272 
FOREST AND STREAM. 
[Oct. s, 1901. 
fastened upon the door. 
Old Dan slipped quietly out of bed, took his rifle from 
the rack, stepped softly to the door, jerked it open and 
sprang out. Stump was before him, however, and with a 
snarling imprecation upon the discovered prowler, dashed 
to the attack. Immediately there followed a terrible growl 
of anger, a fearful yelp of agony, a muttered imprecation, 
two rifle shots in quick succession and the encounter was 
over before I was fairly out of bed. The darkness ren- 
dered both shots harmless, and the old hunter soon re- 
turned, bearing in his arms the torn and bleeding body 
of the courageous Stump, already stone dead, as the re- 
sult of his heroic night attack upon a prowling panther. 
The old man's grief over the loss of his little pet was 
a touching sight, as he stooped down and tenderly stroked 
the wiry hair and patted the unresponsive head. 
"Listen to me, Kid," said he. "The varmint as done 
this 'ere is jist the same as dead a'ready. I'll take the trail 
in the mornin' and kill the critter afore I come back, if I 
hev to foller it to Canada !" and I knew from his manner 
that he meant it, every word. 
Examination by daylight revealed the fact that there 
had been a pair of the prowlers, only one of which had 
come near the cabin ; also that they had gone off in differ- 
ent directions, probably as the result of the firing. 
Old Dan took up the trail, which began beside the 
bloody marks upon the snow. I followed the other, 
which, after an hour or so, I lost in a swamp, where the 
deep snow and dense undergrowth rendered further pur- 
suit out of the question. Realizing that my picking up 
the trail again was very imlilsely, I turned off in the direc- 
tion taken by Dan, and caught him up after a couple of 
hours' hard walking. Together we followed the toler- 
ably well-defined trail, which, with frequent skips among 
the tree tops overhead, lay along the general course of the 
river, and proceeded most of the way along the snow- 
covered ice to where a deep gorge cleft the river bank on 
the right. Up this winding gully, which was from 10 to 30 
feet wide, betw-een perpendicular walls of rock from 6 
to 20 feet high, we followed some two or three hundred 
yards, to where the trail abruptly terminated beneath an 
opening about 15 inches in diameter in the rock wall, 8 or 
9 feet above the bottom of the ravine. 
The snow all about the entrance of the den was beaten 
down by the panthers' feet, particularly at that point 
where they sprang to and from the mouth of the cavern. 
We had found the end of the trail, but our intended vic- 
tim, was beyond our reach. 
"What now?" I inquired of Dan. 
"Lay by till he comes out," said he, with grim deter- 
mination, as he clambered tip the wall opposite to the 
den. 
We took our station at a point whence the opening in 
the rock was in plain view. We had not been watch ng 
long, when I conceived a plan to capture the panther 
without the necessity of a long wait in the bitter cold. 
"I'm going to the cabin, Dan," said I. "and will be 
back as soon as possible. If you start home before I 
come, follow my trail and I will meet you." 
It was noon when, very tired, T reached the cabin, but 
hastily securing a strong piece of half- inch rope, about 15 
feet long, I hurried back to where Dan was still patiently 
waiting for the appearance of the panther. Of one end 
of the rope I made an easy-running noose, a little smaller 
in diameter than the hole in the rock. The other end \y'as 
tied securely to a sapling on the bank, in such a position 
that the noose, which was held open by a small switch 
bent to the proper shape, himg close to the wall and 
directly in front of the opening. 
Old Dan expressed his approval, but declared liis in- 
tention to remain and see "if the the Critter 'u'd come out 
and git hung fer murder." I expressed my willingness to 
keep him company, and prepared to watch with what 
jnitience and fortitude I could summon. . 
We had not been settled long when an unexpected cir- 
cumstance occurred. A panther, doubtless the one 1 had 
lost in the swamp, unnoticed by \is, had crept along the 
bottom of the gulch, which was hidden from our 
view, and attempted to gain the entrance to the 
cavern. We caught sight of the long, lithe body 
of the monster feline, as it sprang straight for the open- 
ing, dextrously inserting \U head into the hole at the 
same instant that its forefeet caught upon the edge, thus 
putting both feet and its head through the noose, which 
tightened with increasing tension as the astonished animal 
endeavored to clamber into its retreat. A moment only it 
hung thus upon the edge, and then resisted its arrest with 
all an angry panther's awful fury. 
