One summer there was an incident that still makes me laugh when I think of it. It involved Edward and Edna (Morris) Grimes, who were family friends and lived on the old Jermstad place just northeast of our place. This happened on a summer evening in the early 1950s. Edward had just finished supper and commented to Edna that he was going down to the hen house to lock up the chickens for the night. That was a common practice to keep varmints from getting in the hen house during the night and killing chickens. He had just locked the door when he noticed a red fox just a few feet away from him. When he saw the fox, it startled him, and at the same time he thought it strange that the fox didn't seem to be afraid. The fox moved toward him, Edward moved to the side of the hen house, the fox followed. The fox came closer, and Edward ran. The fox ran after him. Edward made a complete pass around the hen house with the fox in hot pursuit. Things began to get a bit more serious as the fox continued chasing him around the hen house. Edward also noticed he was also losing more and more ground. "Get the gun, Edna!" he screamed. Edna was washing supper dishes and didn't hear his first cry for help. After two or three laps around the hen house, Edward knew full well that he would soon lose the race so he made a mad dash for the house. "Edna! Open the door! Get the gun!" By now Edna saw what was happening and ran to get the gun. The closer Edward got to the back screened-in porch, the closer the fox got to him. With his little friend hot on his heels, he made it through the door and quickly slammed it behind him. He finally made it onto the back porch, but there was a slight problem...the fox made it through the door too. The race continued around a table on the porch. Edward was fast losing his breath and the race. Edna watched from the kitchen, and when the time was just right, she yelled for Edward to come into the house as she strategically opened and closed the door for Edward. The fox was now trapped on the back screen porch. After Edward sat down and rested a few minutes and calmed down a bit they wondered what to do with the fox. They finally decided they would have to shoot it on the porch. They slowly cracked the kitchen door...stuck the gun barrel out and finished off the fox.

An hour or so after all the excitement, Edna and Edward came over to our house and excitedly told us what they had just been through. Edward was still very much shaken as he told us his story. I can assure you of one thing...it was no laughing matter when Edward was describing the action. They sought Grandpa's advice as to what to do with the fox. Grandpa assured them that there must surely be something wrong with the fox, because normally a red fox will not come near a man unless it is sick. Grandpa suggested they send the head of the fox off to be tested, which they did. After several weeks they got a report that the fox was not rabid. If it wasn't rabid, it really had a strong affection for Edward. Weeks later, when Edward would share his story with someone, we still thought the story was rather funny, but Edward viewed it from a more serious point of view. 

        JMW/November 1982

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