S90 



FOREST AND STREAM. 



[May 36. 1887 



Achlress all communicatiom to the Forest and Stream Pub. Co. 



HALCYON DAYS.-VI. 



AFTER a week of exceedingly cold weather, during 

 which time the ground had been whitened by a 

 light covering of dry snow, which in turn was drifted by 

 the keen blasts of wind from the more exposed places 

 into every nook and corner that would hold it, leaving 

 exposed bare knobs and patches of yellow earth and ice, 

 the sun, which had not shown its face through the dense 

 gray veil of cloudB that covered it, came out once more 

 in short intervals of brightness, only to hide itself again, 

 as if alarmed at its boldness in intruding upon a scene so 

 dreary; but gaining courage after several more efforts, 

 came out again in longer periods, until its influence began 

 to be felt more strongly, and Boreas finally gave way, 

 conquered, as it were, by its veiy gentleness. But in 

 spite of the sunshine, which seemed powerless to do else 

 than to give the scene a more cheery aspect, the atmo- 

 sphere remained cold and raw, and those who had been 

 allured from their homes by the pervading air of warmth 

 and cheeriness, quickly found themselves disappointed, 

 and returned to seek the more genial comforts of the fire- 

 side. Some, however, failing to realize their anticipa- 

 tions of a pleasant day, as if prompted by a mutual desire 

 for companionship, had. found their way into the little 

 store, and were gathered in comfortable positions on the 

 benches or stood watching the progress of a game of 

 checkers between two players, one of whom, to judge 

 from the frequent facial contortions of Waxy Latin, sit- 

 ting on the edge of the counter above them, was making 

 some very bad plays. There being an established rule 

 that no outside influence, either by word or gesture, 

 should be permitted during the progress of a game, Waxy, 

 whose sympathies seemed to be with the poorer player, 

 moved restlessly on his seat, unable to further conceal his 

 impatience, and when an unlucky move on the part of 

 his favorite gave his opponent a chance to turn the tide 

 in his own favor so effectually as to win it, his feelings, 

 no longer controlled, gave vent to a disgusted "A-w-a-w, 

 gol dura it! why didn't ye move the other way?" 



While the players were arranging their men for the 

 commencement of another game, an individual whose 

 presence had hitherto been unnoticed, owing to his 

 position in an obscure corner, attracted by Waxy's ex- 

 clamation and the. chuckling laughter of the bystanders 

 over the result, arose and shambled up to the outside of 

 the circle, where he stood listlessly watching the board 

 and the players. He seemed to take little or no interest 

 in the game, his purpose evidently being to feel that he 

 was in company and surrounded by spirits more genial 

 than his own. His features bore many hard hues of dissi- 

 pation, which, mingled with a presumptuous expression 

 of self-importance, made him noticeable as a character in 

 the village. Among his associates at the tavern he 

 affected a pomposity of manner and speech, probably an 

 inheritance of bye-gone days of prosperity and affluence, 

 that ill became his general appearance; and being their 

 superior in point of conversational and argumental ability, 

 his tongue once oiled with liberal potations of "bug juice" 

 ran in such unceasing strains of vulgar eloquence as to 

 call forth the plaudits of his listeners and frequent de- 

 • mands upon the bar, though seldom at his expense. He 

 was never known to get drunk, as the term was under- 

 stood, that seemed impossible, for he had acquired a 

 reputation of swallowing more whisky and standing up 

 under it, or around it, than any other man in the vicinity. 

 Here among his fellows he was considered a jovial, jolly 

 good fellow, and almost a necessity to the life of a crowd 

 who were willing to pay for his drinks for the sake of 

 hearing him talk. But alas, for those who knew him 

 best, at home his disposition was anything but what it 

 appeared away from it. Neither did he presume too 

 much upon the good nature of the company he was now 

 in, for it was different from his choice, and he was satis- 

 fied to let his special talents remain dormant as far as 

 possible rather than risk the chances of an unequal wordy 

 collision with those whose argument he knew were better 

 fortified than his own. At the tavern his voice would 

 have been most conspicuous. There he felt that he stood 

 upon equal ground and nothing would have pleased him 

 more than to enter into a discussion on any subject, sub- 

 stituting a presumptuous familiarity for any deficiency 

 in knowledge. Such was the appearance and character 

 of Bill Carter, Chip's stepfather, who, for reasons best 

 known to himself, had strayed away from his usual haunt 

 and drifted into better company. 