What a spectacle! Such violent contortions Avere never 
seen before. The forest rang with the sound of the ter- 
rible squalls and angry growls. The feet, which were 
tightly drawn up Under the animal's neck, prevented 
choking, but every motion of the struggling beast drew 
the noose so much the tighter. 
I raised my rifle to shoot the whirling ball of fury, but 
Dan restrained me. 
"Wait a bit, Kid; wait a bit!" 
Presently we heard the Ioav. anxious cry of the mate 
inside the den. Louder and louder it grew, Until, with a 
.scream of anger, a round head and a pair of feet appeared 
at the hole in an attempt to seize the swinging rope. 
"Grack!" went Dan's rifle, and the newcomer sprang 
out. mortally wounded, and expired in the bottom of the 
gulch. 
"Now. Kid, let him Iiev it! I've got the varmint as 
killed my dog." - 
I fired upon the lianging panther, which died with its 
head and feet still in the noose. It was a male, and much 
.smaller than the uncommonly large female which Dan 
had shot, and from which he strioped the skin with a sort 
of savage pleasure and vengefully threw the carcass up 
aniong the rocks. 
The greater part of the distance to the cabin was re- 
traced in silence, for I did not wish to disturb the reverie 
into which the old man had fallen. At last he stopped, 
looked thoughtfully down at the panther skin and said : 
"Kid it were only a little job. '-It was desper't' easy. 
I wished it bed been harder," and then silently resumed 
his way. 
To this day the visitor to Old Dan's cabin may see two 
skins — ^the one _a panther's, the other that of a little fox 
terrier — and it is a matter of principle with the old man 
that under no circumstances shall the panther's skin be 
laid on that of his pet, "Because." says Dan. "I can't 
a-bear to see it that-a-way," ' "Vivamus, 
Novel Cure for a Gun-Shy Dog. 
"Give a dog a bad name and hang him," runs the old 
adage, and a worse epithet than gun-shy could scarcely 
be directed against a game dog, 1 am aware the disease, 
if I may so call gun-shyness, is believed incurable; but 
the manner in which a peasant in my locality ultimately 
cured a fine setter may possibly encourage the possessors 
of dogs affected in the same way to "go and do likewise" 
before destroying their dogs — which is their end almost 
without exception. 
Some years ago a friend, by no means notorious for 
his generosity, was speaking abotit shooting, and I ob- 
served I shot little, as T had no dog of my own. He 
told me he could spare one, and would make me a pres- 
ent of the setter any day I should send for him. I 
thanked him half-heartedly enough, expecting some de- 
crepit animal, useless from old age; but what was my 
surprise on finding, when the messenger returned, a 
beautiful young red setter dog of fine appearance. Next 
day I brought "Grouse" out with me, and he performed 
well till it came to the firing, when he gave a howl and 
scampered away across the moor home, fast as his legs 
could carry him, despite my' calls and whistles. Then I 
suspected the genuineness of my friend's generosity. 
Next day I tied a long rope to his collar, and all went 
well till i fired, when he dashed away, dragging me after 
him. and, finding himself unable to escape, crouched be- 
tween my legs, howling dismally. I tried everything — 
lying hiiu to a well-trained dog, beating, coaxing, but to 
no purpose, so I decided to shoot him. 
A few days after a sporting friend of mine came over 
for a few hours and saw "Grouse;" he , was greatly struck 
with his appearance, and warned me to keep a good eye 
on him or "he'd steal him." I explained, as I did so 
little shooting, I had no use for a dog, so he could take 
him away. It was in great delight truly he took 
"Grouse," believing, doubtless, the man who would not 
offer for sale such an attractive animal if he did not re- 
quire him was surely developing softness of the brain. 
1 had my own prognostications, and was satisfied to await 
results. A week elapsed, and the post a day or two later 
brought a letter from my sporting friend, mentioning 
the setter was the worst case in all his varied experience 
he had ever met. "Not worth feeding on sawdust and 
water." 
This gehtletnan had a poor tenant who semd as a sort 
oi herd and gamekeeper combined. This man made sev- 
eral attempts to reclaim the animal, but in vain. One 
day the gentleman and peasant were shooting, and, on 
a shot being fired, the dog fled across the bog home; 
my friend, in disgust, asked the man if he knew of any 
one who would take him, as he did not like shooting the 
animal. The man replied, rather than shoot him, he 
would take him himself and try an experiment b^efore the 
last resource, destruction. 
Then commenced the work of regeneration. Finding 
beating and coaxing were oi no avail, this ingenious fel- 
low hit upon a novel plan. When his better half was 
away he rubbed butter, grease, milk and such like on the 
barrel of an old gun, which the dog licked off greedily. 
