Fort Worth gazette. [volume] (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1891-1898, 1893-10-22
PIPPINS AND PORK.

Tho wallen-Paupack river runs through
a wild but beautiful valley OF pennsylvaniA
and New Jersey, and 1t IL often skirted by
dense swamps, and where the big hem
looks, birch and oak trees still stand Bruin
fnds his congenial haunts and plays wild
havoc among the some time fertile farms o.
the Paupaek valley, carrying away ronug
calves, but occasionally loses his life by
reason Of being too fond Of climbing apple
trees.
Marcus Killam is a logger" and farm
er and has 1000 acres under cultivation In
Palmyra township. Marcus was 10 years
old on the 4th day OF July. He goes TO
church at the Panpack Valley Methodist
meeting house on the Wgllen-P anpack rly-
er once every Sunday, dressed in gray pan
falcons big boots and q blue cutawAy coat
with brass buttons, and standing feet 2
in his stocking feet looks like q sturdy
English gentleman yeomen Of the olden
time Marcus loves the focks and herds,
and he entertains deadly hatred for bears
IL was over = fortnight ago that he found
pig missing whose dying squeal had not
aroused the honest old farmer from his
sleep Of the just, aud, what enraged him
most, q fAyorite apple tree was scratched
up and down the trunk, the limbs were
pl0hNHf NAh NANN was aAnghANEAg
nuded OF apples. Bears had been there, old
Marcus well knew Summoning his neph-
ew, Volney Bennett, lad only Is, but
ready TO shoot anything from y woodpecker
20 white Rocky mountain goat, no put
the boy on the trail to diagnose the situR-
tlon.
Young Bennett sought the neighborlng
village on the Wallen-paupack river, and
there found three travel stained hunters
who Ind trailed the pig stealing bear all the
way from within three miles OF Bingham
ton, N. Y, across the river and IN among
chs big hemlocks and oaks OF Palmym
township. The New York sportsmen were
down IN the mouth because after n tramp
of 10 miles they had lost traces OF the bear
Young Volney was cute enough while
dumping" the foreign bear hunters not to
say anything about old Ephraim's fondness
for raw apples and his Uncle Killam's I'M
cooked shoats
There WIS an early to supper and an
"carly 10 bed" at the Killam farmhouse that
night, and long before the break Of day hot
breakfast Of fried trout, flapjhoks and wild
honey and bnttermilk antedGted the hunt
ers departure IN search Of bear meat. A cas-
uAl glance at the pigpen revealed the blood Of
another lost pig year old, bodily lifted by
Bruin over the palinRs of the pig pen. An
other apple tree stripped. Then old Marcus
bresthed frehrands aud death against that
particular black bear. Marcus had old
Betsy rife with which he had brought
down bounding buck Ia the paupack val
ley 20 years ago come next Christmas"
Young Bennett had double barreled shot
gun loaded with buckshot. All day they
tracked that bear through the hemlocls
swamps and through the laurel and wild
blackberry bushes.
Night came on. and the old farmer asked
his nephew II he could stand night in the
woods. Sure" said the boy, and produc.
ing box of matches and fish line he
handed the matches to old man KillRn,
and with the trout line sought trout
stream emptylng into the river, and every
hole in that stream knew him and he
knew IL.
Farmer KillRm soon had the fire ready,
but not TOO soon, for Nolney returned ia
half an hour with dozen beautiful trout,
which wrapped In moist newspaper, after
being washed and cleaned, made supper
fit for the gods on high Olympus, and the
old man produced q flask Of generous size
from the side pocket OF his hunting coat,
but whether It contained buttrrmilk or the
spirit OF "oh, be Joyful young Volney did
llll AlhAAhhts INV HuAANtN HNu AAAIlHEu 10
miles IN II hot August day. and they slopt
without dreaming, and only Gabrlel's final
horn or catRmount's yell could have
broken their slumbers
A council OF war was held at o'clock In
the morning. and Farmer Killam decided
that the bear would try another pig that
morning, as he had swallowed undlsturhed
the best yearliugs IN the pen already. Water
was brought up In the now empty flask
and the wood lre extinguished, for every
thingNga ms dry as n finder box. A straight
walk was made for the apple orchard, aud
Just as the bridegroom OF the morning left
his kisses OF purple and gold on the edge
OF hossy eastern cloud the anxious hunt
ers reached the dense oak woods fringing
the apple orchard on the west side.
Farmer Killam, who has an eve like a
falcons and doesn't wear glasses for all
he H. 10, peered out behind a big oak tree
my God" he said-and he is good
Methodht-gaspin for breath. My God,
there's old kphraim aruinin my pippin
apple tree'n
OF fresh pork and unconscious OF danger,
| He munched apples while the atcalthy
hunters sought coign Of vantage ia 4
fence corner BY the din aud misty light
/ Killam drew bead with his trusty Betsy
| on the too oonndinR Bruin.
The rifle ball went home and down drop
| ped a 800 pound bear Both hunters ran tC
the bleeding bear, and as KillAm flushed
with victory, reached with his bowie knit,
for Ephraim's juRular the bear, the blood
| gushing from his right shoulder, hit Killan
with his left paw, knocking him ak feel
out from under the pippin treo and leaving
bare three inches OF the farmers scalp
| which will stay bare until he dies.
While the old man was temporarily horl
du combat, the youthful Volney gave tn,
bear a coup de grace at 10 pacea and sent q
load OF buckshot crushing into his brain
Ephraim quivered and died. Old man xii
lam soon revived, and the hunters both ex
ecuted war dance around that ponderoui
bear, BY the time the farm folks got out
TO see bloody farmer and q bleeding bear
Mrs. Killam informed the forgetful hunt
terA that it vas Sunday morningl Thii
fact Ia the excitement Of the chase was to
tally forgotten.
The next Sunday "the frosty mot thun
der" who expounds and pounds the gospe