As the new game proceeded and the bystanders dis- 

 covered that the principals were only ordinary players, 

 their interest began to abate, and one after another casu- 

 ally withdrew from the circle to indulge in neighborly 

 chat. Even Waxy, who had been called from his perch 

 to serve a customer, did not see fit to return to it and re- 

 mained on the opposite side of the room, where he sat in- 

 dustriously chewing his cud of spruce gum, stopping long 

 enough, as Bill Carter shuffled over his way to inquire, 

 "Wal, Bill, haow ye makin' aout these days? Duin any- 

 thing naow?" And receiving the rasping, dignified reply 

 he had expected. 



"N-o, I have found nothing yet that suits me. Times 

 are very dull, very dull indeed," 



"Why, hev ye seen Mart Dewpew? he's bin lookin' 

 'raound fer men the last tew weeks, he's got a big con- 

 tract with the railroad company to furnish 'em with I 

 d'no haow many cords o ! wood 'n' he's 'f raid he can't fill 

 it. Ye c'n git an all winter's job' with him, 'n' good wages, 

 tu." 



"Yes, Mi\ Depew wanted to engage me. His terms are 

 pret-ty fair, that is, as far as wages go, but he don't 

 want to pay until spring, except in store orders. I prefer 

 cash; cash, you know v Mr. — ah — Latin, is a very neces- 

 sary consideration in these hard times, especially where 

 one has a family to support," 



' 'Wal, ye see, Mart can't pay cash till he gits it, 'n' he 

 won't till he gits threw with his contract, I sh'ld think 

 it 'Id be better 'n nothin'. Ye haint done nothin' all sum- 

 mer, hev ye?" 



"W-ell — ah, nothing to speak of. I have been a great 

 sufferer with dyspepsia and am consequently not able to 

 do much manual labor. I would be very glad to help 

 Mr. Depew out if he had some — ah lighter employment 

 than chopping wood. I would not object to a clerical 



position, now, but of course Mr. Depew has nothing in 

 that line. I think, however, that I will see if he can't 

 provide something for Chip; you have no idea what 

 trouble that boy has caused me, Mr. Latin." 



"Wal, I don't thing he's causin' ye much trouble naow, 

 'n' I'd advise ye tu let him be where he is, 'n' ef I was yu 

 I'd try V set him a better example 'n loafing 'raound the 

 tavern all the time. It's gol durned — " Waxy was grow- 

 ing indignant, and it was perhaps fortunate for Bill's 

 peace of mind that he was interrupted before bis feelings 

 carried him beyond the pall of reasonable expression. 

 The door opened, followed by a rush of cool air that 

 caused Waxy to turn his head in time to discover Old 

 Shack in the act of closing it after himself. Bill Carter, 

 whose manner had begun to cringe before Waxy's unex- 

 pected tirade, was glad enough to take advancage of this 

 opportunity to sneak back out of sight in the crowd which 

 he evidently found unsuited to his taste, for he soon de- 

 serted it and was seen no more that day. 



Chip Mason awoke early, and, casting his eyes toward 

 the bark roof over him, discovered traces of daylight 

 breaking through the cracks; but, not satisfied with his 

 long night's sleep, drew his blankets closer about him and 

 turned drowsily over on his side preparatory to a short 

 snooze before rising. As he did so he noticed that the fire 

 had bf en kindled in the stove and both Old Shack and Snap 

 were absent. This was sufficient to fully arouse him, and, 

 throwing off his covering, he swung himself feet fore- 

 most over the side of his bunk and began pulling on his 

 boots, an operation that occasioned not a little tugging 

 and kicking, for they were, as usual, frozen stiff and 

 hard. While he was puffing and blowing over his exer- 

 tion and kicking against the door post in his efforts to get 

 them on, there came sniffing and pawing at the bottom of 

 the door on the outside, and in a moment more Old Shack 

 pushed the door open and Snap bounded in, nearly knock- 

 ing Chip over as he jumped against him in his joy at see- 

 ing his master up; but Chip, who was more interested in 

 the occupation of getting his heel beyond the sticking 

 point than appreciative of the brute's affection, only 

 rewarded him with an impatient "Git out, gol darn yer!" 

