OUR” WOODCHWCIE 
STOVER. 
After 3 years of diplomacy I at last suc- 
ceeded in getting my wite to say she 
might like hunting a little bit. So when 
it was arranged that she should spend the 
summer and part of the fall in Sullivan 
County, great was my exultation, and | 
immediately began a series of mental hunts, 
that were to be put into actual execution in 
November. Alas, * the best laid schemes 
of woodchucks and men,” etc. Business 
took an unexpected turn, my time became 
limited, and 6 weeks earlier than I had 
anticipated I started for the country, with 
only one week to arouse the madam’s en- 
thusiasm to such a pitch that she would 
share the sport with me. 
The first day I shot one woodchuck, and 
she a blue jay, which she insisted was 
a hawk until she shot it. The second day 
brought forth only the feeling, that the 
advertisements say medicine will cure. 
The third day we discovered a woodchuck 
hole, and I dilated on the animal's charac- 
teristics until she doubted whether she 
would prefer a small bear or a large wood- 
chuck. The fourth day we started out to 
look for the woodchuck. Arriving at the 
top of a small knoll, we carefully scanned 
the fields, when my wife excitedly grasped 
my arm, exclaiming, 
see vhinn! Sool! 
that stone wall.” 
I looked and there he was. Glancing 
around I saw a neighboring farmer’s daugh- 
ter and a city boarder coming down the 
road. Telling my wife not to let them get 
in sight, | made a detour and at last found 
myself back of the woodchuck. Then I 
slowly crawled down the field behind the 
wall, a rather laborious operation with my 
gun, while my wife, after warning her com- 
panions, secreted herself behind a _ big 
bowlder and tried to control her excitement. 
After crawling about 75 yards, I saw indis- 
tinctly what I supposed was the woodchuck 
in the same field with me, and made a re- 
treat worthy of a Cheyenne Indian to my 
starting point, almost plowing a furrow 
to keep out of sight). Then i voudde! 
had been right at first. Meantime my wife 
wondered what had become of me. Again 
I started and crawled to the spot where I 
had located the game. Then I raised my 
head cautiously and peered over the wall. 
The woodchuck was not in sight, and my 
wife and her 2 companions immediately be- 
gan to gesticulate so violently, that for an 
instant I did not know whether they meant 
danger to me or to the animal. I strained 
my eyes until they ached, but could see no 
woodchuck. Deciding to rise higher to 
have a better view, I slowly disappeared 
Over there near 
12 
from view, removed my hat, and again 
rose. This seemed to have a magical etfect 
on my wife, who immediately climbed on 
the bowlder and began a series of Delsartian 
movements, which, reproduced by the Bio- 
graph, would be the hit of the season. Then 
the trio shouted and gesticulated like ‘mad, 
but all I could hear was, 
*“ Right in front of you. Right in front 
of you.” 
Shades of Belshazzar, what did they 
mean? The summer boarder awoke and 
his hoarse though faint 
* Right in front of you,” joined with my 
wife’s in a duet that was slowly putting me 
1M GUCCI SEREeE. 
Right im front of youn 
front of you.” 
My eyes ached from trying to see the 
animal “right in front of me.” I grasped 
my gun more firmly, perhaps I might have 
to use it as a club when I did see him. Ne 
use. I could not see him. Disappearing, 
once more, I crawled about 15 feet farther 
down and again looked cautiously over the 
wall. But I could not see him, and becom- 
ing desperate I rose a little higher and 
placed my hand to my ear to signify that I 
could not hear what they said. The panto- 
mime of the trio now became simply inde- 
scribable. I was afraid my wife in her ex- 
citement would either fall from the bowlder 
or be knocked off by her frenzied com- 
panions. I have since learned that their 
remarks were somewhat on this order: 
“The woodchuck don’t know him with 
those glasses on.” ‘* Wonders what he has 
the gun for,’ etc. I was pretty warm, but 
that did not help me see anything, and I 
now commenced to glare around me, as I 
every now and then heard * Right in front 
of you;” and then what was that other 
word? 5 
“Wall, wall.” Al Tshad atl hetawas 
right in front of me just over the wall, and 
so near to it that I could not see him from 
this side. So I decided to jump the wall 
and shoot him on the fly. I glanced down 
the wall to find a good place to get over. 
As I turned my head, a big gray object, 
24 yards down the wall, turned and our 
eyes met. For the first 1-5 of a second he 
led me by a length, as he hastily started to 
slide off the wall. That, however, was his 
undoing. If, like ** Crocket’s coon,’ he had 
offered to come down, he very likely would 
now be alive; but “ my thoughts” of what: 
Mollie would say if I missed him, stimulated 
me and I fired. I had him. I held him up 
to view. Mollie scrambled off the bowlder 
as quick as the woodchuck could have done, 
ran down to the bars, clambered through 
“ Right in 
