The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1893-03-04

pear was q female and h9 u cubs somewhere In
the vicinity He had gone TO investigate the
lay of the country, and discovered a great
rocky canyon half a mile beyond the willow
thicket, in which he had no doubt the animal
had den. The moon was full, and about u
CLOCK he proposed to 20 there when the
canyon would be lighted up. and hunt for the
saucy animal that had served him such atrick
promptly assented. We then ate q slice or
Two OF the cold venison lett from dinner, and
after the usual smoke turned in, Kit promising
10 wake me in time to reach the canyon when
the moons beams broke fun into it.
Apparently before had been asleep an hour
l felt Kits hand shaking me, and heard him tell
n to come on Putting on our overcoats, for
II was chilly, taking carbine and small bottle
OF whisky, we started out under the brightest
moonlight sky il has ever been my fortune to
witness. Kit soon found zigzaR trail leading
down into the canyon, which we cautiously fol
lowed in silence In half an hour we had safely
made the parilous journey, and found ourselves
in a narrow valley, through which ooursed a
considerable stream The moon was now on
the meridian, and flooded the dark gorge with
golden light. We could see every Object dis
tincty; trees, stumps and detached masses of
rock that had beel thrown down by force of
gravity; nothing disturbing the matchless
silence OF the glorious landscape but the bab-
bling OF the creek over the powders in its bed
Kit scanned every little elevation; locked into
the tops or the talest trees, and carefully
scrutInized every stump and every shadow. We
then walked slowly up to the creek for half
mile, crossed it, and commenced to retrace our
course down the OtheF side. After about
quarter OF an hour Kit suddenly stopped,
touched me on the shoulder, pointed TO a shelf
of granite eight or ten feet above US and whis-
pered: DO you see anything up therel"
l was compelled to reply that / could discover
nothing but the solid wall of the canyon.
The bear is there, sleeping" SAID Kit, with
out the slightest excitement; now watch me
bring her down ~
He moved cautiously along toward the shelf
or ledge. could see him crawling like a pan
ther and when half dozen rods from me
saw him rise to his feet heard the crack of his
Carbne. and the next fnstant something, with a
great crash as If tree had fallen, rolled off the
ledge, end the bear was dead on the creek bot
tom where Kit stood, shot through the left
eye.
The frontiersman in his enthusiasm acted
like school boy over his first victory at foot
ball; heiran, shouted and made the canyon
fairly reverberate with his unearthly yells.
Presently he said, Let's go back to camp; I've
got even with the varmint.''
The next morning Kit myself and the two
Ute boys went down into the great canyon to
get the skin of the bear, which was all We
wanted, not one of our party caring for Its flesh
as long as we could procure that Of the deer so
easily.
Arriving at the spot where Carson had made
bis famous shot, to my surprise, at least, we
discovered two cubs only few weeks old at
tempting to nurse their dead mother.
In discussing Kits adventure with the bear
that evening, he told the story how, many years
previously in the foothills OF what is now
COlOTdNO, ub huu his pAEbubT NcIc ChiipluR III
the low pines of the region. They were out of
meat, and as the buffalo in those days ranged
close to the base Of the Rockies, they started
out one morning after a fat COW. Late in the
afternoon the men got separated, Kit wander
ing around In search of his companion, but being
unable to find him that night was compelled TO
camp by himself. Kit said he was not in the
least disturbed at the absence of bis partner;
parties frequently became temporarily lost in
that manner, and either found their way 10 the
general camp or were discovered by each other,
the lost one firing his rifle to attract those who
are looking for him. In this instance, however,
that fact bothered him at first.
Kit said he got out long before the sun was
up, and after trudRing six or seven miles, came
upon his partner in the most ludicrous situation
Imaginable for au old plainsman AS Kit
stepped into a little scrub oak opening the first
object that greeted his eyes was an immense
grizzly, weighing at least 1000 pounds, lying
close to the halt-devoured carcass OF a young
buffalo COW, and in the rear his partners rifle
on the brown sod. Up on the branches Of
scrubby pnOn he discovered his partner him
self, the very impersonation OF disgust. Kit at
once dispatched the bear, hitting him in the
usual place-through the eye--upon which his
cOmrade came down from the tree and picked
up his rifle. After eatiug some jerked meat and
Quenching his thirst at a little branch, he told
KIT how he got caught in such predicament.
Late in the afternoon he suddenly came upon
a small herd of buffalo running as if they were
stampeded He hurried around little hill TO
kill the last one. COW. In his excitement he
laid his rifle on the ground took out his knife
and commenced to skin the animal He had
not been at work more than five minutes when,
hearing a great snort behind him, looked around
and saw an immense grizzly stumbling toward
him net a rod away. With his rife behind the
bear there was nothing left for him
to 90 but make for the nearest
tree. He supposed, of course, that
after the bear had gorged himself on the dead
COW he would depart, then he intended 60 come
down from his forced perch, get his rifle and
make his way to camp. The brute, however,
had no such design; after he had eaten all he
could hold, he quietly laid down by the carcass
and went TO sleep. or rather doZed with one eye
on the tree where the unfortunate traDper was
sitting. The night was passed in torture; he
was hungry, cold and eepy; he dared not sleep
for he might fall from the tree and the bear
would get him without a struggle. In the gray
dawn he saw the vicious brute still at his post
and not the slightest sign of his caring to move
away He could not give the customary signal
that he was lost, and what to do he did not
know. At last he saw Kit coming and felt re-
lieved
The next morning we were ripe for another
hunt; by O'Clock we were we'll into the forest
after our game. 1t seemed to be MaXwelis
day, for we had not gone more than three miles
before plump doe rushed out Of the brush
within half a dozen yards of u.s. and he took her
down without any effort We were surpassed
that the doe should be running alone, but the
cause was soon apparent "a large wolf dashed
by right in the deer's tracks and Kit took him
ION the wing" He was an immense fellow, one
of the great, gray. mountain species, with a
tail like huge brush. None of the rest of US
had any more luck that day.
The next 1morning a courier from the fort
brought dispatch, aud we mad to reluctantly
break camp, having been ordered te a distant
part of the territory. Later that fall passed a
delightful two weeks with Maxwell at his hos
pitable home, where Kit was still his ever vel
come guest had been transferred from New
Mexico to Kansas and stopped over on the
ranch, situated so picturesquely in the heart of
the Ration range to rest and prepare for my
long ride across the plains. / never saw either
of them afterward; Kit was on his way to visit
me at Fort Harker in 1858, but taken sick en-
route, he turned In at Fort Lyon for medical
attendance and died in few days. Maxwell
died some years later, having previously dis
posed of his magnificent estate TO an eastern
syndicate.
Grover Cleveland lin the Chair"