 as he made a vicious, but unsuccessful, kick with the boot 

 at which he was tugging. 



"Hurry up 'n' git yer gun," said old Shack, " 'n' I'll 

 show ye as purty a shot as ye ever seen, I cum back after 

 it 'n' tho't I'd surprise ye, but seein' 't ye 'r up yuc'n hev 

 the chance. Is it loaded?" 



"Yep," said Chip, as his obstinate heel went to the bot- 

 tom of his boot with a chug. "Wat is it, mushrats?" 



"No, ye'll see purty soon ef ye hurry; ready, wal, cum 

 on." 



Chip got his gun, making so much noise in his excite- 

 ment that Shack found it necessary to caution him. 

 "Don't make so much noise 'r ye'll scare 'em; it's only a 

 little ways f'm the shanty." Chip followed a short dis- 

 tance behind the old man, who proceeded cautiously un- 

 til he came to a large tree, which shielded him from the 

 view of what he seemed to be seeking, then turning he 

 beckoned to Chip to come up, and as he drew near 

 pointed to a liinb of another tree a few yards away and 

 whispered, "See 'em?" 



"O, gosh! look out the way," and Chip nervously 

 pulled at the old man's coat to get him out of the way. 



"Hold on now, don't git excited 'r ye'll spile the fun; 

 better let me shoot 'em." 



"No-o, no, I c'n do it." 



"Wal, then, rest yer gun on my shoulder 'n' take good 

 aim. Be careful, now," he whispered, as he stooped, 

 grasping the tree to steady himself, and Chip placed the 

 gun on his shoulder. "Give 'em a side wipe 'n' ye'll rake 

 'em all off." 



Half a dozen partridges were sitting in a row on the 

 limb that Old Shack pointed out. He had discovered 

 them while going down to the scow and hurried back to 

 get the gun. Chip's hands trembled violently as he cocked 

 the gun and it seemed to him as if he could never get it 

 to bear on the right place as he took sight across the 

 barrel, but while he was trying to steady himself his eye 

 caught the movement of one of the birds' heads as if 

 about to fly and he determined that the next time the 

 muzzle wabbled on to the flock he would pull the trigger. 

 It did a second later and with a sort of blind desperation 

 he fired. Before the smoke cleared away Chip had 

 dropped his gun and ran forward, and as he saw first one 

 and then another of the birds fluttering on the ground he 

 shouted as he made a dash for one that began to run 

 away with a broken wing, "O, gosh! O golly! I got 'em 

 all!" 



"No ye ain't; ye ain't got that one yet," said Old Shack 

 as the bird made a sudden turn and slipped away from 

 him. "I seen two on 'em fly, 'n' thet one ye'r after won't 

 be got onless ye'r purty lively." 



Chip was bound to have it, however, and made a head- 

 long dash just as it darted under a small bunch of twigs, 

 and catching his foot on a projecting root fell flat over it, 

 where he lay, afraid to get up, for fear it would get away 

 again, until after fumbling around he caught hold of 

 one of its wings and pulled it out dead. His weight had 

 killed it. 



"Ye made a purty good shot, anyway. Here's three," 

 Old Shack said, holding up those that he had gathered 

 while Chip was after the wounded one. ' 'Purty good 

 morning's work thet." 



It was certainly a genuine pot shot, and one that would 

 be greatly deplored, at least on paper, by the average 

 sportsman of to-day; but neither Chip nor the old man 

 thought of anything but the glory they had achieved, 

 and Chip was so proud over it that he nearly forgot to 

 pick up his gun when they started back to the shanty. 



