Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1884-05-01
A Character.

There is certain type of Arkansaw
man that hurrying civilization is not
likely to jostle. He is not exactly the
old squatter, nor is he the small farmer,
but he is the wild and hayward child
of circumstances over which he does
not care to exercise control. He went
to the State in 1916. and settled on the
left prong of Dry Fork Creek. He
married, as he expressed it, "a rite smart
chunk O gal, and began housekeep-
ing on floor made uneven by the bur-
rowing of moles. Unlike the squatter.
he does not withhold information. Bless
you, no. He'll stop work and talk to
you all day. He'll tell you more lies
in half an hour than you would think
possible for an unskilled, uneducated
man to throw off in years time. He
won't tell the truth, and it is safe to say
that he never made an effort in that
direction. The scene of his career now
changes, and the incidents of to-day can
with certainty be looked for tomorrow
At morning kind of patched-up COW
stands at the semblance of fence sur
rounding his house and hooks ragged,
sharp-featured hog. The performance
is repeated at evening.
why don't you clear up more land ?"
was asked by representative of en-
ightenment.
what fur?"
why, to make living on
Il make living on what I've already
got clard."
But you could make better living
if you would clear more"
No, recken not; it nd take so much
time ter tend ter it that the livin' would
step outen reach"
DO you ever kill any game around
here ?"
All, then he received touch where
he lived, and throwing his head up like
a man who feels that he has suddenly
awakened to a new and higher purpose
of life, he replied:
II reckon do; killed the biggest bar
day afore yestedy ever seed. want
lookin' fur bar, but had tuck my gun
and sautered out airter turkey that I
heard goblin up the holler. BY the
time | got thar he was gone, and sot
down with my back agin a tree. All O.
sudden seed monstrous bar put up
his paws on log not fur OFF, an stretch
up an take fair look at me. drawd
up my gun easy, tuck aim at his breast
an toch the trigger, wall, sir, never
heerd SIGH squawl in my life. He
jumped up, run about two hundred
yards an tumbled over. Oh, he was
monster. was sorter Altered at fust
that he was goin' to show fight, but
without opener his jaws airter bein'
shot, he grabbed hickory saplin', went
roun' and roun' till he twisted it up by
the roots, an then he dropped dead.
The neighbors all said he was the big
gest bar they ever seed. Wy, when I
seed him in the tree I didn't know
whether ter shoot him or not, fearin'
that he mout fight me airter bein' hit,
but he fell like a log an didn't move.
1t tuck me three hours ter skin him.
sold his skin fur ten dollars an his
meat fotch me don't know how much.
Bar huntin' is mighty ticklish bus
ness. When first seed him wadin' up
the branch thought he was goin' ter
show fight, but when l drawd on him,
an toch the trigger the work was done.
never seed water fly so in my life, an
deaf an dumb man coulder heerd him
boiler / had ter get horse an drag
him outen the water. Thar amt nigh
as many bars here now as thai. ulster be,
an l think this here one was sorter out
en- his line O business, fur when / seed
him up 'mong the rocks, he bobbed
around like he was afeerd, an ies did
get shot at him as he lodged Ben
living here now fur / don't know how
long, but never seed such painter
before. He laid on limb an was jes
about ter jump down on me when shot
him. The dogs grabbed him as he iell
an we had a mighty lively time-don't
be in hurry stranger Well er good
day" He would have kept on this way
for three weeks. No, he has never
made an effort to tell the truth. TEXAS
Sgtings.