The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1893-07-30
BEARS WON'T CHASE A MANI
LISTEN TO JOE FONDERSMTTH'a
S1oRr AND SEE If THEY WON'T.

| .yoe,. Remark able Experience Ia the Penn-
sylvanin Mountains aud Hts Reasons
For Saying That Sometimes Bears Won't
DO Anything Else Than Chase Man.
HARR1spuRa. July $3.50 you think bears
won't chase man. CHI" said Uncle Joe Fonder-
smith of York county. You think they turn
tail and run and give man the widest kind Of
n berth on the very first suspicion they have
that he Is anywhere in the woods. do you
Then wish you had been with me once up in
Elk county and shared with me little
experience had with party OF bears In tho
wilderness around the headwaters OF Clarion
River. I think your idea OF bears would DO
somewhat different from what It is now.
You've got the book theory about what bears
will do and what they won't II you had been
with mo that time up In Elk county you would
now be nursing knowledge OF bears gained
from personal contact with them and observa-
ton Of their habits and customs. That is the
knowledge have OF them, and consequently I
do not hesitate to declare that there are times
when bears will follow man with design
and persistence that are 30 wearing on the
man that he feels that he would gladly lie
down and let the bears chaw him up ifhe
could only have about two minutes close In
terview with the man who wrote the natural
history OF bears.
II was at the timo speak Of q great be-
from my reading that knew all about every.
thing. from. the tiger 10 the jungle to tho
cricket on the hearth. One days int tel
th s' route ens i or The "f and Rail-
some some mber and a eOai land and one day i
the fall ,o ON to Of te od rsnds q
S name amo aHa the ss sDp and settled
% So9s RI fsssn visit nboas the d sss
a,,l 70 dfaf hav IN nnftin0
was alleged to DO plentiful IN the woods. none
0 81 81 naa essR sSd That
meal Of yen'on Or oas b o. wna
''s they had the bucfwhest cakes but he was
Su, 70 ss
and msde my friend happy By telling him That
ABOUT bo ist three miles rom the camp was not
difficulty In finding the tree the next day.
took with me an axe and twelve q 4End tin
was not Very large but there
times more than enough honey IN It to az my
the the rest este Of the follows. The pail Of honey Was
sus roPPS spaPp m
Of a mile when 1 came. face to face with a
blammluR Uls DedE thdI blSppeu VI Zig
stopped .G and nd 0Re Following the big
alt TS a epen H
not more than five rods away.
bears haven't or 1ss mss yet
turn and break for cover. That's their nature.
They're afraid Of man.
away from mo in their fright But. to my sur.
duct. the big bear Started toward me, followed
BY the other two. This was entirely irregular.
ss t. soS viii ssa 6s.
sense Of smell. BY rights they ought to pc
Sia ftn sts'cken' and mile away from mere ~
:, But they came right on. and came 50 fast
along. still sure that the bears must soon dis
that ns GEARS e snd You'd %
soe hsy bs bhsy Tht Ss
reach. By and By thought would stop and
light It out with Thorn with the axe, but on sec.
dropped tho axe to get rid Of its weight, and
III hazards. Tor couldn't think Of Getting back
Ii hS It Ss oy Is
80 tore along through brush and down tim
ana to a OF ana r8i bsb
While; began to feel as If it hung on me like
on T Il .t Gears scrambled along in my wake.
sometimes within q rod OF me. and then falling
'a ..e, long way after some squirt Of mine over
ng al! the time that was. circlne around in
me Fl The but IT. struck
nsndous circle for these Bears h had been chas.
nSd me b iSF e gooa long two hours
tut from all appearances they seemed to DO
ust as chipper a. they did when they started
ne was getting most. ALFRED tired. AMI
cit that unless things took turn in ny favor
n to the handicapping pail Of honey. hoping
hat was nearing camp and would come In
BY u and By cam came to a big open spacein
ne Of the bears Jump into this opening about
curse toward each other and il was plain to me
'as in my wake. about three rods distant 8sn
s heln T Shss.nnf t qss close mAfs
ne, and dropping my cherished pail OF honey
lear S to ths tSp ana b hst the three
aid no more attention to me- than II 1 hadn't
in v sHstense They went or that pail
81 81, you how quick they sopred out the honey
I'm Go their ,h paws and devoured it. After
touched away into the woods without giving
le even q passing glance
Then remembered that tho oyerpowerino
ASSIGN OF bears WAS wild honey. and that they
'ould go to almost any risk to get It. came
own out Of that tree and almost butted my
wing from those bears al day because I
lought they wanted to chew me IN, when
iey hadn't thought OF me once. Ali they
apted was the pail of honey.
had notion to 20 back to the tree and
ut my brains out any way after had left
ght. for there ! game plumb out on the
ann: with the fellows all in and waiting
,tsfa Fac ian my pau OF honey But! got some
oys and went out to whore, I had chopped
o oar ne pee tree. and found all three OF the
les OF them got away. / knocked one over
id my friend dropped another one. And
zero was enough honey left TO stock thu
mp for week. So don't you believe that
oars won't chase a man. There are timea
heh they won't do anything else"