572 



RECREATION 



me utterly. I stepped from behind the screen 

 of stunted evergreens and taking off my hat 

 gave a cry of defiance. 



I heard an inarticulate gasp somewhere be- 

 hind me and came to myself in a panic as the 

 buffalo lowered his head and charged madly. 

 And then the flight for the boat became a 

 rout. Mr. Wood caught up the younger child 

 in his arms and half-carrying the other 

 plunged headlong into the undergrowth. 

 Mrs. Wood did not waste time in fruitless re- 

 proaches. She was ahead. I heard the crash 

 of broken boughs and the rattle of falling 

 shale. Even then, terrified as I was (and I 

 was never so frightened in all my life) I had 

 the grace to remember the camera, and tuck- 

 ing it under my arm fled for my life. Four- 

 teen times between that bare knoll and the 

 boat I fell with that unfortunate machine, 

 and I was usually uppermost. I could hear 

 the vicious brute close behind me and fancied 

 more than once that I felt his hot breath 

 upon the back of my neck. I thought once 

 that I had as well allow him to overtake me 

 as the only reparation I could make for my 

 idiocy. Again I thought what a lovely hang- 

 ing basket the camera would make with a 

 few augur holes in the bottom and a clump 

 of maiden hair fern exactly in the centre. I 

 thought of numberless other things, but my 

 past life did not unroll itself like a panorama 

 as I have heard other people say theirs did 

 in moments of extremity. Possibly I was too 

 much occupied. I did think once of the 

 widow with the red hair and the cast in her 

 eye whom I had already fixed upon as my 

 successor in case of my early demise, and 

 hoped that the children would lead her a life 

 and wished vainly that I had destroyed my 

 point lace handkerchief before starting out. 

 And then all of a sudden I became aware 

 that the noise behind me had died away — 

 that the others were nowhere in sight — and 

 that a. few feet away the boat rocked upon 

 the shimmering surface of the lake. 



So I smoothed my ruffled dignity as best I 

 could and sat down to wait for the others 

 whom I now heard near by. An instant later 

 they appeared, Mrs. Wood well in the lead. 

 Mr. Wood was pale and agitated and his 

 voice shook a little. 



"You — ! ! !" he said, and then speech failed 

 him. 



"I have been waiting here hours," I said 

 coldly. "I don't want to criticise anybody, I 

 am sure, but really under the circumstances 

 — a little presence of mind is indispensable at 

 times. I was so glad that I was able to divert 

 that brute's mind in the way I did. A very 

 little more and you would have been — gone!" 



Behind us there came again a hoarse bel- 

 low of rage. I shivered a little as I stepped 

 into the boat. 



"Another time," I said icily, "I do hope 



that things will be managed better. I know I 

 have twisted my ankle again. But I saved 

 your camera even if it is worthless. You 

 ought to thank me for it, for I dare say that 

 you would never have thought of it again." 



He gasped, but was wise enough, whatever 

 he thought, to keep his mouth tightly closed. 

 And looks never kill anybody. We pushed 

 out into the lake in silence and I smiled com- 

 placently. It is half the battle on occasions 

 like this when a woman is wise enough to 

 take the initiative. There is such a thing as 

 making a grand coup and capturing the ene- 

 my's arms and ammunition when, of course, 

 you are in a position to dictate terms. 



Looking back when we were well out in 

 the lake I saw our late adversary pawing the 

 earth and heard again his bellow of defiance. 

 He was at home and I was not. His foot was 

 on his "native heath and his name Mc- 

 Gregor." I do not care to visit him again. 



THE CONTEST POSTPONED 



The Pike's Peak's hill-climbing contest has 

 been abandoned, or at least postponed until 

 next year on account of the fact that the pro- 

 moters did not see their way clear to putting 

 up $5,000 to prepare the road up the mount- 

 ain. The proposal was almost too audacious 

 ever to succeed, and the writer was always 

 dubious as to the outcome. 



MANY WOLVES 



Editor Recreation : 



I have just read my letter to you, in Octo- 

 ber Recreation, on wolf hunting with Mr. 

 Robert Beal's hounds. Mr. Beal was at my 

 ranch last week, October 4th ; he says that 

 since January 1, 1905, to October 1, they had 

 killed and got the scalps of sixty-one (61) 

 wolves. Some more were killed and not 

 found He hopes to run the number up to 

 100 before January, 1906. 



We have the finest climate and country for 

 wolf and wildcat hunting, from now to next 

 May, to be found in all America. I am sorry 

 to say the game is abundant within ten miles 

 of Kerrville. 



/ will answer inquiries only through the 

 columns of Recreation. 



Edward K. Carr, Kerrville, Tex. 



ONE OF OUR BOYS 



Editor Recreation: 



I have been somewhat of a hunter in my 

 younger days. Have shot deer in the states 

 of New York, Pennsylvania and Michigan. I 

 am now in my ninetieth year and enjoy read- 

 ing sporting papers. 



J. C. Percival, 

 Palo, Ionia Co., Mich. 



