Freeland tribune. (Freeland, Pa.) 1888-1921, 1892-03-17
SOMEWHAT STRANGE.
ACCIDENTS AND INCIDENTS OF
EVERYDAY LIFE.
Queer Episodes and Thrilling Adven-
lures Which Show that Truth Is
Stranger than Fiction.

lures Which Show that Truth Is
Stranger than Fiction.
ABRAM NoTT, who lives on Tunkahan-
ma Creek, in Pennsylvania, carried half
bushel basket full of pork TO his son
Williams house on Laurel Run, two
miles distant, on u recent Monday. His
route lcd through woods and choppings.
Late in the afternoon he filled the basket
with tools and started for home. Near
the elge of Owl Swamp he placed the
basket near tree and went off some dis
tance to gather evergreons to take home.
When he returned to the path he saw n
bear shifting at the basket. He yelled
at the bear three or four times, but tho
bear only glared at him awhile and then
seized the bale of the basket in his teeth
and waddled toward the swamp. Mott
grabbed a club and chased the bear In
the swamp the brute dropped the basket,
faced his pursuer, and growled savagely.
Mott was about to strike at the bear with
his club when the bear struck him on the
loft shoulder and sent him sprawling in
the bushes. Instead of repeating the at
tack the bear turned, took the bale in his
teeth, and waddled off again. Mott gave
chase, overlook the bear, and pounded
him on the back. The bear dropped the
basket, turned on Mott and knocked the
club out of his hands. Mott then sprang
past the bear, grabbed the bale of the
basket and started off on u run. The
bear overlook Mott soon and struck at
him, but Mott took nail hammer from
the basket and hit the boar stunning
blow on the snout 1t made him vince
and stagger for moment, but he started
after the running man, grinding his teeth
and snarling, and chased Mott out of the
swamp. By that time Mott had fumbed
in the basket till he got hold of pair of
sheep shears. Seeing that the bear was
still bent on regaining possession of the
basket, Mott jammed it in the crotch of
q saplng, turned on tho bear and stabbed
him in the neck with the shears. Tho
bear sprang up and Mott stabbed him in
the neck again. The bear scratched at
the wound with his hind foot and Mott
stabbed him several times on the other
side of the neck, the shears piercing tho
jugular vein the last time. The bear
made several efforts to stand up and then
next morning and left the carcass in tho
woods.
GILBERT ToMPKINs, of the Souther
Farm, San Leandro, California, has his
own views on training trotters. and,
while he does not claim TO be able to put
horse in shape to go into long drawn
out contes. of heats, yet he AYERS that he
can accomplish great deal by his sys-
tenn and leave very little work 10 be done
on the race track. Mr.. Tompkins swims
his horses in hugh tank. The tank is
a simple affair, being nothing more than
cemented pit 80 feet long, 20 feet wide,
and s feet deep, with corrugated inclines
at each end, down which the horses walk
into the water. Thirty yards away from
the tank is q 10-horse power boiler,
which furnishes steam for the tank. The
steam is forced into the water through
two.inch pipe, and the water is kept ut IL
little below blood heat To make the
bath more perfect and to further insure
against colds, the water is strongly i'm
pregnated with salt, about ton and
half being emptied into the pit. There
are provisions for emptying and filling
the pit with fresh water whenever neces-
sary. At the California farm the horse
is contrylled bv two men, one on either
side, with line attached to the bride.
Round after round of the tank is made,
the trainer using his discretion as to tho
amount of work each animal requires.
Four or five laps are enough to make II
horse blow as though he had logged
mile. When the swim is over rubbers
cool the horse out, thoroughly using the
same methods as are employed when the
work is done over the dirt track.
E. GEToHEL, Georgetown (Cal)
miner, recently found nugget valued ut
$4,000 in Devine Gulch, one mile east
of Georgetown. Devine Gulch, which
empties into Oregon Canyon, was so
named from one Devine, au English
sailor, who, in 1851, found in this gulch
the largest nugget which, up to that time,
had been found in California, its value
being $500. The result of this find is il
Illustrative of the state of society at that
time. Devine gave the nugget to his
wife, and told her that should he return
home drunk not to give him the gold, as
he would spend it He did return drunk,
and as she refused to give him tho gold,
he shot and killed her with u shotgun.
Devine was Immediately hanged by the
miners. 1t is said that most remark
able circumstance connected with the
lynching was that the tree upon which
he was hanged very soon died. In 1852
another nugget valued at $500was found.
Besides these several smaller nuggets
have been found at various times. When
Getchel found the nugget ho was sluicing
off the ground, which had been con-
demned as worked out, for the purpose
of filling reservoir at the moUths of the
gulch. He noticed few colors, and
followed up the lead to where he found
what he supposed to be piece of
quartz, but was astonished upon finding
it to be gold. Its weight is 564 ounces.
Mr.. II. F. GRoss, a Philadelphian,
who has been studying the anatomy of
the oyster for six years, during which
time he has dissected 5000 specimens
and put them under the microscope, ad-
vances the theory that oysters may com
municate tuberculosis, that, in fact, they
are often overrun with baccilli, To u
visitor Mr. Gross said: 'Let me show
you how | work." and, opening a small
case of slender, keen-edged knives, ho
cut tiny portions from each oyster.
These he placed in jars of colored fluid
for several minutes. and then, handling
them with small German silver tweezers,
he mounted the particles on glass slides,
first dropping little Canada balsam
upon each slide. He lit lamp beside