Part 15 (2/2)

”I've got so on,” answered Darry ”I didn't want to asped Captain Moore ”And you didn't let go even with that snake at your heels? Well, you like a fish better than I do, I can tell you that”

Again the pole bent and threatened to break, but Darry knehat he was doing, and promptly let the fish have more line Then he wound in, and as the fish unexpectedly ca, steady sweep, and up ca violently

”My, what a whopper!” cried Joe ”He ht pounds!”

”He felt as if he weighed about forty when he was in the water,”

returned Darry, a little crest-fallen that the catch was not larger

”That's the biggest fish I've ever seen taken out of this strea captain ”You can be proud of it, Darry But to hold on when that snake was behind you----” He shook his head

”Oh, I knew you'd coht have been too late”

”Was it a poisonous one?”

”Soeon up at the fort says not

Still I wouldn't want to risk a bite”

”Perhaps there are ested Joe

”No, the peculiarity of this variety of snakes is that they always travel alone If they ht until one or the other is dead”

”Did you ever see such a fight, Will?”

”I did, when I first ca over a rocky trail whenahead to find out what had frightenedeach other, withEach was so interested in the other that neither noticed me or the horse They faced each other for fully a an to hiss louder and louder Suddenly they sprang at each other, and one snake was stung in the eye He curled himself around the other snake's neck, and in an instant both were in a tight ball They rolled around and around a the rocks Once in a while a head would show itself, and then there would be radually apart, and then one snake crawled sloay, more dead than alive The other snake proved to be dead, with both eyes torn from its head”

”Didn't you kill the other snake?” asked Darry

”I did That's the first and only battle I ever saeen snakes, and it was terrible while it lasted, I can tell you that”

Fishi+ng over, they went into camp, and here rested until old Benson came back

”The colonel was tickled to death to receive so much deer meat,” said the old scout ”And he says you can stay until Saturday night if you wish His lady said she had been wanting solad to think he could be out four days rand tiht over yonder mountain, can't we?”

”To be sure,” answered the scout

”Is the hunting good over there?” asked Joe

”Yes, lad There used to be soet a buffalo by alla buffalo, especially a bull,” said the young captain ”If we do sight a buffalo you let Benson e the whole affair”