gun in the back yard pricked some fine
powder in the tube--put on a cap and shot the ball out slick and easy.
The winter of my sixth year I had planed on trapping small fur bearing
game--but my parents had planned on me going to school. So they bought
me some books and the first of October I was drilled off to school. I
soon got into trouble at school and the third day traded off my books
for an old gun. the next day I started for school as usual, but after I
was over the hill I turned from the path of duty and education for the
adventurous path of hunting and trapping. I would go to the place I had
hidden my gun the night before and go into the woods and spend the day
returning as school let out. I worked this for about three weeks without
being discovered. I had an older brother who suspected me and finally he
found me in the woods, took my gun from me and broke it around a
tree--he did this because the gun was unsafe it was all tied up with
wire and strings to bind the barrel to the stock--my first gun was a
bloomer.

The following fall I killed my first coon. My brother Lee who is two
years older than myself and I were shooting at a mark in the wood-shed
one rainy fall day, and lo and behold to our surprise a coon came
walking in on us--instantly we flew at the fellow, I, with an ax he with
a club--the coon lasted about two seconds--the yells and disturbance
brought my father and brother to the scene, I was declaring that I had
killed it and my Brother Lee was making the same statements both of us
were talking at the limit of lung power--when my brother who was older
discovered that there was a ribbon around the coons neck and a gold ring
attached showing us this he said "this is a pet coon." At once we
reversed our arguments each declaring that we did not kill the coon.

The beginning of my eight year I coaxed father to allow me to spend the
winter trapping with a man named Walker on the head waters of the
Manistee river. finally he consented and I was the happiest boy on
earth. Hastily I made my toilet for the winter and set out on snow shoes
the middle of November. After several days of brisk and difficult
walking we reached Wild goose creek. Here we made a camp and began to
set traps. I had no gun for it was intended that I was to cook and skin
game. This proved to be my first experience with larger game. Five days
after we struck camp we caught a black bear in a deadfall. It was here
at wild goose creek that I