Ashtabula weekly telegraph. (Ashtabula, Ohio) 1880-1886, 1880-07-09
Capt. Yore's Encounter with Grizzly.


THE train was delayed several hours.
There were but half o dozen passengers
all told, and they all got out on the little
station platform. In looking down
The valley from the station (Truckee is
away up the mountains on the main line
Of the Central Pacific Railroad), we
could see some kind of an animal COM
ing down out Of the timber and making
It's way over the top of the snow toward
lhe river. 1t looked like steer or
mule, and none of the travellers thought
It was anything else.
The snow was four feet deep and
frozen so hard that one could walk over
the top without breaking through.
Capt. Vincent Yore, of St. Louis, man
well known in steamboat circles both in
st. Louis and Pittsburgh, and, in fact,
ali along the river, was one of the pass
engers. There is considerable of the
daredevil underneath his quiet demean-
or, having run the upper Missouri in his
early days, and attended many an
Indian council along with Gen. Sher-
man when the General lived in st.
Louis. Yore was returning from San
Francisco, where he had been to settle
some railroad business for St. Louis
parties, and was fixed up neat and
bright as a new pin. He spied the
animal and said he thought it was
bear, and that if he had a gun hewould
20 down and shoot it. We all laughed
at him, for he did not look much like a
bear hunter, and the station agent,
a burly fellow with a red flannel shirt,
and boots outside of his pants-a regu-
lar picture of fortyvniner-joined in,
saying he would give him a gun If he
wanted to shoot the grizzly. Capt.
Yore was good shot and could be cool
under trying circumstances. The sta
ton agent, who was at once the express
agent, ticket agent, baggage smasher,
and everything combined, went into his
little office and brought out beautiful
breech-loading rifle. Handing it to
Yore, he said sarcastically, "Here's a
gun" Capt. Yore took the gun and
started toward the end of the platform.
The passengers, of course, never
dreamed he was in earnest.
The station agent called him back
when he had gone down off the steps,
and, bringing out little rat-terrier
dog of the light woolly Scotch pattern,
said:
"Here, you'n want a dog when you
90 bear-hunting."
Capt. Yore turned back, picked up
the dog, and, putting it under the flap
of his coat, started down toward the
bear. The grizzly had by this time got
out far enough to be plainly seen, as he
made his way across the narrow valley.
He looked to be the size of a horse, and
did not seem to care whether there was
any body within q short distance of him
or not. The Rocky Mountain grizzly is
the largest and, when aroused, the most
ferocious of all animals in western
North America. Travellers on the Union
and Central Pacific Railroad are
familiar with the specimen that is Gagged
on the platform at Lathrop, an eating
station of the California end of the line.
1t has foot like a fifteenth amend
ment," and is as large as Kerry COW.
The bear kept quietly in his course,
and Capt. Yore went straight toward
him. The station agent realized the
danger Yore was in, and his anxiety
was quickly communicated to the passen-
gers. They got closer and closer, until
they were only about the length of the
train apart. Yore stopped, took out the
little dog, and set him down. The ter
rier made for the bear at once, and, GO
| ing behind him, bit him on the heel.
The bear turned around to see what had
scratched him on the foot, and the min
ute he turned Yore, who had been
standing motionless, watching the bear
as it came face toward him, brought
the rifle up to his nose and flashed it at
him. The bear Immediately slapped
himself on the shoulder with his paw
and went toward the Captain. The
passengers, who were watching him,
were now wild with excitement.
"He has hit him, said the old Cali
fornians on the train, I" and now he
must look out for him." Yore never
moved. The little snipe of dog bit
the bear on the heel again. Yore un-
loaded on him. The bear slapped him
self on the other shoulder and straight
ened up as if to go quickly at Yore
Then the beast broke through the snow
and most disappeared from our sight.
He tumbled and rolled and waltzed
around. The old Californians were
almost breathless with fright. "The
boar is trampling out a place to fight;
run, runl" they screamed to Eore, but
he stood motionless as statue. The
little dog flew around the top of the
pit the bear had made and barked
Presently the bear put out his head to
get his assailant's position, and, fixing
his eyes on Yore, he crawled up out of
bis hole in the snow. He had Just
steadied himself on his four legs when
the dog bit him once more, and Yore
let him have it again, quick as flash,
the moment he turned, and another
time the grizzly slapped himself with
his paw, indicating he had been hit. He
started on trot toward Yore, who now
had four loads left in his rifle. Twice
again the dog bit the bear, and at each
time as he turned Yore unloaded into
him, bringing his rifle up to his face as
quickly as If he threw weaVer's shuttle.
After he had fred the fourth load and
the grizzly's pace was not slackened up
much, as you could scarcely notice his
limp, Yore turned 10 move back few
PAGES, and as he did so he broke
through the snow and went down to his
armpits. The passengers, expecting
every moment TO see the infuriated
monster crush poor Yore, covered their
eyes in perfect terror.
The bear had got within few yards
of YOre, and but a few seconds would
decide it. The dog bit him again, and
YOre, who had the rife firmly sighted,
poured 1t into him, two loads in quick
succession, and stretched him, as he
was almost at the end of the ride. The
whole thing occurred in less time than
1t takes to tell it. The passengers rushed
down with a shout, They brought the
huge carcass back in triumph.-Cor