Belmont chronicle. [volume] (St. Clairsville, Ohio) 1855-1973, 1875-04-15

nneoia,t', the mountains, prospecting for tn
Chance had thrown me in contact wit
this well-known scout and once Texa
: ranger, by name Tom Wilson. whom
L had engaged to accompany me on th
expedition. Tom was a true specime
OF frontiersman-'long, lank, an,
5 loose he used to say, and certainly hi
appearance justified the description
a Originally from Kentucky, he had EN-
Igrated to Texas when it was Repub
: lie; had taken part in its early struggl
, for lndependece, and when that wa
achieved had joined Jack Hayes com
, pany OF Rangers, with which he re
, mained until his superior knowledg,
of woodcraft attracted the attention O
, General Persifer f. Smith, at that tim,
In command of the military depart
ment of Texas, who made him wha
he termed his headquarters scout.
After remaining with the General soms
years, he found his way up into New
Mexico, where he had since been il
the employ of Major General Garland
AS he bore the reputation of being
thoroughly acquainted with the coun.
try-was brave, honest, and generous
as well as one Of the most skillful trail
ers OF the frontier-Is deemed myself
particularly fortunate in securing him
for guide and travelling companion.
AT the time my story opens we had
been i've days on the road, and were
fast approaching the very heart of the
Navojoe country. l.-, d
After an absence of about haitian
hour, Tom appeared, staggering under
the weight OF fine fat doe, which was
soon dressed, and a portion of il broil-
ing over the Goals for our supper. This
over, we threw ourselves upon our
blankets, and, while enjoying the
cheerful light Of our camp fire, Tom re-
lated his experience vith the first griz-
ely he ever saw.
You see, when l first came up to
this country didn't know much about
it; but Gen. Garland allowed / was the
man he wanted to scout for him, ,and go
entered his service. When he was a.
travelin' over the country, used to
make it pint to look round consider
able when in camp, 80 as to get &C.
| quainted with it like, because in my
business feller had to know it
pretty middling well.
I'D heerd good deal about grizzlies,
though I'd never seed one, for they
don't have 'em up in Kentuck, where
L come from, or in Texas either; but
when heeId old trappers talkin' about
'em, and tellin' how savage they was,
l always allowed that there warn't no
kind of bar that was afeerd of, and
l didn't know there was either. You
see, didn't let 'em know that I'd
never'd seed one of the critters, for i
made up my mind that If ever come
acrost one, I'd have a tussle with him,
ard he shouldn't get away from me
neither. 80 must confess felt little
skeery of a critter that could crunch a
man or kill buffalo as easy as could
break an egg. Still, talked big, cause
talk is cheap you know.
Well, one day We was to the north
OF this-canped on the San Juan Riv..
er. The valley was eight or ten miles
long, and perhaps couple wide, with
the biggest oak trees CROWN in it that
| ever seed CROWN anywhere; some of
/ 'em would measure twenty feet round
the butts, and the General said be
reckoned they was more'n a hundred
years DID,
1 got tired of stayin round camp
and doin nothin; SO L walked down to
where the animals was feedin, and
S<tihIo W thO ACluCI dh duu thCl
went on Gown the valley, lookin' at
the rocks and mountains and trees, till |
| got long ways from camp, and cal
culated it would take me good hour
to git back. After startin' on the back |
trail, happened to notice one tree,
which stood little to one side of my |
track, that looked so much larger than
the others, that the idea came into my |
head to Just examine il. had stout |
oak stick in my hand, and as 1 came |
up to the tree hie the trunk two or
three blows, to see if it was sound, you
know. Then I thought I'd see how
big round it was, so that l could tell
the General how many steps it took to
circumnavigate it. So / stuck my
stick i'm the ground for q mark, and
started.
'When / got about half way round, /
happened to look up, and I'll be blest
if there wasn'ta grizzly as big as an
OK, within two feet of me, a-settin' on
his launches, and watchin' me out of
a hole in the stump of that tree.
Il brought up pretty sudden, / tell
You, and took one good look at him.
He looked !heek enough at first glance,
but in u jifly he fixed his eyes on me,
and his great mouth, which was half
open, with teeth, looked waterish like,
as though it was just achin' to get hold
of me. L see him kinder half raise one
of his big paws, and then started. /
heerd him give low, wheezy kind er
grOwl, as he started after me, and /
didn't wait to hear any more. II ever
feller run, the teller was Tom Will
son.
Il reckon thought of every story
I'd ever heerd about grizzlies; how saw
age they was; how they could beat
hoss runniu' any time. The more
thought, the. faster run, and the
palmer could hear the bar a-comin'
after me.
Il declare never knowed 1t was in
me to run so. 1 throwed OF pretty
nigh all the clothes had on, and was
doin' Jest my level best, when sudden
ly tripped ON somethin' or other, and
wert down. Then kHowed 1t was ail
up with me for sartin, and / expected
every minute to feel the bars paw on
me.
Il remembered how I'd heerd Nat
Beal say, that if grizzy thought man
was dead, he'd dig q hole and bury
him, without hurtin' him any, and af-
ter day or two come back and dig
him up. So laid still and held my
breath, waitin for the bar to bury me.
Il could hear him diggin' the hole,
aud, though my eyes was shet, could
see jest how he looked, as he handled
them paws OF his.
1t seemed to me that I laid there
and held my breath for nigh an hour,
expecting every minute to have the
bar roll me into the hole. Afterl
awhile ventured to peek out, and,
would you believe it, there warn't no
bar there!
Il jest picked myself up mighty sud-
den, and made tracks for camp, and i
reckon If ever feller felt beat that fell
Ter was me, then and there. II
1T was long time before said any