh and I could go back with the team and he would go. to 

 Mr. Holman's camp and stay over night and come home the next 

 day. 



The dogs were anxious to take the trail, but Uncle held them 

 in to the laurels. They had not been gone more than ten minutes 

 when the dogs began to give tongue like mischief. I could see 

 that the dogs were coming towards the road and in about a minute 

 saw the biggest cat that I had ever seen at that time, shinning 

 lip a large tree that was not further than fifty yards from the 

 sleigh. The dogs were soon at the tree barking their best and in 

 a few minutes I heard the crack of a gun and the big cat seemed 

 to fly out into the 'air. I could hear the cat go threshing down 

 through the limbs on the trees and the dogs doubled their howl- 

 ing and I could hear the men laugh. I called to the men to see 

 if they got the cat. Uncle told me to watch the horses and they 

 would soon be there, and they were soon in sight dragging a 

 large panther instead of either a cub or cat. Uncle drove down 

 to where Holman's path left the road to go down to his camp and 

 we then drove back home. Uncle was greatly pleased over Perry's 

 cat hunt as Mr. Nelson called it. 



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