t again. By and by, I sees a buck just
ahead of me, walking leisurely down the river. I slipped up, with my
faithful old dog close in my rear, to within clever shooting distance,
and just as the buck stuck his nose in the drink, I drew a _bead_ upon
his top-knot and over he tumbled, and splurged and bounded awhile, when
I came up and relieved him by cutting his wizen--"

"Well, but what had that to do with an _adventure_?" said Riley.

"Hold on a bit, if you please, gentlemen--by Jove it had a great deal to
do with it. For while I was busy skinning the hind quarters of the buck,
and stowing away the kidney-fat in my hunting shirt, I heard a noise
like the breaking of brush under a moccasin up 'the bottom.' My dog
heard it and started up to reconnoitre, and I lost no time in reloading
my rifle. I had hardly got my priming out before my dog raised a howl
and broke through the brush towards me with his tail down, as he was not
used to doing unless there were wolves, painters (panthers) or Injins
about.

"I picked up my knife, and took up my line of march in a skulking trot
up the river. The frequent gullies, on the lower bank, made it tedious
travelling there, so I scrabbled up to the upper bank, which was pretty
well covered with buckeye and sycamore and very little under-brush. One
peep below discovered to me three as big and strapping red rascals,
gentlemen, as you ever clapt your eyes on! Yes, there they came, not
above six hundred yards in my rear. Shouting and yelling like hounds,
and coming after me like all possessed."

"Well," said an old woodsman sitting at the table, "you took a tree of
course?"

"Did I? No, gentlemen! I took no tree just then, but I took to my heels
like sixty, and it was just as much as my old dog could do to keep up
with me. I run until the whoops of my red skins grew fainter and fainter
behind me; and clean out of wind, I ventured to look behind me, and
there came one single red whelp, puffing and blowing, not three hundred
yards in my rear. He had got on to a piece of bottom where the trees
were small and scarce--now, thinks I, old fellow, I'll have you. So I
trotted off at a pace sufficient to let my follower gain on me, and when
he had got just about near enough, I wheeled and fired, and down I
brought him, dead as a door nail, at a hundred and twenty yards!"

"Then you skelp'd (scalped) him immediately?" said the backwoodsman.

"Very clear of it, gentlemen, for by the time I got m