Wheeling register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1878-1935, 1891-06-25
A HUSKY BEAR.
He Made Things Lively for Two
Hunters.


A man who looked as If he had been
irving to hug the cylinder of thresh-
ing machine when it was in motion was
seen Yesterday offering pack OF 1urS
to dealer up town, says the Portland
Oreg0ntG1l.
you are rather late getting your
furs to Market" said reporter, who
happened to be present. Eyes. was
the reply, "but have been laid up and
could not get to town before"
What has been the matter with
you?" asked the reporter, who was
anxious 10 know how the man had been
so fearfully scratched.
THE matter with me was an attack
of bear"
"You had it bad, judging from your
looks"
Eyes, l had it bad and no mistake,
| but you just ought TO see my partner.
els he in a worse fix than you?"
"a great deal worse. He had so
much meat scratched off one side of him
that he had to carry weight in his
Jacket pocket TO enable him to walk
straight"
The sale of the furs having been COM
pleted, the old trapper was asked for
the story of his encounter with the
bear.
He said his name was Hans Olsen,
that he lived on the edge Of the big
burn. in ClackamaS county, and last
winter he went out on the headwaters
of the Clackamas trapping with Peter
| Hansen, who lived in the same section.
They had good lnck for while, caught
many minks, some fishers, and found a
swamp and small lake, where there
many beaver, and were getting lot of
them, when deep snow came on and
about spoiled their trapping. After a
while the snow became so deep that
they could hardly move around and
could not get out of the mountains at
all. Then provisions ran short, and
they had TO rustic and kill something to
eat They went out on the lake one day
and cut a hole through the ice to see If
they could catch some fish, but did not
get any.
On their way home toward night, as
they we're crossing little ravine on
fallen tree, Olsen slipped and fell near
plump into a bears den. The bear
was very lively for an animal supposed
10 be asleep and at once attacked him.
He had a knife and small Ratchet IN
his belt, and he got out the Ratchet and
began to chop and yell. Hansen, who
was behind, had a gun, but he was
afraid to fire down in the dark for fear
of killing his friend, and at length,
drawing his knife, jumped down with
him and the bear There was lively
time there for while, and the fur and
clothing and flesh flew, but finally
Hansen, who was the worst used-up
man Of the two, managed to reach
vital spot with his knife. The bear
keeled over and the two trappers keeled
over, also. They managed to make
little fire with some of the leaves and
twigs from the bears nest, and there
were plenty OF rags to baDdage their
wounds, for they were all rags. 1t was
several days before they could crawl to
their camp with a hunk of the bears
| flesh. which had been their only food
during their stay in the den. 1t was
not till few weeks ago that they were
able to get out of the mountains, as the
snow was very deep and stayed on the
ground longer than usual.
Olsen says he intends to go trapping
again. but he never wants to meet an
other bear in his own den again. His
partner, is able TO walk around and go
| down to the creek and catch few trout
and look after the beehiyeS; but he ex-
poets to be all right by next fall.