The times., 1892-01-01

SnOulu nave 10 rely on providence and the
bear.
Hours passed away. Aided by the almost
incessant flashes of lightning, was able to
keep the bear near the middle of the river
AS lay along his back, was grateful for
MS warmth which kept me from becoming
chilled with the rain and river water.
1t was wild voyage and strange craft.
Alone on the SWOLLEN river; dense forest
on either side Not human habtation for
miles in either direction.
Awakened and excited by the raging tenn
pest, the wild animals filled the woods with
howls and cries. Sometimes the vivid light
nlng would reveal the pebbles in the bottom
or the stream, some Is feet below me, and
the wondering fish, seeming to lay notion
less I'm the swift water.
After three or four hours ride. sound
reached me that was neither the roar of
thunder nor the wild beasts; constant, sui
len roar that was not Of the tempest. The
bear heard ii as well as myself and shivered
with fear as he made q desperate effort to
reach shore. Soon the rumble and roar be-
came more distinct and became uncomfort-
ably aware of the fact that we were ap-
preaching the Newburg dam. Here was a
dilemma. dare not land. Dare l go over
the dam?
h'iCW oOuctlillS VI tlllS uuul, the lOlt-
dation was made by laying poles lengthwise
of the stream, building the dam on these
poles, allowing them to project about ten
feet below TO break the force of the falling
water, preventing it from undermining the
dam. The great weight Of water that fell
over the dam dashed upon these poles, and
at the end of them had washed out deep
hole in which the water formed a whirl-
pool and circled around in mad fashion be-
fore continuing their journey. | was afraid
OF these timbers and the whirlpool, but l
knew OF no other alternative, and headed
the bear straight for the falls.
In time of high water this dam was a
young Niagara.
The bear whined with fear as we ap-
preached the fOaming brink. flash of
lightning showed the white line Of the
plunging waters, and in an instant we went
headlong over the dam. 1 took long
breath and cinched bruins hair with a
deathlike grip. The bear struck square on
his head on the timbers below, keeling over
on his back, and consequently onto myself.
Four hundred pounds of bear was mighty
pressure, but fortunately it was only for an
instant
The rushing waters swept us into the
whirlpool, and down, down, down, it
seemed like many fathoms down. we went
AT last, strangling and exhausted. with
strange sounds in my head and strange
lights before my eyes, we came to the sur
face and began to circle round In the tumul-
tuous eddieS Of the whirlpool.
The bear seemed to realize the peril of his
position and made q frantic effort to break
through the these crcling currents. Watch
ing until we were near the outer circle aid
ed the bear with my hands and feet and We
passed through the treacherous whirl and
continued our way down the river. Just
below was the grist mill and saw mill and
had some hopes they would be making a
night run in them. We reached the grist
mill; all was dark and no sound except the
thunder of the surplus water falling from its
waste gate. But down below saw light
in the old saw mill, and could hear the regu-
lar strokes of the old-fashioned upright saw
as it cut its harsh way through the log.
L knew could not make the man who
tended the saw hear me, but / thought
would steer the bear close to the posts of
the bridge which stood near the mill, catch
and climb up the post and run into the mill
before the bear could overtake me. But
here l met with another disappointment.
The flood had carried away the bridge, and
on we swept down the raging
river. The storm had now passed. and a
late moon cast cold bars of light from be-
tween the broken clouds upon the mad
river.
Nothing Of special Importance happened
until we reached the Shiawassee town dam.
| had heard that this was high dam-some
thirteen feet, but did not know much of its
construction, or of the condition of the water
below it. Not wishing to repeat my exper-
ience L brought the bear broad side to the
falls; as we passed over the brink the bear
turned completely over but / clung to him,
and down we plunged into the depths. 1t
seemed that we were an age under water,
and when we came to the surface we were
ten or fifteen rods below the dam l think
we must have been caught in the undertow
of the whirlpool which you find at all falls.
How long this voyage could continue was q
subject of debate with me. was already get
ting cold and numb in spite of the warmth of
the BEAR l knew that deliverance could not
come until morning. Wellington at Waterloo
did not wish more anxiousy for night than
l wished for morning. The longest journey
ends at last. Just as the sun cut the fog
and mist with its first rays, i approached
the old Corunna mill. Green, the miller,
was OH the flume making his morning ex-
animation. called to him to bring his gun
around to the bank and help me land. He
was greatly astonshed when he saw that
my boat was q bear. / told him not to
shoot unless the bear showed fight, as
wanted him captured alive. But these pre-
cautions were all uncalled for; the bear was
perfectly docile. His enforced swim or his
gratitude at being allowed to go ashore had
changed his savage nature. He licked my
hands and rubbed his head against me in
token of his friendship. He followed me
into the mill and lay down by the office
stove where he soon fell asleep. AS l had
no use for bear l gave him to Green, and
think some of the old settlers who patron
lied the Corunna mill will remember this
bear that for a long time was a mischievous
pet in and around that mill.
''Fine string of fish, that" said Green as
| was leaving the mill. Fish? Oh, to be
sure. 1t was the first l had thought OF
them since / met the bear; as examined
the string / found they were all there
twenty-five big pickerel.
A. u. CLARK.
1