After a few days of this he put a cap on the nipple, and 
as the dog licked tlie barrel, fired. At first he ran and 
cowed in a corner, but later became more courageous, 
and ultimately took no notice w^hatever of the slight ex- 
plosion. Then the man tied a piece of fried bacon to 
the barrel, and while the dog ate fired a small charge 
of powder. At first "Grouse" displayed manifest anxiety 
and considerable uneasiness, but the bacon-was too much 
for him. and eventually he devoured it, regardless of the 
noise of the charge fired. More and more powder was 
daily put in while the dog was being fed in this novel 
way. and dailv the animal's fears grew less and less, 
b'inally the man brought him outside and blazed away 
Mt bottles. In a little time his patience was crowned with 
the most uni|ualified success. The very instant the man 
look up the gun the dog barked and frolicked with sheer 
delight, and would follow him anywhere. Then came 
the final instructions, and he let the animal understand 
it was only wiren he stood gan\e well, and after the bird 
v,'as shot, the bacon was forthcoming; and his tuition 
closed by getting the dog to look forward to a feast at 
liome on the final return from a successful day's sport. 
About two months later, a shooting party had assem- 
bled in the neighborhood, and the man requested 
"Grouse" should be permitted a chance of distinguishing 
iiimselt. To his utter astonishment my sporting friend 
found his working just admirable, and before he left the 
field the man had disposed of him for £12 to a gentle- 
man of the partv. who declares a better dog he has never 
shot over. ^I write this in hopes it should meet the eye 
of one who i.s possessed of a dog similarly .affected, and 
heartily v/ish, should he try the efficacy of the remedy 
this ingenious peasant resorted to in extremity, he may 
find his efforts crowned with equal success. — London 
Field. 
— • — 
'Mid Reef and Rapid —XXHL 
BY F. R. WEBB. 
The storm increased in violence as darkness fell like a 
pall upon us in a solid wall of blackness, shutting us out 
in the night and storm from all human aid and companion- 
ship. Great blasts came down upon us. before which the 
fierce, pelting rain flew like hail, and stung and blistered 
on cheek and hand, and drifted in long, horizontal streaks 
of light past the open ends of the fly in the rays of the lan- 
tern, which hung, swaying and swinging, from the ridge 
pole, as the fly surged and threshed around overhead, vain- 
ly striving to ride off on the wings of the gale. 
' We addressed ourselves to the difficult task of getting 
supper. A cold snack could easily have been evolved 
from the contents of the mess chest, but we felt that 
something hot and strong was peculiarly needed under 
such circumstances, and, after a preliminary decoctibn of 
this character from a flask of Mr. Martin's apple brandy, 
we set to work With a will. 
George selected the biggest pieces of WQod from the 
water-soaked pile stored under the futile protection of 
the mess table and the fly, and reduced them to kindling 
wood. Lacy shucked half a dozen eggs, and cut as many 
pieces of bacon, while I wrestled with the fire in the 
catnp stove, which was placed close to the mess table and 
under the shelter of the. fly, and, from whose little fun- 
nel a long train of sparks "went skurrying, in a swift, hori- 
zontal streak, out into the blackness, and in the course 
of fifteen minutes or so, by means of a plentiful supply of 
George's kindling, liberally encouraged with a continuous 
application of coal oil, we managed to get up a good sup- 
per of bacon and eggs and hot coffee, which was speedily 
disposed of as we sat, wrapped to the chins in our heavy 
rubber coats, and huddled around the mess table, while 
the rain beat in under edges and at the open ends of the 
fly, in our faces and in our plates and on the table, and ran 
in little rills down the folds and hollows of our rubber 
coats, the while the lantern, swinging overhead, cast its 
feeble, wavering light over tbe interior of the tent, outside 
of which the black night shut down over us in an inky 
pall, with the glittering streaks of rain flymg past the ends 
of our little shelter. 
Supper over, our plates, knives, forks and cooking 
utensils were tossed out into the rain to care for thern- 
selves until morning, and each man scuttled off to his 
tent for the night. 
Previous to turning in, I took down the lantern from 
where it was swinging, up under the ridge pole, and placed 
it carefully on a broad, flat rock at the lower margin of 
the fly, where I could see it from my tent, to serve as a 
beacon during the night. As long as I could see it I would 
know that all was right. If I missed it I would know 
that the water was encroaching on the camp. This done 
and my paddle placed on the after deck of my canoe, 
where I could reach it, I hastily threw off my rubber coat 
and hat and hung them on the back end of my tentj quickly 
threw up my tent flap and scrambled in. 
