Spirit of the age. [volume] (Woodstock, Vt.) 1845-1913, 1883-12-19
A Lively Time with Bears.

r. II. Rawles proposed that we take
bear hunt on Monday morning.
We made every preparation the eve
ming before, and after hearty break
fast, at ) O'clock mounted our horses
for the hunt. We were provided with
Winchester rifles and three well-train-
ed bear dogs. After run of about
an hour they came obay. We hitched
our horses and crawled through the
brush to the dogs. The underground
was so thick that we could not ses ten
feet ahead of us, but at last we found
the bear, a large brown one, perched
on the limb Of a large pine tree, about
a hundred feet from the ground We
took position and commenced firing
Bears are very tenacious of life and this
one proved no exception to the rule,
as we each fired three times before he
fell. When we reached him he was
dead.
We now started back, intending to
cut way in from our horses and to
pack him out, but we had not pro-
ceeded one hundred yards when the
dogs became very excited and COM
menced barking up another tree.
Looking up we discovered two bears,
Il brown one and a black one
lying close together on a large limb.
We took position with the understand
ing that was to take the brown, and
| Mr.. RaWles the black one. Just as we
got ready to fire cast my eye down
the tree, and near the ground, the
brush having obstructed our view, |
discovered a large bear hanging to the
side of a tree broadside to me. Mr..
Rawles, being further round could not
see it plain, and told me he would re-
serve his fire and for me to go for him.
| was about forty feet from it and
fired twice when it tumbled, badly
wounded.
We now turned our attention to the
other two in the tree. At the first fire
they commenced bawling the barking
Of the dogs, the bawling of the bears
and the rapid firing Of our Winchesters
made it lively, | can assure you. We
fired three shots apiece before they fell.
One Of them was pretty lively when
lie reached the terra frma, and it re-
uuired two more shots, at distance OF
ten feet. to kill him. The other rolled
about fifty feet down the hill, and was
dead when we got to it. The dogs
now took the trail of the wounded one,
and after a run of quarter Of Il mile
brought it to bay When we came up
we found it up large macondra tree,
about thirty feet from the ground.
He looked to Inc to be as large us a
four-vear~old bullock. He was badly
wounded. but still able to make an
ugly fight. He fell at the first fire, but
lodged in the forks of the tree ; but
three or more shots apiece brought him
to the ground.
We again started for our horses very
much elatel with our success but had
not gone more than hundred yards
when the dogs started in full cry,
going this time in the direction of our
horses. We supposed that this time
they had jumped panther. They had
scarcely gone a hundred yards before
they had treel their game. We now
examined our rifles and found that we
had both emptied our magazines.
found six cartridges in my pockets
but they were two large for Mr.
Pawles's gun. When we came uI
with the dogs we again found they had
another bear-this time a fine black
one. Mr. Rawles being without am
munition had all the fun to myself
If there is anything that will make
man feel out of place, it is to be in ;
bear fight without weapon to fight
with. fired two shots, one of which
passed through the heart, and he wa!
dead by the time he struck the ground
Santa Rosa (Cai.) Democrat,