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Article SCENES IN AMERICA. ← Page 6 of 8 →
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
Scenes In America.
an' Polly thought t ' othor day she had a glimpse of him prowlin' roun' the tobaccor pen . His powder horn can't easy be mistook , for its striped of a blue an' red . " " AVould it not be your best plan , to " " By Jingo that ' s him now ! " cried Ball , and instantly I saw the flash and heard the report of a gun from the bushes not twenty steps distant . Hinkle had fired at Ball but missed him .
There stood the sturdy old hunter , planted firmly on the earth ; liis cheek to his rifle , his eye pointing along its barrel directly at his enemy , and his finger ready to spring its hair trigger—the slightest touch of which would have caused the deadly ball to fly at his enemy ' s head . Rigidly maintaining his position and his aim , the old man called out in a distinct and composed voice , — " Come out , Tom Hinkle , or I'll fire . " Looking closely at the spot from which the smoke of Hinkle's gun was still rising , I could plainly discover , amidst the leaves , his head and breast .
" Shoot him , daddy : " cried Jack . " Come out from the bushes ; " repeated Ball . " Fire , daddy " " For God's sake , " cried I , don ' t disturb your father , " for , strange now to think , I felt at that moment willing that the fiendish scoundrel should be shot . There passed a moment of intense and anxious suspense—Hinkle standing petrified in the bushesglaring like a wild animal at the old hunter
, , whose deadly aim rested immovably upon him—Jack holding the halter of the colt , laden ivith the dead buck , on one side of his father ; and I , near my horse , on the other—all facing the devoted skulker . " Are you comin' out ? " demanded Ball in a voice of slight impatience . " If t'other two will keep off , I will : " answered the desperate and alarmed Hinkle .
" You need n ' t be a feard of them , they sha ' n't interfer ' . " " But how do I know that ?" " Are you comin' ? " said Ball , decidedly . " Yes , I am . Let them two hold up their hands and make oath they'll keep off . " Jack , having the utmost confidence in his father's ability to compete with Hinkle , especially under existing circumstances , instantly raised one hand , and bawled out— " I'll he durticd if I go near you . " I called out to
him that I could not take an oath for such a wretch ; but that I gave him my word not to interfere . He then came slowly and timidly out of the bushes , into a more open space , holding his gun in his left hand with its butt near the ground ; Ball raised his head , but still kept his rifle pointed at him . Catching a glimpse of hope from this state of affairs , he addressed the old man in a loud voice , and with a manner half assured and half conciliatory . " Ball , do you think if I had n't wanted just to scare you , I couldn ' t hit you easy enough ?
You ' ve seen Tom Hinkle shoot at a mark . " And he halted for a parley within arms length of a tree , about thirty feet distant from the path-way in ivhich our party stood . " Drop your smooth bore , " said Ball , taking no notice of Hinkle ' s
subterfuge . " What ! an empty gun ? " replied Hinkle , with affected surprise and carelessness . " You'd better drop it ; " said Ball dryly , as he replaced his face to regain his aim . " She ' s empty , I tell you , what are you feared of ?" " I an ' t afeard of Tom Hinkle , nor no such a coward ; but that an ' t the rifle you fired at me ; its another gun , and she ' s got a load in her . " " Yes , has she" —interrupted Jack . " She ' s crammed with slugs for a scatt'rin' shot ; for if that an't Hugh Fry ' s smooth bore , I never seed a gun . "
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
Scenes In America.
an' Polly thought t ' othor day she had a glimpse of him prowlin' roun' the tobaccor pen . His powder horn can't easy be mistook , for its striped of a blue an' red . " " AVould it not be your best plan , to " " By Jingo that ' s him now ! " cried Ball , and instantly I saw the flash and heard the report of a gun from the bushes not twenty steps distant . Hinkle had fired at Ball but missed him .
There stood the sturdy old hunter , planted firmly on the earth ; liis cheek to his rifle , his eye pointing along its barrel directly at his enemy , and his finger ready to spring its hair trigger—the slightest touch of which would have caused the deadly ball to fly at his enemy ' s head . Rigidly maintaining his position and his aim , the old man called out in a distinct and composed voice , — " Come out , Tom Hinkle , or I'll fire . " Looking closely at the spot from which the smoke of Hinkle's gun was still rising , I could plainly discover , amidst the leaves , his head and breast .
" Shoot him , daddy : " cried Jack . " Come out from the bushes ; " repeated Ball . " Fire , daddy " " For God's sake , " cried I , don ' t disturb your father , " for , strange now to think , I felt at that moment willing that the fiendish scoundrel should be shot . There passed a moment of intense and anxious suspense—Hinkle standing petrified in the bushesglaring like a wild animal at the old hunter
, , whose deadly aim rested immovably upon him—Jack holding the halter of the colt , laden ivith the dead buck , on one side of his father ; and I , near my horse , on the other—all facing the devoted skulker . " Are you comin' out ? " demanded Ball in a voice of slight impatience . " If t'other two will keep off , I will : " answered the desperate and alarmed Hinkle .
" You need n ' t be a feard of them , they sha ' n't interfer ' . " " But how do I know that ?" " Are you comin' ? " said Ball , decidedly . " Yes , I am . Let them two hold up their hands and make oath they'll keep off . " Jack , having the utmost confidence in his father's ability to compete with Hinkle , especially under existing circumstances , instantly raised one hand , and bawled out— " I'll he durticd if I go near you . " I called out to
him that I could not take an oath for such a wretch ; but that I gave him my word not to interfere . He then came slowly and timidly out of the bushes , into a more open space , holding his gun in his left hand with its butt near the ground ; Ball raised his head , but still kept his rifle pointed at him . Catching a glimpse of hope from this state of affairs , he addressed the old man in a loud voice , and with a manner half assured and half conciliatory . " Ball , do you think if I had n't wanted just to scare you , I couldn ' t hit you easy enough ?
You ' ve seen Tom Hinkle shoot at a mark . " And he halted for a parley within arms length of a tree , about thirty feet distant from the path-way in ivhich our party stood . " Drop your smooth bore , " said Ball , taking no notice of Hinkle ' s
subterfuge . " What ! an empty gun ? " replied Hinkle , with affected surprise and carelessness . " You'd better drop it ; " said Ball dryly , as he replaced his face to regain his aim . " She ' s empty , I tell you , what are you feared of ?" " I an ' t afeard of Tom Hinkle , nor no such a coward ; but that an ' t the rifle you fired at me ; its another gun , and she ' s got a load in her . " " Yes , has she" —interrupted Jack . " She ' s crammed with slugs for a scatt'rin' shot ; for if that an't Hugh Fry ' s smooth bore , I never seed a gun . "