Breakfast wes a simple affair with these two campers, 

 and it was not long in preparation or dispatching. After 

 Chip had washed the dishes and set things to rights, he 

 stepped over to where Old Shack sat smoking, and pick- 

 ing up one of the birds, began to stroke its feathers and 

 admire its plumage. Finally, after a thoughtful silence 

 he said: "I wish mam had one o' these; I'll bet she ain't 

 had nothin' 's good in a long time." 



"Wal, there ain't no reason why she can't hev one. 

 They're yours, 'n' ye c'n give 'em all tu her ef ve want 

 tu." 



"No, two of 'em 'Id be enough ef I c'd git 'em to her, 

 but I dassent go home on account o' pap. Mebbe I c'lcl 

 git Waxy to' send 'em up, though. " 



"I've bin kinder thinkin' o' goin' down tu the store this 

 mornin' ef ye don't mind stayin' here alone. It looks 's 



ef it 11 be a purty nice day, 'n' one of us '11 hev tu go 

 down soon, any way. Tell ye what," as an idea struck 

 him, "I ain't afraid o' yer pap, 'n' I'll stop 'n' give 'em to 

 her." 



"Will yer? That's bully! Say, don't let pap see 'em, 

 'n' tell mam I shot 'em, will yer? Gosh, won't she be 

 glad!" 



"Yes," said Old Shack, laughing, as Chip hustled around 

 trying to find a string to tie the bird together, and, pick- 

 ing out two that had the brightest plumage, he soon had 

 them ready. Then the old man drew on his heaviest coat, 

 and taking Chip's woollen comforter wrapped himself up 

 about the neck and ears, was ready to start. "Better not 

 go fur f'm the shanty," he said, as he opened the door; 

 "but ef ye want to look fer them other partridges ye 

 might find 'em down near the eddy somers. I don't think 

 they went fur." And Chip was left alone. 



Old Shack found Chip's mother busily engaged at some 

 light sewing that she was doing for one of her neighbors 

 to gain means to help provide her scanty table, and assur- 

 ing himself that her husband was not around, presented 

 the birds, faithfully delivering Chip's message in regard 

 to then capture, and by way of encouragement added 

 that Chip was "doin' well 'n' '11 make a man tu be proud 

 of some day." Mrs. Carter accepted them gratefully, 

 while the tears welled in her eyes and her voice almost 

 choked her as she replied: "Oh, I'm so glad he has such 

 a good place to stay. I know he is safe with you, and if 

 you will advise him he will follow it. Here is some- 

 thing," she said, placing a small parcel containing a pair 

 of heavy woolen socks in the old mans hand, "that I have 

 been keeping for him until I could send to him. Tell him 

 I will send him some more as soon as I can make them." 



"Wal, JC'll take 's good keer o ! him 's I kin this winter, 

 'n' ef he strikes out right in the spring he'll git a start. 

 I'd ruther he'd learn some other kind o' business 'n trap- 

 pin', 'taint no kind o' business fer any one 'cept an old 

 chap like me 't aint good fer nothin' else. I think ye c'n 

 rest easy about him, tho'." With this assurance he left 

 and proceeded to the store where, as he entered, he was 

 greeted by Waxy with: "Wal' I'll be dinned! Haow d'ye 

 du, 't's good fer sore eyes tu see ye. What fetched ye 

 daown?" 



"Wal, ye see, I run out o' tobacker, n' they say 't no- 

 body keep 's good tobacker 's Waxy Latin ; so as one on 

 us bed tu come, I tho't I'd stretch my legs a little, seein' 

 it's sich a nice day. How be ye, Joe, John? Why, Bill, 

 ez thet you? I ain't seen ye in a dog's age. Ye'r' lcokin' 

 well." This to Bill Carter, who had tried to retreat, but 

 being cornered, could not decently escape the old man's 

 conciliating hand. "Why — yes; that is, what is left of 

 me, so to speak. I was just telling Mr. — ah, Latin, 

 here — " But just then Old Shack was taken in hand by 

 another of the party, and Bill Carter's grandiloquence 

 was cut short before he could conclude his stereotyped 

 tale of imaginary complaints. When the final hand- 

 shaking was over, Waxy said: "Set daown, old man; set 

 daown 'n' make yerself tu hum." 



