, 1884-05-01
A BEAR HUNT.

49, 80 NaA y - 1SNA - N@o A'NHa
ri cite of tue White racu' ta!Ea If New
HAAlpshirc. toasting lli$ fett before ii baz
3ig fire ami reading a stale coPy Of a daily
newspaper, when the door opened signify
and the weather beaten face OF old Allen
Thompson, the well known guide aud hunter
Of the White mountain region, appeOrei ia
the interval. With a significant jerk OF the
head be indicated "A desire for a little private
conversatinn. Istepped into the hall and
CLOSED the door,
Well. what X it. Thompson
"i've been promising ye a b'ar-hunt before
yer left. A bar has run off with one OF my
traps over on Round mountain, and Pm GO
in after him tomorrow mornin'."
A bear-hunt was a piece OF good luck l had
hardly hopei for. / was an enthusiastic
sportsinan. although but an indifferent shot.
But to be a COOL shot is not an indispensable
qualification. A sportsman that is ALWAYS
sure of his game lacks somewhat of the ex-
element of tue tyro who knows there is a
good chance OF his missing it. Hunting game
is a great deal like hunting ~weaIth-the
pleasure consists rather in the pursuit than
in the requirement.
I had often stood trembling with excite
ment at the sight of a rabbit or a partridge.
"ea, and often missed it through sheer fear
OF missing it, or cast my lire into a deep pool
ttId saw IL swift VI ulFOlI > tall, ana
awaited with a keen thrill Of the nerves the
sudden jerk of the rod. But here was nobler
game than l had ever hunted or iished for.
Early in the morning l heard Thompson
rattling at my window-paie, and was up
with unusual alacrity. / found Thompson
with team hi'ched up aud guns and ropes
reudyto start. We wereto drive to the foot
of Round mountain, put mp our team at a
iarm-housc, and proceed from there upan
the bears trail over the mountain.
= There were four Of us. Thompsonfs sons,
-bub" and Ed, being of the party. We
started at a lively pace over the rough noun
iain road just as the night was changing
into the cold gray of the morning,
the ground was covered with u heavy cent
of frost, az though October was counterfeit
ing December. Lafayette rose just before
US, with a cloud r~eSting upon his summit.
swell, we're pretty early, " said Thompson.
"Ihe old mountain hasn't taken OIL his night
cap yet
About an hours drive brought us to the
farmhouse, where we were to leave
our teams. Here our party was
reinforced by three or four more sturdy
mountaineers, from which it was evident that
hot business was preparing for the bear.
The bear had been successfully trapped by
Thompson two or three nights before while
paying his attentions to a flock of sheep
which grazed upon the mountain side, but
being a bear of unusual muscle had broken
the chain which had previously held many
Of his acquaintances and escape. With a
stout rope, ak and guns. we climbed up the
rocky sides OF the pasture until we reached
the place where Bruin had put his foot into
the trap. The trap had been set in a
growth of spruce saplings, and the chain had
been fastened to Il short piece of imber, suf-
Hcisatlr light 10 alleW Of being dragged over
the ground. H4AAA wv AI
The policy OF the hunter is this: Bears
have q grit truly Spartan, and are accus-
toned togBaw their own paws Off when
caught in "A trap fastensL to a stationary OBJ
ject, and thus escape with their lives at the
expense OF n paw. But when fast-
eued to a small log which they
can move they are deluded with
IL false hope of escaping without the
sacrifice above mentioned. The bushes and
small saplngs in the vicinity were rampled
down in every direction and even torn up by
the angry teeth Of Bruin, when the stick hap
pened TO tightly lodge against one. In fact
the accident had evidently been a complete
surprise to him, and lie had vented his rage
upon everything around him. The ground
looked as.if a couple Of cavalry regimeuts
had bad 4 skirmish there. EElfllE
But the bear hal at last disentangled
himself from the bushes md left
a straight trail to the forest, a mile away.
Here lie had met with new difficulty. the log
catching against trees, and perplexing his
Progress sadly. 90
sJest see there said old Thompson, point
ing to a deep cut in a tree arounl which the
chain hal got wound; "the biggest OK in the
mountains couldn't have done that"
The struggles of the bear had drawn the
chain into the tree. We had proceeded but IA
little way into the forest when u shout from
"Bub," who was leading the party, brought
us all to u sudden halt.
Here's the log. The bar has broke the
Chain and got away"
Sure enough, there lay the log, wedged IN
between two trees, and the chain broken
Off by the trap. A half Inch iron hook which
attached the trap to the chain, had been
Strengthened out by a prodigious e~xertion of
strength.
The urailnow became much more difficult to
follow. The continuous spruce forests of the
White mountains do not shed their foliage.
and the ground IS everywhere covered by a
deep and damp growth of moss, into which
the foot sinks to the ankle at every step.
Logs and trees, in every stage of decay, lie
sShtteTeu hDOutt coNeTeu Dy TINS neNer-Clang-
ing, monotonous carpeting of moss.
The trap, yet clinging to the bears paw,
occasionally left its mark in the yielding
inoss, enabling us to follow the trail with
some rapidity. rBub" now took the lead, the
rest Of us following in single file. We had
travelled in this way some miles through the
forest, when the column suddenly came to a
hult,
4Wnat's the matter, 'BubF shouted
Thompson FROM the rear.
five lost the trail.a
In fact, the trail hid disappeared. After
some ~fruitless search, old Allen and "Bubr
separated and began, in opposite directions,
to describe n circle around the spot where the
last traces OF the bear could be
seen. The Two men met, but with.
out success Another and larger circle
was commenced. 5lnp few moments the old
man stopped and examined a moment the
messy side of a log: "Here she isr-and once
more we took up the trail where the bear had