Perrysburg journal. (Perrysburg, Wood Co., O. [Ohio]) 186?-1965, 1893-09-02
LYING ABOUT eRulN.
Picturesque Prevarlcators who Had Great
Times in Hunting for Bears.

Times in Hunting for Bears.
We were gathered around the camp.
fire after supper, some silently louug-
| ing with their backs against the trees,
otherslying lin both senses of the word)
at full length. The fire fared redly
against the night, now illuming the
circle of interesting faces and now
leaving all in shadow. We had been
talking bear Trouble was briin.
81 haven't lost any bear" said the
man with the scatter gun; birds are
big enough for me. If l ran across one
l think l would hunt tree"
"lIumph!' said the man with tho
rifle. "lf You do you want to hunt to
better purpose than the guide we had
! on our last trip to the mountains. He
was II picturesque liar. He had been
bad medicine to hear him tell it. The
bounty on bears he had killed would
| have placed him above the necessity of
misguiding sporting men at the paltry
stipend of five dollars per day. You
| know bear are very fond of the big
red berries that grow on those noun
tain rose bushes. Two mornings in
succession we crawled upon patch in
OiiN iilpiIbllll oltlC IuoJ III bllllC W bC
| too late. The patch was all torn up;
| the little stream that tricllled through
it was still riled where the bear had
stopped to drink. The third morning
we crawled up to it just at daylight,
! that guide behind one tree, myself be-
| hind another, about fifty yards apart.
There sat big she grizzly in the mid
| die of the patch, complacently finish
ing her breakfast. We both fred to-
I gether and she went down in the
| bushes with a squeal, came up clawing
at her side. and plugged her again in
the same place. The next minute she
was coming down that mountain side
'with the gait of an avalanche, and l
shelled them out of that old rifle as l
never did before.
| IL never heard from our guide and l
wondered why, but did not stop to i'm
vestigate. My last shot tumbled her
| and She rolled up bang against his tree.
dead. Then looked at him. He was
! standing behind sthe tree, pressed up
against it, with his face turned up and
| his arms and legs moving like a wind
mill.
"ITello, Bill says l, pretty close
shave But he never answered kept
right on looking up the tree and work.
! ing away. Then l went over and
! slapped him on the shoulder.
"'Bill,' says I, what do you think
you are doing to that tree?'
Then he stopped and looked down
at the ground he was standing on and
then back up the tree kind of puzzled
and said:
"'Darned if l didn't think l was
pretty near up to the top
THAT was a close shave" said the
| colonel. and we knew he would see the
raise and go it one better. His old
briar root was drawn from between his
teeth and a cloud of smoke sent sky
ward. But it wasn't a circumstance
to one l had several years ago in the
Rockies One day, after hunting all
day without success, put out for camp.
AS l started to pass a big tree grunt
stopped me. Within a few feet of me
was one of the biggest grizzlies l had
ever seen. One Jumps l was behind
the tree The bear was close behind
me- Around the tree l went with the
bear shifting at my heels. was in good
time and fairly flew. My hair stood on
end and my coat tail Topped in the
wind This mad race must have con-
tinued for five minutes when gained
on the bear and was almost treading on
his heels Things began to get des-
perate. The bear was wringing wet
and the water dropped from him in
streams.
He steamed with heat, thought,
and great idea came into my head
had kept hold of my rifle. Catching il
in both hands, hit the tree terrific
blow and the barrel wrapped around
the tree. l then had Il curved rine
That blow almost lost me, for the bear
was close Mt my heels, and snapped a
me. | spurted and was at his heel.
again. We were running around the
tree with our right sides to it. AS
4 got close to him | thrust that rifle
around the tree and aimed it for wher,
| thought the bears heart should bJ
and pulled the trigger. The bear fel
so suddenly that | plunged head fore
most over him and rolled for twent,
feet. When l got up the bear had qui
kicking"
Not one of us had word to say. w
looked at each other apd with sobe
faces went to bed.-Rod and Gun.