BUD MOOSE BOGGED. 
H, B, BROWN. 
When years of maturity have been 
reached, it is, at times, but natural to hark 
back to the bygone days and recall some of 
the events which have made up the sum to- 
tal of life. Victories we have won serve to 
cheer by their recalling; at this distance 
the absurd situations in which on occasion 
we have been placed become amusing; the 
regrets which but naturally arise from neg- 
lected opportunities have been so tempered 
by time that their keen edge is lost, and 
personal reminiscence proves a most satis- 
factory employment. with which to pass 
cheerfully an otherwise lonely hour. 
Thus, here am I, Bud Moose, full of 
vigor and strength, keen of eye and ear, 
wonderfully- acute of scent, swift and 
tireless of foot, lying like some unweaned 
weakling, safely, hidden in a dense thicket, 
and passing the early afternoon with thought 
of the days when I was young. 
I first saw the light of day in Kibby town- 
ship, up in Franklin county, Maine, and al- 
though at times I have wandered far from 
my native place, never have I found such 
luxuriant feeding grounds, such tempting 
pools nor delightful haunts as those of 
Kibby, and it has always been with the 
greatest pleasure that I have returned to the 
old scenes. Of my babyhood my remem- 
brances are not distinct. I have a hazy 
recollection of being alone what seemed to 
me much of the time, and of lying in a 
shady place where nothing came to molest 
me but a few flies and mosquitoes. On 
those occasions I suffered more -or less 
from the cold and can clearly recall 
how nice it was when my mother was with 
me to snuggle up to her, and get the grate- 
ful warmth from her huge body. She spent 
much time when we were together in dress- 
ing my baby coat of hair with her strong, 
rough tongue. Even to this day I remem- 
ber with pleasure how warm and comfort- 
able it made my skin feel, and how it 
imparted new vitality and energy to my 
whole body. 
It was fearfully lonesome when she was 
away, and the various noises which reached 
my ears, even then acute to the slightest 
sound, caused me to tremble with apprehen- 
sion, though I knew not what made the 
sounds nor that they portended any harm 
te me. By nature I was suspicious and 
wary, and the passing years have added to 
this trait rather than detracted from it. 
Once some heavy animal came so near 
my hiding place that I could plainly 
ws soft footsteps, the gentle swish 
of bushes and low hanging branches as 
it passed along, and an occasional sniff 
as it inhaled the air for a clew to what- 
ever it was hunting. I was in a panic 
with fear, but fortunately kept motionless, 
and made no outcry, much as I wanted to 
summon my mother, were she in the vicin- 
ity. The animal passed without discover- 
ing me, but I did not move a muscle until 
Mother came to me, which she did soon af- 
terward, although the wait seemed almost 
interminable. 
My opinion is that all moose youngsters 
have considerable trouble in getting con- 
trol of their legs. Such, at least, was my 
experience. They were together too long 
to be in proper proportion to my short, light 
body, and when I stood I felt at a great 
height above the ground. My joints, though 
bulging and overgrown, were weak and had 
an uncontrollable tendency to wabble just 
when I most desired them to be steady, 
When trying to stand still it was necessary 
to keep my feet well apart, and when I 
moved, my progress was a succession of 
staggerings and totterings. By continued 
practice, however, I made great improve- 
ment and when I began to accompany 
Mother to the ponds and bogs where we 
went to escape the flies and in search of 
the succulent leaves and roots of the water 
lily, I discovered that were my legs any 
shorter it would have barred me entirely 
from this delightful recreation. As it was, 
I was cautioned not to venture too far. 
By watching how the others conducted 
themselves and by guiding myself accord- 
ingly I progressed well and was exceed- 
ingly proud of mv advancement. 
Before I was able to accompany her on 
these daily, delightful rambles, Mother had 
beguiled many an hour with extended de- 
scriptions of my father, of his strength and 
prowess and of his skill and adroitness. 
All this I was easily able to believe when 
I first saw him towering high at my 
mother’s side, and _ subsequent events 
proved that she in no degree had overes- 
timated his courage and daring when oc- 
casion arose to put them to the test. 
One story she related of him always held 
me spellbound with interest, and I mar- 
veled much that one naturally so shy and 
retreating could show the bravery he then 
displayed. It appeared that some years be- 
fore I was born, Father had made a sum- 
mer trip down into the Spencer stream 
country and his -adventure took place on 
the bank of that river one moonless, cloudy 
night, when not a breath of air was stir- 
ring. He had been at Fish pond wallowing 
