The Indiana State sentinel. [volume] (Indianapolis) 1868-1895, 1885-08-05
The Grizzly Cubs of Eel River.

[Ar;hur Lindsey in Harper's Young People.l
Twas Just about the middle of November.
Three of us, John Wilson, Harry Edwards
and myself were camped on a beautiful
clear and rapid stream which forms one of
the upper sources of Sweetwater Creek. We
had been hunting for the pre- vious two
months through that wild Northwest region
and finding here grass and water in abund-
ance, with an amount of game equal to any
thing that could be asked we remained day af-
ter day without breaking camp, wandering
off in the morning wherever our fancy led
u.s. and returning to our pleasant camping
ground at night. We made use of this rest
ing-time, as it might be called, for the pur-
pose of more fully preparing and drying the
many skins of animals and birds which we
had been continually collecting. We left,
therefore, much n iterial at our camp each
morning when we went out, well secured, it
is true, from the inroads of wolves or coy
Otes but without thought OF any human
being coming near it.
We Were surprised, therefore though not
unplea"an tly so, to find. one evening on our
return, visitor at the camp-grouno, cook
ing his supper as quietly as though he had
built that campfire for his own special S =
vice. The outspoken heartiness of the plains
soon made us acquainted with each o.her.
Our newcomer introduced himself as an old
trapper by the name OF Jake and ii was not
till several days later that we learned by ac-
cident that his full name was Jacob /. San
ford. He had been hunting and trapping
in the mountains more than twenty years,
and was just the man we were rejoiced to
see, for his experience went back TO the days
before the mining excitement rea ehed thas
region and brought in such crowds as to rem
der game comparatively scarce. His stories
were, OF course, to us full of interest. We
were, for instance. wide awake on the sub
ject OF bears. for up to the present time no
bClr had fallQn m lot npIfhQr had
even seen the traces of one 1t was in sn-
swer to a question from Harry that our new
friend exclaimed:
Bears. well, l should say 1 had seen 'em.
Why, Cap, when l fust come into
these here mountains you had
to keep your eyes peeled for bears, can tell
you, and it wasn't black bears nor cinnamons
neither; them's playthings. But ola Ephe-
rain himself was around, might turn up in
most any thicke., and il was no part of his
business to get out of the way. He left that
for you to do. A grizzly as big as an old
butler bull is a sight more apt to hunt than
to be hunted. And if he will only let you
alone, it is good plan for you to let him
alone"
i took from my portfolio drawing of an
old bear and cubs and asked him what he
thought of it. 1t took his attention at once.
well, now, that is pooty. / re ;kon the
fellow that drew them two cubs must have
oCcll lllilC tloC llC VI nav
never got 'em in the shape he has. That
picture minds me of pair of cubs / had
once and the way they used to play with one
another. These fellows here might be- about
| four months old or so. Mine wasn't hardly
flour days when got 'em, and skeery time
had of it, sure enough. Maybe had better
| tell you the story
''Yes, yes, Jake, the story, the story. Roll
| out your yarn"
''Well, you see, l was hunting awav over
| in Californy then. / was all througl the
| Sierre Nevada and Coast Ran. for four year
| and better and this time that am going to
| tell you had my camp away to the head
| waters of Eel River, on the back of the Iron
| Mountain, about thirty miles north of Clear
Lake. Elk was plenty. through all that
| range, and elk meat paid SO well in Frisco
market that / made quite business in shoot
| ing them. One morning | struck the trail oil
/ a little band, and started off to follow it out.
| being pretty sure to get one shot and proba-
bly, two, whenever / could come up with
them. They had been moving along lively
| ard by the time it was noon ! could not sec
that trail was any fresher than when | first
struck it, That was nothing, though;
i knew they must stop ID feed, and L could
| follow the trail if il took me month. But
little after noon, in crossing an arroyo
saw in the soft ground sign that drew mt
| OFF quick from following the elk any further
| just then. Ii was the tracks of grizzly, ant
bigger grizzly at that than had ever Sc
my eyes on. Some of the tracks was wher'