The Cecil Whig. [volume] (Elkton, Md.) 1841-current, 1854-11-04

who have crossed the great plains and desert
tracts that stretch from the Mississippi to the
shores of the South Sea. Hundreds of stories
of this animal, more or less true, have of late
attained circulation through the columns of
the press and the pages of the Traveller, until
the grizzly bear is becoming almost as much
an object of interest as the elephant, the hip.
popotamus, or the king of beasts himself.
Speaking seriously, he is Il dangerous as
sailant. White hunt tiers never attack him
the Indians consider the kilinga grizzly bear
feat equal to the scalping Of human foe.
These never attempt to hunt him, unless
when a large party is together: and the hunt
is, a,nong some trihes, preceded by a feast
and bcar-dancc. 1t is often the lot of the
solitary trapper to meet with this four-!ootcd
enemy, and the encounter is rated as equal
to that with two hostile Indians From a
celebrated 'mountain man." ! had the fol-
lowing story of stories, which give in the
rude patois of the narrator:-
"Young fcllur, when you scare up grizzly,
take my advice, and gle i'm a wide berth
that is, unlcs yur unkimmun well mounted.
Ov coorSe. cf yur critcr kin be depended up
on, an thurs no brush to 'tanslc him, yur
safe enough as no grizzly, as ever | seed, kin
catch up wi boss, whar the grounds open
an clur. FIR all that, whar the thinner 5
clost an brushy, an the ground o that sort
whar boss mout STUNNED, it are alters the
safest plan to let ole Eph'm slide. I've seed
grizzly pull down as good a boss as ever
tracked parairy, whar the critter he'd got
bothered in ticket. The f,llur that strad-
died him only saved himself by hookin' on to
the limb O. tree. 'Twant two minnits aforc
this child kim up-hcarin' the rumpus. |
he'd good sight o the bar, an sent a bullet
sixty to the pound-into the varmit's brain
pam when he Immediately cawallop,d over.
But 'twur too late to save the boss. lie wur
rubbed out The bar had half skinned him,
an wur tarrin at his CUTS! Wagh!'
Here the trapper unsheathed his clasp-kife,
and having cut "chunk" f'om plug of
real "Jccmcs' River" stuck it into his check
and proceeded with his narration. young
fellur, reck'n I've seed a putty consid'ablc
O. the grizzly bar in my time. IF that thur
chap who writes about all sorts O. varmint-
Awdoobong think, they calls hm-hcd
seed as much O. the grizzly as hcv, he mout
a gin a hull book consarnin' the crittcr. Fl
| he'd plug O bacca for grizzly I've rubbed
out, it 'ud keep my jaws Vaughn for good
twcl'month, rcck'n. Yc-cs, young fcllur,
I've done some bar-killin'-T hcv that, an
no miS'aIc!
oval, I wur a gwine to tell you ov sar-
cumstancc that happened to this child about
two yecrn ago. wur upon the Platte,
atwccn Chimbly Rock an Saramcs'. | WIN
engage as hunter an guide to Il carryvan O
imcgrant folks that wur on thur way to Ore
gon. Ov coorSc alters kept ahead O. the
carryvan, an picked the place for thur camp.
Wal one AFTERNOON he'd halted whar seed
some thinner, which ur scarce article about
Chimbly Rock. This, thort I, II do for
camrin' ground; so got down, pulled the
saddle off o my ole mar, an stakcl the crit
ter upon the best patch o grass that wur
near. intending she should hcv her gul-full
atore the camp-cattlc kim up to bother her. ]
he'd shot black-tail buck, an after lindin
a fire, | roasted griskin' o him, an ate it.
Still thur want no sign o the carryvan, an
artcr hanging the buck out o reach o the
wolves, TUX up my rifle, an set out to
rackynoitcr the ncighborhood. My mar bcn'
somc'at tjad,d | let her Craze away, an went
afoot; an that, let me tell you, young fcllur,
ar abount the most fooichcst thing you kin
do upon a parairy. want long afore prov
cd it; but I'll kun to that by'm by.
"Wal, fust clonb conside able hill that
gin me view bcyont. Thur wur a good
sized parairy layin' torst the south an west.
Thur wnr no trees 'ccptin' an odd cottonwood
hyur an thur on the hillSidcs. About mile
off seed flock O. goats-what you, young
lcllur. call antclopcs, though goats they ur
as sure as goats is goats. Thur wunt no
kiver near thcm-not a STICK for the parairy
wur as bar as yur hand; so secd at Gimp,
it 'ud be no us tryn' to approach, unless !
TUX some plan to dccoy the critters. l soon
thort O dodge, an went back to the camp
for my blanket, which wur red Mackinaw.
This knew nd be the very thing to fool the
goats with, an set out torst them.
''For the fust half mile or so, carried the
blanket under my arm. Then | spread it
out, an walked behind it until I was 'ithin
three or four hundred yards O. the animals.
kept my eye on 'em through a hole in the
blanket. They wur CROWN scary, an he'd
begun to run about in circles; so when seed
this, knew it wur time to stop. Wal. !
Numbered down, an still kccpin' the blanket
spread out aforc me, hung it upon a sapln'
that he'd brought from the camp. then
stuck the saplin' upright in the ground; an
mind We, young felur, it want so easy to do
that, for the parairy wur hard friz, an he'd
to dig a hole wi my knife. IIowsomdcvcr,
I got the thing rugged at last, an the blanket
hangin' up in front kivered my karkidge
most complete, he'd nothin' more to do
| Int wait till the goats shed como 'ithin ronoc