The Cecil Whig. [volume] (Elkton, Md.) 1841-current, 1865-09-02
EEN'S BEAR.

Thirty years ago, my father. q half-pay
captain. emgrated to Lower Canada. He
bought farm in the vicinity of Stanstead,
where he settled with a family of three boys
and as many girls. There were too many Of
us for his means in England, where boys
often cost more than they are worth, and
possibly this is sometimes true of girIs.-
Brother Ben was nineteen when We went
into the bush brave boy, and a good lea.
der of his younger brothers, and good
portector for his 81 ters, who were younger
rtl.
We had a log house, as most settlers had
then, to begin with. 1t was quite an arsto-
cratic ediiicc for that region having three
large rooms, while most log houses had but
two rooms, and many but one. 1t was
ccicd with hemlocIi bark, smooth side
toward the rooms, for we were to spend one
winter in it. We moved to oar Opening"
the first of May. and had the summer be
fore US. We were full Of spirit and hope
a new country and q new life, with all before
you to conquer, and the consciousness of
strength to make the conquest, is constant
inspiration.
Beh's bear was his first winning in the
game which he had set himselfto play with
She wild nature of the woods. | was then
ten years old, and the bear is the one thing
that stands out most clearly in the dim dis
lance of thirty years ago. Ben had shot the
mother bear, and the same ball that killed
her killed one of her cubs the other he
brought home in his bosom. " Poor little
fellow" he said, " he is too Young to mourn
for his mother. and intend to be mother
to him." And he kept his word.
The small beast slept with Ben, always
laying his nose over Bens shoulder. He
grew apace used to think we could see
him grow. He was very fond of milk and
butter, and be ate bread and milk, and mush
and milk, with avdity. During the first
winter, his was numbed sort of half life
In the early spring he was a happy bear,
going everywhere with his MASTER and only
miserable if he lost sight of him. He was
entirely ohedient to my brother, and always
woke him in the morning. AS my father
was about to build a frame house, he sent
Ben to buy material Of man who had saw
mill in the next town. This was Bruins
first affection, for he could not accompany
his master. Ben stole away from him, and
when the bear knew that he was gone, he
began to search for him. He went to my
brothers bed, and, began at the head, in
serting his nose under the sheets and came
out at the foot then he turned and rever-
sed the process This strange search he
would keep up by the hour, if he were not
shut out of the room. lie took possession
of his masters clothes and other belongings,
and used them so roughly, still seeking for
their owner-inserting himself into legs Of
trousers and sleeves of coats-that my mo-
Their locked everything in a wardrobe
Nothing Of Ben's was left out; except n
large folio Bible, which rested on the top of
a wardrobe six or seven feet from the floor.
Up this, the bear contrived to climb, and
taking the Bible in a tender embrace, he
curled himself up. and dropped to the floor
with It. My mother attempted to take it
from him, but for the first time he showed
fight. Many blows from the broomstick
were administered, but the bear held fast to
the book, and my mother came off second
best from the contest This was fatal to her
authority, as we discovered afterward.
When Ben came back, the bears Joy knew
no bounds. He lost his love for the sacred
volume, and had no care what became of it.
He showed his disrespect for my mother by
taking the butter from the tea-table and