The morning call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1878-1895, 1891-07-27
HIS FIRST AND LAST GRIZZLY.

Anybody Wishing to Hunt This Bear Had
Better Take a Gatling Gun.
My friend Tom Coleman and were dis
cnssing various matters over our after-dn-
ner cigars at an uptown restaurant the other
evening when the conversation turned on
hunting an fishing experiences. Tom had
just returned to the city from an extended
tour through Southern California. Incl
dentally | asked him if he had run across
any grizzlies on the southern Coast Range.
ANY grizzlies?" repeated Tom. ''Well,
rather. That is" he added. 81 ran across,
as you call it, just one solitary grizzly bear.
More properly speaking, though, the bear
ran across me. 1t was my first and last
grizzly, too. | assure yeu.s l was down in
San Bernardino County when it happened
" had been trout fishing all the morning
with Indifferent success, and about noon
concluded TO rest awhile. An old log lying
under clump of manzanita bushes afforded
me good seat, and l had soon filed my
pipe and was smoking away with that de-
gree of natural comfort which glorious
day. sport In the open air always Inspires.
D." had started out with old Jack Water
man, at whose ranch l was stopping, but
Jack had become tired and gone home. l
had no gun or weapon of any kind, but
didn't suppose l would need any, as Jack
had told me on starting that they waren't
nuthin TO shoot round these parts but
bars. and they amt been bar seen
round here for year past
''AS l sat there contentedly smoking l
thought l heard rustling in the bushes
just back of me. Some bird, | thought. l
then picked up stone and threw il in the
direction of the sound. Pretty big bird,
thought !, as the ruStling continued louder
than before. l then threw larger stone,
then Immediately following my shot the
sound of some heavy body crashing through
the chaparral made me think that some of
old Waterman cattle had strayed that way.
1 was satisfied with this, and sat down
again and resumed smoking.
Say remarked Tom, suddenly, lean
you imagine bear as big as house?
Nc? Well, that's just what | saw, as |
suddenly turned around. That's what was
making the noise in the bushes. a bear. a
regular grizzly, and a whopper.
Scared? Well, l should say SO. Ny
teeth chartered like pair of Spanish casta-
nets. There he stood, though not more
than thirty feet away, SORT of sizing me up,
as it were, and all l could DO was to sit there
and stare back at him; l wasn't sure
whether grizzly bears, like Bengal tigers,
made their meals off strangers or not. This
animal looked as if lie could have swal-
lowed me whole if he wanted to, and the
more looked at him the bigger he seemed
to get. =, .u
on log for, it seemed TO me. number of
hours. Then the bear deliberately walked
up to where l was sitting. Oh, Loral
thought |, Pm done for now surely. Well,
sif that brute just walked by me, gave a
snort and sniff as If to say, What excuse
have you got for living, anyhow? and then
off it went down the ravine.
Il must have sat there an hour after that
without moving. Finally l braced up aud
started Tor home. i forgot both pole aud
fish. Old man Waterman thought I'd been
bitten by rattleSnake when l reached
home that evening.
mo, Stree" observed Tom, "Pm not
laundering after grizzlies this week That
same bear is there yet, I've no doubt, only if
any one wants to 90 out there and hunt for
it, advise MIN to take a Calling gun with
him, that's all."-New York Herald