Rocky Mountain Sam — page 147: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

138 : ROCKY MOUNTAIN SAM. stupid and ill at ease, and the neck of a suspicious looking bottle peeped out from the bosom of his hunting-coat. ‘<T piloted you h’yer,” he said, gruffly, ‘fan’ | reckon vou won't have no trouble in findin’ your way back alone. Jl’ve business at my cabin beyond the lake. Mornin’!” He rode away without another word. An hour later the balloon was seen approaching, and as it settled over their heads, something was dropped from it. At first it appeared like nothing but a long pole, with some- thing struggling at the lower end. But in an instant a number of folds spread themselves out around it lke a vast umbrella, and it came drifting down toward them as_ softly and airily as agreat snow-flake. It was a parachute. ‘But what’s them things on the end of it?’ cried one of the men. ‘They look like two tiger-cats afightin’.” He was not far out of the way, for as the parachute settled slowly down toward them, the objects attached to it were distinctly made out to be two wild-cats of very great size, with their tails tied together, and locked in deadly combat. Mollie and Fayaway screamed, and the men shouted with laughter, but there was a general scamper to get out of the way and a drawing of revolvers as by common consent, as the infuriated animals fluttered down upon the ground, spitting, screaming, and tearing each other as only, this fiercest of the feline species is capable of doing; but ashower of bullets speedily ended their struggle, while the vast para- chute—about sixty feet in circumference—tilted helplessly over in the sunlight, and was examined with much curiosity. | ‘‘Look out below! we are about to come to an anchor!” called out Sam’s merry voice from above, and in a few moments the car was fairly grounded. ‘Kinder took you by surprise, I reckon, eh?” cried Sam, springing lightly to the ground. : ‘“T should think so,” said Mollie. ‘How on earth did you effect the capture of those dangerous animals?” ‘What! Yon’ve gone to work and killed the poor pussies!” exclaimed the hunter, with pretended concern. ‘I thought you and Fayaway would be delighted with ’em in the way of pets, you know.” | “We found them in the top of a fir-tree on the moun: 1 com 200l SS) (e(o)