Seating myself — wet clothes, shoes and all — on top of 
ray bed, which was well protected by the stout rubber 
sheet in which it was folded, I struck a match and lit my 
candle lamp, after which I arranged things for the night, 
drew off my wet shoes and garments, put on dry things 
procured from my clothes bag, crawled into my blankets, 
lit a cigar, got my book, adjusted my lamp by hooking it 
over the coaming between the page and my e}'es, and 
prepared to spend the evening. 
The cosiness of a well-designed and well-constructed 
canoe tent cannot be excelled by any other form of tent. 
If properly planned, well built and waterproofed, and 
securely put up over the canoe, one may bid defiance to the 
severest storms. The quarters are a little confined, it is 
true, and one is unable to stand upright in the tent, and 
dressing in such quarters is not unlike performing the 
same operation in a sleeping-car berth, but once ensconsed 
snugly in my blafikets I find my little cabin deliciously 
cosy and comfortable, and the more the storm howls and 
the rain patters on' the sides and roof of the tent, the 
more the coziness and comfort .seem increased. 
I found it peculiarly so this wild, stormy night — in all 
my experience undoubtedly the wildest and stormiest. 
The tent rocked and swayed with the blasts, and the 
windward side bellied far in and out, like the sails of a 
vessel, as the blasts came at intervals, while the canoe 
fairly shook and trembled on her sandy bed from the force 
of the blows. Now and then a few drops of spray flew 
in at the sheltered ventilator windows, up under the roof 
at either end, sprinkling my page and my face, but my 
little lamp burned on as serenely as though in the shelter 
of a room, and I lay and read and smoked'for a couple of 
hours or so, in comfort and enjoyment exquisite. 
Tired of reading, I laid my book on my clothes bag be- 
hind my head, slipped my cigar stump out under the edge 
of my "tent, hung my lamp out of the way on the outer 
edge of the coaming and blew it out. drew the warm, dry 
blankets well up around my neck and ears and dropped off 
to sleep, the last sounds that floated through my unheed- 
ing consciousness being the rush and roar of the storm as 
it flew hissing through the trees overhead, and the steady, 
deep-toned drone of the river, as it came down over the 
rapids and the big fish daiji, at the foot of the Columbia 
Falls above. 
It need scarcely be said that I slept with "one eye open." 
so to speak, with the threatening river in my mind all 
night. I woke up several times, at interx-^ls of about half 
an hour, and drew aside the flap of my tent enough to 
look out. but ray beacon light was still there, glimmering 
faintly through the sheets of rain like a magnified glow 
worm. F'inally, I went off sound asleep, to wake up with 
a start of alarm several hours later. I hastily looked out. 
The rain had ceased, but the wind was blowing heavily, 
with apparently', redoubled violence, roaring and shrieking 
through the tree tops, which writhed and tossed in the 
blasts, while my tent shook and swayed with such force 
that my canoe fairly rocked on her bed of sand. The 
moon was shining brilliantly, as it sc»rried down the 
sky, through the broken, tattered clouds, which, in great, 
black masses, edged and lined with bright silver, were 
Avhirling and tossing across the sky, as they flew before 
the gale. The bright beams of the moon, and the shadows 
of the whirling leaves Overhead, flickered and tossed in a 
weird, fantastic manner over the firm, white sand. with a 
startling resemblance to tossing wavelets, for which, in- 
deed, for a moment I mistook them. 
The river roared ominously loud and deep from the 
falls above, and I hastily slipped on my rubber-soled, can- 
vas pumps and a little knit jersey and stepped out to take 
an observation. 
My beacon light still glimmered feebly in the moonlight, 
with the lantern globe half -encrusted and obscured with 
sand. I hastened down to the river. It rolled and surged 
by in an angry, muddy flood, while the waves lapped rest- 
lessly against the sandy shore like a miniature lake beach. 
Logs, trees, fence rails and other debris shot swiftly by 
in ugly, black masses of drift, while the restless surface 
of the water was streaked with long lines of dirty, muddy 
foam, which glistened and sparkled in the fitful rays of 
the moon. 
The rise was upon us. The water was up over the 
spring, and just on a level vsrith the sandy shelf upon 
which our canoes had Iain tlie evening before, and, as I 
stood upon the spot and looked, a wider surge than usual 
sent the water in a thin, flat stream out over the spot 
and, as I stepped hastily back, the shelf disappeared, ani 
the w^Y^s lapped restlessly over the place. 
