When he returned that evening he seemed very
much terrified, and when questioned as to the cause, he replied that he
"had met with a wild baste in the woods, and was kilt entirely wid the
fright uv it."
We endeavoured to gain from him a description of the animal he had
seen, but for some time were unable. "What color was the animal?"
enquired Mrs. ----. "Indade Ma'am, an' its jist the color uv a dog he
was," answered Terry. This reply was greeted with a burst of laughter
from all present, at which he was highly offended. In order to pacify
him I said, "we would not laugh at you, Terry, only that dogs are of so
many different colors that we are as much in the dark as ever regarding
the color of the animal you saw." "Well thin," replied he, "if you must
know, he was a dirthy brown, the varmint, that he was." From what we
could learn from him we were led to suppose that he had met with one of
those harmless little creatures, called the "Woodchuck," which his
nervous terror, aided by the deepening twilight, had magnified into a
formidable wild beast.
A few evenings after, two or three friends of the family chanced to
call; and in course of conversation some one mentioned an encampment of
Indians, who had recently located themselves in our vicinity, for the
purpose of gathering material for the manufacture of baskets, and other
works of Indian handicraft.
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