No brag just fact!  Mount’n men never lie!

We wuz at sort ‘o a rondeevoo  cuz we met up with another bunch from down the valley one time.  After the greetins an such, an a drink er to, the bets started ta hit the air.

Aint many mount’n men aint  gud shots wid they rifles and pistols.  Sum ov us is bettern others, but we all be gud.

At this her’n meet’n time this one ol boy said he cood hit a finge tied ta a water filled bag an drop that bag so soft it wudn’t  break nor spill a drop.

We wuz bett’n hard earned plews on that one shur.  Corse it was no skin offn our scalps, cuz he wuz the only one what wuz gonna be shoot’n.  He wuz a braggin and a braggin bout his billities ta shoot plum.  All the time we wuz wonderin how many ores he dun had in the water.  Most mount’n men will bet they kin out shoot the other, but it takes lest two ta make the shoot’n an only one ta win.

A thin skin bag wuz filled full ‘o water frum the crik and tied to a fringe frum my leather pants.  Hung in a tree at bout 30 yards or so and the ol bragger loaded up.

Once all the bettin wuz sure, we dun all got reel quiet.  Ol bragger took plenty time a aimin.  (Later we dun called what he dun..superior squirmin, squintin, squattin and scorin..).  As he squoose that trigger smooth, he didn’t even rock with the recoil.  He wuz plum still.  It were like slow motion—the fire an smoke cumin out ‘o that barrel, the patched ball just ahead.

We watched as that ball dun went down range an hit that fringe right on the knot.  What happen next wuz the most amazing thang what this ‘Ol Butt dun ever saw.

The twist in the knot grabbed up that ball, and made the ball faller it round an round backwards from how it were tied.  It were so fast that the fringe dun untied itself an that bag ‘o water just hung there in the air fur a second.

With the fringe flappin in the breeze, that there bag had nuth’n ta do but drop!  Which it did quite smarlty, spillin the hol contents on the dirt!

Boy did that ol boy git mad!  He owed ever body in camp cuz he didn’t cut the fringe and he sur nuff spilt water all or.

I been practicing that shot ever since an aint been gud nuff ta untie the fringe yet.  One ‘o these days I be as gud as that ol boy.

Bears Butt

Summer 2000