Watertown republican. [volume] (Watertown, Wis.) 1860-1906, 1889-09-18
eEAL's ROASTING EARS
The Use an Ingenious and Talented Bear
Put Them To.

The Use an IHgeniouS and Talented Bear
Put Them To-
Out In the Oaky woods the wild an.
finals frequently exhibit Intelligence tc
Is remarkable degree. One If the
largest planters. Mr.. j. K. Beal, in go
Jag the rounds of his immense planta.
SION noticed that in a field bordering
the Pocasin swamp the best rails from
The fence had been distracted. Any
rails decayed or defective were left
while only the newest and best rails
mad been taken. This continued for
quite awhile. The planter supposed
that the negroes had been taking
zhem, but could find no clue to the
thieves. After awhile his hogs began
TO disappear until at last when he went
60 call them up none responded to the
cry. Next in the same field from
whence the rails had been abstracted,
the growing corn crop began to suffer.
Bushels of roasting ears disappeared,
and at last the tracks of some large
animal were discovered leading from
the corn field to the mysterious depths
OF the POcasin. They were the tracks
of huge bear. So much damage was
Being done to the crops that it was de-
termined to try to find the brute.
Accordingly. a party was organized
and away they went following the trail
that became more and more indistinct.
The Pocasin swamp is interspersed
with dry hammocks like oasis in a
desert. On, on, through mire and
islands and back again to swamp
ground. At last they reached a large
high hammock rising almost like hill
from the mysterious depths of the
swamp. Here high and dry they were
astonished to discover great pen, las
large. says the narrator of this singu-
lar adventure, las large as great
house" Upon examination it was
found that the pen had been built of
the stolen fence rails. Within it were
the kidnapped hogs sleek and fat.
Around it in every direction were the
tracks of the bear innumerable in
number, and the ground well trodden
down. Within the pen were some of
the remains of the roasting ears alb
stracted from Mr. Beals field.
The hunting party were struck with
anazement aud s;ts down around the
well-fzlled neu TO try to unravel the
mystery. There WAS but one solution.
Every evidence pointed to this one
fact The bear had stolen the
planters fence rails, had built
the pen upon the secluded ham
mock. had stoleu his hogs and then Sc
1ecting his best shoats had penned
them up. and was fattening them up
for winter use upoR Mr.. Beal's roasting
ears The hogs were recovered, taken
to Albany and sold readily for from
seven to eight dollars each to loca
butcher 1t is said that the butchers
customers were SO delighted with the
sweetness of the pork and its juicy
richness they elamored for more of the
same kind, but hogs fattened by bear.
upon roasting ears were an uncommon
commodity, and the meat could not bt
duplicated. Aa Albany saloon mar
applied to the planter for one of the
toothsome fat shoats. He wanted tx
barbecue it for his free-lunch counter
But the supply was exhausted, and
free-lunch fends were deprived of this
unusual dainty
On July (, while Mr.. Fl. 81. Savag,
was spending the day hunting, he killed
IN the Pocasi4 q bear which turned tn,
scales at exactly 1903 pounds. 1t i
thought that this is the bear which
tried its paw SO skillfully in the bust
ness of raising neat.-Atlanta Consti
tuition