American citizen. [volume] (Canton, Miss.) 1864-1890, 1875-01-23
A BEAR STORY.

ABE and Ulysses had no business to &c
up the mountain that summer afternoon
but they seized the opportunity, while
their father and mother were in Man
chester on a visit, to do what they had
long wanted to do-to go trout fishing.
The boys lived half way up one of the
Green Mountains and three miles from
the village in the valley. Their father,
Mr.. Waite, was a farmer, and he had no
children except Abe and Ulysses, who
were twins.
Away up on the top of the mountain
was a lake out of which ran the brook
that flowed by Mr.. Waite's house, and
finally joined with several brooks from
the mountain across the valley to
form Otter Creek. On this brook stood
a saw-mill, where every autumn MIR.
Waite sawed the logs he had cut on the
mountain the winter before.
Twenty or thirty years ago the noun
tain was covered with large trees; and
the man who built the sawmill, built at
the same time, out of great logs, gutter,
or d" Shoot" in which to send his timber
down from the top of the mountain to
the mill. The shoot was of the shape
of wine-butt cut open lengthwise; it
was two miles long and SO steep that it
didn't take log more than 1--WE minutes
to go down. Think of that, boys!
business to go up the mountain; but
near the house the brook had been pretty
! well fished, and they wanted to follow 1T
up, to stay all night at the log-house that
had been built for the wood-cutters, and,
in the morning, to fish around the edge
of the pond.
They told Patrick, the hired man,
of mothers goodies" from the pantry,
they started up the brook After they
had gone little way, Abe called out:
"Lyss, suppose we should meet that
bear that Ben Bennett saw up here last
winter"
"Ho," said Lyss, al don't believe that
he saw any bear; besides, if we should
meet one. 1 know what I'd do
"What?" said Abe.
"Why, stand still; and when he came
near and opened his mouth to bite I'd
push the butt end of my tish-pOle down
his throat, and that would kill him; and
then, if he didn't die soon enough, I'd
cut his throat with my jack knife"
81 should be scared" said Abe;
| hope we shan't see him. l should run II
he came after me-"
The boys were now at the bottom OF
the shoot, and since it was easier to fish
standing in it they got in and began to
walk up. They carried their basket of
food by turns; they tished in every little
pool for few minutes, and they had
caught two large strings of trout before
they reached the cabin.
The boys put their fish into the brook
to keep fresh, and then gathered some
leaves and twigs for a fire. Before long
IA fire was burning brightly and five or
six trout were roasting on forked sticks
over it, With these as a relish they ate
their bread and butter on the step OF
he cabin door, and planned how to
spend the money they knew they could
get for the trout from the city boarders
in the village.
After supper they put out their fire
and climbed up the ladder into the lott
where the wood-cutters slept in winter.
After brushing clean place on the floor
| they carried up lot of grass to lie upon :;
then they went down and shut the door
and put a chopping block against it to
| keep out the bear" Abe said. This done,
they went upstairs to bed, and, tired out
with their walk, were soon asleep.
| Next morning the boys woke up early.
After eating their breakfast they took
their fish out of the brook and started for
the lake, which could not, they knew, be
| think of what Ben Bennett had told them
how, when Ben was going up the
brook alone the bear suddenly came out
of "A thicket upon him. and chased him so
tar that he ran all the way down the
mountain in great fright, vowing never
to go up again alone.
"Shouldnt you really be afraid" said
Abe, If he should jump at us out of
that BUSH"
"Poh nor' answered Lyss. 1T
never seemed to me that David was SO
very brave because he killed the lion
and the bear"
Lyss, nevertheless, looked, as he said
this, pretty hard at the bush; and
Jumped when, IA minute later, par
fridge that they had started up flew off
with loud whirr. All ut once Abe
called out:
There he isr'
where" said Lyss, quickly
cover there"
Sure enough, out of the bushes some
thing, some animal, was coming slowly
toward them. Lyss didn't wait to make
IA closer acquaintance but turned around
and ran as fast as he could toward the
shoot, tumbling down and losing his fish
on the way
As Abe started to follow his brother
he heard Il great cracking of bushes be
hind: the animal was following him at IA
run. The noise came nearer and nearer
in spite of all Abe's efforts To escape
He looked around and saw - Farmer
Bcnson's calf, which had strayed away,
and, glad To see n human being again,
was gallopng down the path.
Abe stopped, picked up Lyss' fish, and
driving the calf before him went through
the woods home, where he found his
father and Patrick just starting in search
of him.
Lyss was heartily ashamed of his cow,
ardice; and when he saw Mr.. Benson
pay Abe half IA dollar for bringing the
calf home he determined that he would
try to be ii little more courageous the
next time he saw bear.-Fr0m Stories
for Children.
How Nelly Saw the Old Year Go Ont.