“How is this, Joe?” inquired Glenn, scarce able to repress a smile at the ridiculous posture of his man.

“I hardly know myself,” replied Joe, casting a silly glance at his treacherous pony; and after examining his limbs and finding no injury had been sustained, continued, “I fired as you directed, and when the smoke cleared away, I found myself lying just as you see me here.  I don’t know how Pete contrived to get from under me, but there he stands, and here I lie.”

“Load your gun, and try it again,” said Glenn.

“I’d rather not,” said Joe.

“Then I will,” replied Glenn, whose horsemanship enabled him to retain the saddle in spite of the straggles of Pete, who, after several discharges, submitted and bore it quietly.

Joe then mounted and set out for the designated thicket, while Glenn galloped off in another direction, followed by the hounds.

When Joe arrived at the hazel thicket, he continued in the saddle, and otherwise he would not have been able to see over the prairie for the tall grass which had grown very luxuriantly in that vicinity.  There was a path, however, running round the edge of the bushes, which had been made by the deer and other wild animals, and in this he cautiously groped his way, looking out in every direction for the deer.  When he had progressed about halfway round, he espied them feeding composedly, about three hundred paces distant, on a slight eminence.  There were at least fifteen of them, and some very large ones.  Fearful of giving the alarm before Glenn should fire, he shielded himself from view behind a cluster of persimmon bushes, and tasted the ripe and not unpalatable fruit.  And here he was destined to win his first trophy as a hunter.  While bending down some branches over head, without looking up, an opossum fell upon his hat, knocking it over his eyes, and springing on the neck of Pete, thence leaped to the ground.  But before it disappeared Joe had dismounted, and giving it a blow with the butt of his musket it rolled over on its side, with its eyes closed and tongue hanging out, indicating that the stroke had been fatal.

“So much for you!” said Joe, casting a proud look at his victim; and then leaping on his pony, he gazed again at the deer.  They seemed to be still entirely unconscious of danger, and several were now lying in the grass with their heads tip, and chewing the cud like domestic animals.  Joe drew back once more to await the action of Glenn, and turning to look at the opossum, found to his surprise that it had vanished!

“Well, I’m the biggest fool that ever breathed!” said he, recollecting the craftiness imputed to those animals, and searching in vain for his game.  “If ever I come across another, he’ll not come the ’possum over me, I’ll answer for it!” he continued, somewhat vexed.  At this juncture Glenn’s gun was heard, and Joe observed a majority of the deer leaping affrighted in the direction of his position.  The foremost passed within twenty yards of him, and, his limbs trembling with excitement, he drew his gun up to his shoulder and pulled the trigger.  It snapped, perhaps fortunately, for his eyes were convulsively closed at the moment; and recovering measurably by the time the next came up, this trial the gun went off, and he found himself once more prostrate on the ground.