Lawrence democrat. (Lawrenceburg, Tenn.) 1884-1925, 1893-04-07
Tong before I waa able to take long

BOt dJ OXIOTu corners, ana L deter
mined to tramp over there after them.
spoke of my intention at the house,
and one of the mill hands asked me to
get him some chewing tobacco. will
ingly promised to do this favor
II started early next morning, my
only weapon a stout stick that cut in
the woods, and took a wagon trail
which led over the mountain.
ut was glorious morning. l
amused myself as / swung along try
ing to identify the birds by their notes
by no means an easy task; and l
noted some, rare flowers and plants
along the way.
"At about eleven o'clock l reached
the Corners, made my purchases-not
forgetting the chewing tobacco that
the sawyer wanted-took dinner at the
storekeeper's house, and at about
half-past one started back toward Far
ley's.
II had traversed about half the
distance, and passing, on the way
up the mountain, place where
the trees were for the most part scrub.
by and small, with here and there @
tall hemlock rising from among them,
l noticed one tree in particular which
was tall and tapering, with stubs of
dead branches sticking ont all over it.
Only at the top had it tuft of live TO.
liage. There seemed to be crows or
a hawks nest up there; and thought
that If wanted to climb it, it wouldn't
be hard.
II did want to climb it pretty soon,
but haven't got to that yet
I'D like to know, just for the fun OF
it, how many times I've described bear
cubs in my stories. A hundred, I'll
warrant! Well, sir! do you know,
when l really saw bear cub in the
path before me didn't know what il
was. hadn't any more idea that the
little beast saw there was baby
bear than had that it was a dromeda-
ry or an ornithorhyncus.
"But had some excuse. The crea.
ture was Looping along the track little
distance ahead Of me, and l couldn't
see him very plaiuly, especially as
had left my eyeglasses at home.
But realized that there was some
strange animal ahead of me, and
wanted to know what it was. So
ran after it, and when l got neal
enough struck it blow across the side
with my stick, which made it cry out
with pain and dash into the bushes
l stopped, out of breath
"My first thought was that for sc
small an animal, it made tremendous
racket in those bushes. Then l real
lied that some bigger animal wa.
there, too-a stray COW, probably,
thought. / looked confidently to see /;
cows mid, astonished face emerge
from the underground.
''lnstead, there came forth amid
great crashing of bushes huge sh,
bear, snarling and vengeful!
Imagine that, will you? And yo,
know never did like practical jokes!
well, / knew her at once-recog
nized her from her photographs, so t,
speak. Then-I make no bones o
saying It'll was frightened. knev
she could do more damage to my healtl
in three minutes than three months il
the country could repair-to say tn
best of it.
Besides, l naturally hated to b
eaten after having taken such pain
to get into good condition. /
seemed too much like misplaced en-
, deavor. To fatten myself up for /;
bears dinner was not what had com
into the country for.
"Yet there was, standing as stupid
as turkey in barnyard the day befor
Thanksgiving, for the moment entirel
: bereft of my wits, with big bear no
4 ten feet from me. had nothing to de
4 fend myself with except my stick. !
cudgel is good weapon agains
!, woodchucks; but every feature of m
enemy's expressive countenance pre-
u claimed that she was no woodchuck.
'"What was l to do?. Instinct an
!, swered the question for me, | took t
= my heels-which, luckily, are. light
and made Decline for the tree whic
> I've just told you Of Nor stayed t
look behind as the poet says
, Reaching the tree, climbed i
. using the stubs of branches like TIL
: rungs of ladder No monkey in A
RIGA ever climbed tree faster But
. wasn't ten feet up before the bear wa
:. at the foot, and to my horror bega
a climbing after me.
!. Here was, freed by bear. /
h fiction the situation was q good on,
O though trifle-just a trifle-overdon,
n But confess that in real life didn
a find it so good. 1t struck me as to
sensational.
g Eat that moment pitied every her
a / had ever put up tree in the whol
!. course of my career as writer. NJ
o heart was filled with remorse for m
IS misdeeds toward them. Then l r,
r membered that always got them dow
n again, with no bones broken, and wa
!, comforted And wished to goodness
20 l was one of them.
"But l wasn't. There was no trust
: author about to manipulate me and m
o bear, and consequently l was afrai
Q matters wouldn't end happily.
n Meanwhile, kept on up the ire,
and the bear kept on, too. 1t WASH
very long before was at the top; an
there | stood, clasplng the tree wit
N one arm, my feet resting on two littl
NJ stumps of branches. There / stoo,
N the cold perspiration starting on m
+" forehead, and waited for the bear.
And yet remembered noticing, /
spite of my fright, that the nest ha
saan mn thare tyac apJ Oh,