Seems pert neer like yisterday a bunch of us wuz up near the Sweet Lake area tryin ta make meat.  All us wuz dun out meat  in the camp an needed sum perty quick like.  The squaws wuz makin us feel down right not gud, cuz we dun runned outa meat.  So here we is.

You knows this plenty by now what we is dang good at shootin our smoke poles an all and we is about ta show how gud we is one more time on this here hunt.  They be a heap o game in this here spot we is campin an we knowed the meat pole is gonna be full right quick like.  Whenst we dun gitted ourselves outten the bedroll the next morn, we dun looked up at all the stars what wuz out an we dun said what a beaut of a day wuz ahead.  They wuzzn’t one cloud coverin any stars an there wuz a sure chill in the air what wuz tellin us winter wuz a comin, but not too soon yet.

I kin see them stars in my mind right now when I close my eyes.  The whole of the sky what I cud see with both of my eyes at the same time wuz filled to the top with stars.  Big stars, little stars and stars what cud bearly be seed.  Sum stars put tagither even made designs an such if ya used yer magination sum.  Oh, it wuz perty.  An offin in the distant we cud heer us a cyote what wuz howlin an barkin.  Dang nice place ta be on such a fine morn as that.

We lit up a fire an got us sum coffee brewed an wuz sittin waitin fer light enough ta git ta huntin.  Kint shoot in the dark ya know, an them critters kin see whenst we kint see an so they wud skeedadle as we dun comed down the trail.  So, there we sit talkin an drinkin our coffee whilst waitin.

Dry Dog, he dun said he gonna kill him a big ol buck what wuz up on that there mountain an he be back in camp an have it hung right perty like on the meat pole first afor any body else cud be back ta camp with theys buck.  Well, whenst he dun said that it brought a good stir frum the rest of us, what wuz huntin an we dun made us some bets on who gonna be doin that first afor anybody else.

Twernt too long a time an it wuz pert neer light nuff ta see, but not pert neer light nuff ta see yous sights.  Iffn ya goes huntin, an ya kint see yer sights, ya might as well not be huntin, cuz ya aint gonna be killin no bucks.  All ya gonna do is skeer them off.  So we wait a bit longer.  Magpie dun cums ta the fire an sez he has sum room in his wagon iffn anybody wants ta  git huntin where he is gonna go.  An a bunch dun gits up an heads fer his wagon with all theys possibles an guns an such.  Dry Dog, he says he is gonna ride out his own way, by hisself an that will be just dandy with the rest of us.

I dun got me a wagon too an I ask if they be anybody else what wants ta ride with me, cuz I’m gonna go ta a far off ridge an hunt.  My far off place ta hunt is opposite direction frum  where Magpies wagon is goin.  Pert soon my wagon is full o mountain men,  possibles an such an they is ready ta git gone.  When I git up on my wagon, I kin see it be light nuff ta see my sights sure nuff.  An off we goed.

Twerent long down the trail we start ta see the game what we dun cumed for, but none is bucks, an we dun comed ta git bucks.  Aint gonna be no girl deer on our meat pole fer sure.  That there morn it wuz such a perty morn ta say the least an soon the sun wuz cumin in our eyes an makin it hard ta see if they be any bucks er not around.  So I pull the reigns an we angle aside the sun light.  We kin see perty good now an we start ta see bucks.  They wuz far off, so we dun sneeked up ta git closer fer a shot.  Them bucks wuz smart an they dun gits outa there fast like an we did not even git ta shoot.  So offn we goed ta see ifn we kin find sum more.

Well, we made a big ol circle in our drivin the wagon an pert soon we is back ta camp.  No bucks in my wagon this morn.  We dun feel it be a gud time ta have us sum lunch.  So Many Steps he dun starts up the fire right gud an we start ta cookin up sum grub.  Bout the time we be eatin, in cums Magpie an his wagon an we is all surprised like, when his wagon dun got no bucks in it.  His wagon always has bucks in it when he dun comes back ta camp.  Not so this here time.  An he an the rest join in ta eatin with us.

We is dun eatin soon nuff an here cummed Dry Dog ridin in on his horse, an it be pert plain he dun got no buck neether.  We all go ta talkin bout what bucks we did dun seed an  how many took shots, but none wuz took even tho there wuz a heap o bucks seed.  Dry Dog, he dun cooks hisself up some vittles an we talk sum more about what next ta do.  Dry Dog he says he is gonna ride up a differnt way till it gits dark an then he be cumin back ta camp.  I plan out my wagon ride fer the same part of the day an so duz Magpie.  All what rode wid me an my wagon this here morn is gonna go wid me agin, an same with Magpies wagon load.

Onst Dry Dog gits dun eatin, we load up the wagons an head on out.  This time sure, we be cumin back ta camp wid bucks.  Dry Dog mounts up an heads his way an we all goed our way.  After a long ride in the wagon that afternoon the sun it is goin down an we turn round cuz by the time we git back ta camp it is gonna be dark.  Cummin back down the trail what we just cummed up we is seein all sort of deer, but no bucks.  Then when it is pert neer too dark ta see yer sights we start ta see bucks, but they is jumpy an we kint git no gud shots.  This goes on till it is too dark ta see ours sights so we head back ta camp at a quicker trot.

Back at camp we seed Magpie an his wagon dun got there afirst before us.  But he dun not got no bucks in his wagon, just like me an my wagon.  Twernt long, here cums Dry Dog ridin in an across his saddle lays a big ol buck, what Dry Dog dun kilt!  We is all happy like an we help him tie it ta the meat pole.  He is a happy mountain man among mountain men an we is happy too.  He dun showed us who gonna bring in a big ol buck first ta camp an sure nuff, he dun showed us but gud.  We noticed one perculiar thing about his buck tho, when we wuz hangin it up in the meat pole an that wuz it wuz soakin wet an we aint had no rain ner nuttin.  So we asked ol Dry Dog bout that very thing.  Why is the buck what you dun bringed in ta camp all wet?

Dry Dog, he perseeds ta tell us his story an it goed sumpin like this here:  Well I wuz ridin down the trail all lonesome like lookin left an right ta see ifn I kin see a buck.  I wuz seein lots of girl deer, but I aint huntin ta git me a girl deer, I’m after a buck.  I cummed round a corner in the trail an there stands this here buck.  Big as big kin be.  So I hol up on my hoss an step of wid my rifle an take aim real careful like.  When ol trusty went off with a bang the smoke filled the air an hung right there not letting me see zactly where my ball dun goed.  But I dun heared it hit the buck real hard like.  When the smoke cleared, the buck wuz gone, but I cud heared it up the hill in the thick trees.  I perceed ta reload ol trusty, an as I’m bout dun reloadin, down the hill cums my buck an jumps head long right inta a pond o water what wuz longside the trail!  I kint believe what I wuz seein.  I dun thought I dun kilt that buck an he wuz up the hill all dead like, but he dun cummed back ta life an jumped right inta that there pond.  Then it goes ta staggerin an movin towards the edge of the water an then tips over dead as dead.

I sure wuz glad what that buck dun commed over ta the edge, cuz otherwise I wooda had ta git ta swimming ta git him outta that there pond, an ya knowed I kint swim so gud as ta be draggin no big ol buck wid me.  An so, that is how he dun gitted hisself all wet like.

We had ourselves a gud ol time wid that story fer a long time after that.  Even tho he dun winned the bettin an bringed in the first big ol buck fer the meat pole, we dun figgered he might have part of one of them retriever type dogs in his blood.  And even now, whenever we dun ride passed that there pond we still talk about ol Dry Dog an his big ol buck jumpin in it.

Bears Butt

June 28, 2011