Nelson Family Juvenilia
Box 1 Folder 37
The Pioneersman, Vol. 1, No. 6 - 1893-01-13

[Section of longer periodical]

THE PIONEERSMAN

A TAME FOX
One day soon after haying I thought I would drive to town and stop and call and see an old friend of mine and have a talk for I had not seen him for sometime so I harnessed up and drove over there soon after that I arrived my friends son came in and with him a fox that I saw was a tame one "Where did Jim get that" I asked. "Tell Mr Goutherly the story of how you got it" my friend said to his son so Jim after some hesitation told it and this is it as near as I can recall it. "Jack and I went down to the brook one day last winter to try and over flow the ice and so have skating for the ice was all covered with snow about three inches deep. We went up to where there was a pallor small rapid that was frozen over Jack and I cut into the ice in two different places but after cutting down about six inches we gave it up and up a few yards farther here I stopped and began chopping while Jack went up a little farther. I had to cut downa bout a food and a half before I struck water and I did not touch water only the stones on the bottom but I could hear water running near so I cut along one side a piece and soon struck water but by putting ice in we could not seem to stop the flow any. (Jack had just come down to [help?] me so I kept cutting along but it did not make it flow over any when I put a lot of ice down after I had made a hole down to the water. At last Jack's feet got cold and I told him that he might go to the house and get his feet and hands warm so off he went and I stayed down there and kept on chopping I had got about ready to go up to the house when on looking up the brook I saw a small yellow animal that I first took to be a dog but at a second look I saw it was a fox and it was coming a long down the brook towards me. Why it was so tame and with this thought I stepped back into the edge of the bushes a little but when I had done so I saw that the fox was not watching me but the hole in the ice where I had been chopping. He walked slowly up to it and then jumped down on to the ice and began drinking when he had began to drink I stepped out with my ac, intinding to kill the fox but he did not appear to be afraid so I let him be and when he had got through he hopped out and came up to me but I was a little afraid that he might be mad enough to bite for all he had drank water I did not pat him much but started for the house keeping watch of him all the time when we came to the house the fox acted a little afraid but still he followed me and we went in and when he Jack came out my fox hurried around to the other side of me and kept as close to mea s possible but he soon got used to the folks. At night we have to keep him shut up and in the day time we keep pretty close watch of him to see that he dont catch any of the chickens. The cats have not got used to him yet and Jim ended up with a smile. I stopped a while longer and then went home and wrote this out for this paper.
Frank Southerly

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DEFEATED
It was a bright sunshiny day in the middle of September that my story begins. And the palce is in a small village up among the mountains of western part of Big Continent. Two young men were walking along a broad dusty road leading from the village talking of a good many different things that interested them. The tallest one we will call Mark the other Frank. Mark had come to this villag eonly lately and was working as clearly in a store there his father and mother were living on a farm Zion and as the farm was small enough so that his father could work it weasily, Mark had come here to work and lay up a little money for himself. Frank has always lived here and was working in the same sotre that Mark did and had got aquainted with him and this afternoon the head of the firm had given them the afternoon as a holiday and they were taking a walk out in the country soon another young man came in to the view. "There comes Big I" spoke up Frank "he's a rather queer fellow." ["]But why do you call him Big I" inquired Mark. "Oh! we began to call him so while we were going to school, we used to call him big I when he felt proud as he does now he wouldnt let anybody help him or give him any advise and would always say. "I can do it myself" or "I know all about it" and this made some of the boys mad so they called him 'Big I' then some times he would get a little out of sorts and try and make himself as small as anybody then the boys would call him Little I to make fun of him and that's the way that the others have got to calling him what they do." As Frank closed this bit of history Big I had got opposite to them but neither boys had noticed him but as Frank closed they looked up and noticed him and they also noticed that he gave them an angry look. "He struts along as though he was as big as Mr Myth" said Mark in a whisper to Frank but he did not speak low enough but so that Bit I heard. He turned red in an instant and whirled around and said "did you mean that? If you did come up and settle it" Mark turned and laughed and replied "Yes I said it and I mean it and if you want I will settle it" and with this Mark took a few steps towards Big I. But Big I backed off and said "I do not care to fight but I will get my pay for this" and turned and walked away. "You dont suppose he will try to do any thing do you?" asked Mark. "No, he was only doing that to try and frighten us that was all" Frank replied. It was getting almost dark when Mark and Frank turned and started back home when they had got near the outskirts of the village some one began to yell "Help! help! Thieves! Thieves!" The story frightened the boys but they started on the run and soon arrived opposite to where the sounds came from. They proceeded to turn and start in that direction and lend what help they could but they had gone but a little way is when Mark caught sight of a boy crouched down in a clump of [breaks?] near them and on looking closely on the other side he saw another one he punched Frank and pointed them out. When the boys saw that they were found out the boys sprang up and with a yell of "Come on boys" started towards Mark and Frank but these two saw what was up and so turned and left on the run the others did not follow them long so they soon stopped. "The old fellow did not come it on us that time but if these boys had kept out of sight we would" said Frank. "Yes that was the time he got defeated." Mark replied. They soon arrived in the village and went to their rooms which were a couple of rooms in a house belonging to a man named Waldo who with his wife and one boy about twenty lived in the rest of the house. The boys had to cook their own meals but a good many times they would get their dinners at the bakery instead of going home. One night a few day slater while they were at their rooms there came a knock at the door and when they opened it there stood the police "come on my boys you are the ones that tore the clothes almost off from that boy called Big I and now you must come with me" The boys were so surprised that they didnt speak for a minute and then Mark said, "When was it done" "It was to night only about fifteen minutes ago" ["]Well we did not do it for we have been in the house all the evening" Mark replied "You can not prove that" the policeman said. "Yes we can" said Frank and he ran back into the house and called Mrs Waldo who came down. "Do you call it that these boys were out smashing around this evening" she asked when she got down. "Thats what Big I said" the policeman replied. "Well I can tell you that they were at home this evening for they got home from the store about six I know for the[y] came up here with some mail then about half an hour later they came up here and they and my boy talked politics for as much as an hour and they had not been down stairs but a few minutes when you came. "It must be so then" the policeman replied and turned around and went off. "What next do you suppose Big I will do to try and injure us" said Frank as he and Mark went in to the house. "I should suppose that he might have done about al he could by this time" Mark replied but it did not prove so but every thing went on well for a few days and Mark and Frank had concluded that nothing more would happen but one evening as they were coming home from the store and had got near the upper end of the village they a few boys coming down street among them they saw Big I and they passed he did not give them very friendly looks and as he had got a foot further on some one grabed Mark this surprised Mark and I brought from him in ejaculation and whirled quickly around for all the one behind him tried to hinder him from doing so. The prolamation and noise attrakd Franks attention and he turned around then insued a battle between four other boys and Mark and Frank. Frank and Mark stood their ground nobly but would probably have got worsted if it had not been for a policeman that was seen coming up the street. For when he was noticed the others scattered leaving Mark and Frank alone. When the boys left Mark and Frank went up street to their home and the police man did not trouble them. About a week later a letter came offering Mark a place in a mill, a higher wages than he was getting so he went and although he frequently got a letter from Frank nothing was said of their enimies.
Drake Drew

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GREAT CITIES OF THE WORLD

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