The Bessemer indicator., 1893-03-04
BEARS COME IN pRovEs.

BEARS COME IN DRovES.
a Twe'v Year-oiI 10y II cam,. f
nous H. Killing Bar.
| Bears do not usually run IN droves
but they seem to develop that peculi.
arity now and then n Su Ii IN county.
The first time in recent yeas that -
drove attracted the atten ion OF hunters s
was in November. 1885. when Post
master Shattuck. OF liarwood while
hunting deer near Gray swamp in
company with Lew Boyd rounded up
drove OF eight bears in the swamp
and succeeded in corsHlIing three of
them one a iive-hund rel- FOUNDER.
The same month Il dtove of seven
bears was started in swamp near
Eldred, but all GO away.
In November. 1885. writes corre-
spondent OF the Now York run Rec ses
liankins and his brother went out
after u bear tha; had been seen in the
neigbborhood of Little Pond. in the
town of FUrestturg and instead OF
starting out cne bear roated out u
drove OF eleven. The Hankius boys
followed the bears MI day and mover
le,sened the aggregation by one. The
hunters took the news home with
them and Captain Jack Boyd. OF
HARDWOOD went out and, after the
most memorable bear hunt of the
county. reduced the drove to ten.
1t was the appearance of that drove
that made twelve-year -o,d Clarence
Shattuck famous in the county. Two
days after Captain Boyd had shot his
big bear a party of hunters among
them the boy Clarence, went out to
reduce the drove. The dogs located
the bears in Little Pond swamp. The
hunters were veteran bear hunters.
except the boy. He took positive
ground over, and refused TO follow the
advice of the old hunters as to where
she should post himself In the hunt.
1t is on record that he said to Stod
Gordon. tho hero of hundred bear
fights: "One O. them bears is goin to
come plungin' out o that swamp not
ten PAGES from that old hemlock yon-
der"
Then. as the record is. Stod Cor.
don replied. with supercilious ira
You're way off, Clarry, but you can
go hide yourself behind that hemlock
If you want to. and II you peep out
you can see me kill that bear rs it
comes down yonder by the alder
hole"
Clarence did go to the hemlock. but
not to hide. He stood by in plain
sight In less than ten minutes a
great hullabaloo was heard in the
swamp off to his left He cooked his
gun. A moment later out sprang a
tremendous big bear Just a. the spot
the boy hunter had said 1t would. The
veteran Stod Gordon was u quarter
OF mile away down at the alder
hole The bear didn't get across the
open space Clarence drew bead on
him and the bullet crushed through
bruins brain. When the dogs came
out OF the swamp on the bear $ trail
Clarry stood on the bears carcass
loading his gun. The old hunters
gathered around from their rnnways
and found the boy as cool as il he had
only wrdng the neck of chicken.
After awhile the dogs went in tho
swamp and started another of the
drove. That time Clarcnce's father
posted him, but he wouldn't stay
posted. but selected runway for
himself The bear led the dogs a long
chase through the swamp. but finally
the game came out not twenty wards
from where the boy hunter stood. He
gave it both his rifle and his buck shot
barrels and the bear dropped After
that the veteran hunters quit giving
Clarry advice and during the next
week he reduced the Hankin drove of
bears to six.
Since that time until 1891 no droyes
OF bears have been seen by any hunter
in Sullivan county Then there came
news from the upper waters of the
Beaverkill thut there were grounds
for believing that more bears than one
were stamping around in the woods OF
that wild region. Jim Smith. a Boa
verkill bear hunter. with four other
hunters with less experience, went out
TO investigate the rumors. and four
miles from Livingstone Manor
they started bear and in less than
ten minutes had n drove of e,e,ep on
the go. Jim Smith picked out a big
fellow. tumbled him ut the first shot
and finished him with the second.
One bear of the drove was the biggest
one the hunter had ever seen. and tho
efforts OF tho entire party were bent
on bagging him.
Jim Smith said that he will be will
Ing to mako affidavit that not loss
than twenty bullets were lodged In
that big bear and he kept right on.
Sometimes all ten OF the bears would
be In sight as they slouched In their
clumsy but speedy manner through
some open space in the woods, and
then they could only be followed By
the sound Of their crashing through
the thick brush. The drove was
trailed i've milss across the Ulster
county line Into the dense wilderness
Of the town ei Hsrdenbcrgh, whsrs
the bssrs touza ssss rsfsss AnSns ~
rocky fastsssses
.