"No," Shack returned, "I ain't goin' tu stop long. I 

 list tho't I'd run in 'n' se ? how ye was 'n' git some to- 

 backer. I ain't much 'f a hand fer comp'ny, ye know, 

 'n' I want tu git back. Mebbe I'll be down agin 'fore 

 long." 



"Wal, come whenever ye kin," said Waxy, as he handed 

 him the paper of "Cut and Dry" and picked up the 

 change; "ye're always welcome." 



When Old Shack arrived within hearing distance of the 

 camp he heard the sound of axe blows, as Chip was en- 

 gaged in chopping a supply of firewood, and as he drew 

 near Chip dropped his axe, and, picking up an armful of 

 the wood, stood waiting until he came up. "Did ye git 

 them other partridges?" the old man inquired. 



"No," he said, "I couldn't find 'em. Did yer see mam?" 



"Yes. 'n' I seen yer pap tu; but he want home. Here's 

 suthin'," he continued, as they entered the hut and Chip 

 threw down his armful of wood, " 't yer mam sent ye, 'n' 

 she sed she'd send ye some more 's soon 's she could. Ye 

 got a good mother, Chip, ef yer pap ain't what he ort tu 

 be." 



As Chip unrolled the package and discovered the socks 

 that he knew was of his mother's knitting, he could not 

 speak for a few moments; but when he finally regained 

 his speech he said, as he began to fondle Snap's ears, 

 whose head was lying in his lap, "By gosh! I'm goin' ter 

 git some more partridge, an' I'll take 'em to her myself, 

 pap or no pap." J. H. B. 



Mansfield Vallet, Pa. 



WEWAH1TCHKA. 



COLUMBIA. Ala. — Nearly parallel with the broad Apa- 

 lacliicola, in Calhoun county, west Florida, is a 

 fine body of water, variously styled Chipola, Dead, or 

 Wewahitchka Lake. It is about 20 miles long and from 

 2 to 4 miles wide. It is formed by a considerable stream, 

 the Chipola Eiver. The lake swarms with black bass, 

 rock fish, sturgeon, trout, shell cracker (the finest of all 

 the perch tribe), bream, sucker, jack, cat, loggerhead 

 and soft shell turtles and some alligators. Fishing on the 

 lake is superb from April 1 to June 1 and from October to 

 January. In the winter months myriads of nearly all the 

 varieties of ducks, swan, geese and brant, and many 

 smaller wildfowl flock to its feeding grounds. There are 

 turkeys, deer and wildcats in abundance, with a bear 

 occasionally met. The lake seems practically inexhaust- 

 ible, as nature has provided it with all the accessories 

 that go to constitute an incomparable fish hatchery. 



Annually, for five years, the writer has spent a week in 

 May catching the finny beauties, and during his last visit . 

 May 1 to 7, the fishing was much better than usual. The 

 water is clear and soft, and being near St. Andrews Bay 

 a sea breeze is almost constantly blowing. The nights 

 are cool and bracing, the country healthy; in fact there is 

 everything necessary to constitute a sportsman's paradise. 

 There is no sport in Florida where a tew weeks could be 

 more comfortably spent than on Lake Wewahitchka. 

 You will find comfortable hostelries on either side of the 

 lake, kept by J. Glen, R. M. Carter, Miss Hunter, and 

 many others, where a guest can find all the home com- 

 forts and the best sport. 



Should parties from the East desire to spend a while 

 here in winter or spring, they could take cars and run 

 down from Savannah, Ga., to Chattahoochee Junction, 

 and then bv steamboats to Iola, which is within two 

 miles of the lakes; and parties from the West could go by 

 New Orleans, Mobile or Pensacola, and to Chattahoochee 

 and by steam to Iola. Yiator. 



