A WHITE RABBIT HUNT. 



433 



as much surprised as I had been. I thought 

 of my gun, but too late. With a bound the 

 cat had disappeared in the laurels. I start- 

 ed in hot pursuit. Whether I had an idea 

 I could catch him I can't remember, but I 

 had a wild desire to follow. I took the trail 

 he left, through the thick bushes, where it 

 was impossible to see a foot ahead, across 

 brooks and ice-covered mud holes, tearing 

 my clothes as I went. The ice over one of 

 the mud holes I passed was particularly 

 thin, probably because of a spring directly 

 beneath. When I reached it I went through, 

 into mud and water up to my neck. Grasp- 

 ing a branch overhead, I pulled myself out 

 with great difficulty and made my way to 

 shore, a most forlorn object. 



The dogs soon appeared on the trail and 

 vanished again in the bushes. A little later 

 I could tell by their sharp, quick barks that 

 they had the game treed a short distance 

 farther. It mattered little to me just at 

 that time. The day was extremely cold, 

 and I was shivering from the effects of my 

 unexpected plunge. Making a big bonfire, 

 thanks to a Recreation matchsafe, I re- 



moved my outer clothes and hung them 

 around to dry ; and climbing on a huge 

 stump as near the fire as I dared I tried to 

 get a little warmth. In this position my 

 friends found me, an hour later, and en- 

 joyed a hearty laugh at my expense. 



I replaced my clothing, which was nearly 

 dry by that time, and we hastened to the 

 spot where the dogs were still yelping. We 

 found them making frantic endeavors to 

 reach the wildcat, which was perched in a 

 crotch half way up a dead pine tree, glar- 

 ing down and growling defiantly. A shot 

 from my gun brought him scrambling down 

 the tree, when he was pounced on by the 

 dogs and a lively fight ensued. The animal 

 was mortally wounded, but still full of fight 

 and would have been more than a match 

 for the dogs. To save them from being seri- 

 ously injured I put a charge of buckshot 

 into the beast's head and ended the struggle. 

 It was long after nightfall when we reached 

 home. I was thankful to get into a warm 

 room and change my clothes, which were 

 still damp, but we voted our day a great 

 success. 





WHERE'S MY CHRISTMAS GOOSE? 



