190 MEN I HAVE FISHED WITH. 



ville, asks me a whole mess of questions/ That's the 

 reason he went off so suddenly. Frank, he took one 

 look at you, and saw your mouth wide open, ready to ask 

 him a question, and he sneaked." 



Frank looked at me and said: "Henry knows a heap 

 o' things, but somehow nobody seems to realize it but 

 himself. He knows just why that mink hurried off as 

 well as I do, but he won't tell the truth. Now, I'll tell 

 you why he skipped out. The mink was so interested 

 in his fight that he did not notice us until Henry called 

 out. Then he looked over here and said to himself: 

 'There's that mean Henry Neaville, and he'll take my 

 musquash if I don't get out. That fellow is mean 

 enough to take acorns from a blind sow/ And so that 

 mink, which would have been delighted to have eaten his 

 dinner in decent company, sneaked off with it into the 

 woods for fear he would be robbed." 



I had taken my rifle along because the boys thought 

 it would be well to kill a pig on our return, and, as I 

 had "bought into a claim o' hogs," we went ashore, and 

 after some work among these very wild animals I got a 

 shot and dropped a "likely shoat" that would dress about 

 sixty pounds. After skinning the pig we laid it across 

 the bow, and rowed around into Swift Sloo about sun- 

 down. The strong current was taking us along toward 

 home, when Frank saw a wounded pelican near the 

 shore, and grabbed a tree top to hold the boat. Quicker 

 than it can be told the sudden check in the swift current 

 filled the boat, and it left us in the water. Henry was 

 in the stern steering with one oar, and fortunately 

 grabbed the painter and held on. Frank and I got out 

 from the tree top and struck for the nearest shore. A 

 bend hid the boat and Henry from sight by the time we 

 landed, and then Frank began to cry: "Henry is 



