The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1894-12-13
SMART BEARS.
Their Actions Surprised Uncle Bill HAM
mond Till He Learned the Cause.

hammond, of Eldred, that Sullivan
county bears, an Specially them that
nves up Eldred way, was the smartest
bears on earth, an now I'm glad | done
it, for theJ re provin' to me this season
in the most amazin' way that l hain't
The victim o misplaced confidence |
tell you, I'm proud O Sullivan county
bears this season. I'm kind O. sorry
they done it, though, cause it seems
tP me now that it hain't much bettern
1turder to go out an knock one o. them
! hears over.
| generly start out tol'able early in
We season to slirmish round in the
fpods up in the Eldred district, SOS to
see what the prospects is for bear and
things an while l had always seen a
heap O evidence that our bears was I'M
common smart it hadn't never spriSed
me much KNOWN that they was Sui
llvan county bears, Twin in the Eldred
woods. an so couldn't help it. But
there hain't no doubt that when | took
my skirmishin' tramps through the
woods this season | was s'prised from
the ground up. AS / was goin' along a
tolably fair-sized bear jumped out of a
holler stump. Course there wasn't
! nothin' s'prisin' bout that, but Std o
gsyin' me grin, as our bears usually
NJ t&hen they seen me in the woods,
J an then trottin' off, this bear riz up on
his hind feet, gave a few lively jig
ijsteps Topped over on his fore feet, as
slick as anything, an stood there as
| StiIIIy if ha'l hon, ,N1o Tod
Now that was s'prisin'.
Great Natur'" says I. eff this was
any bear but one of our'n, says l, 81
wouldn't b'lieved it,"
The bear stood on his hands fer a
mute, an then Topped back agin to
his feet, an fore I'd hardly ketched
my breath he turned back summer
set clean over the stump, an, cockin'
his head to one side an GRIMM at me-
as much as to say: "Well how does
that strike you?" went off into the
brush, turnin' handspsings one after
t'other, EASTERN 1 could count 'em, till
he was out o sight!
Couldn't been real bear says l.
after got over my s'prise enough SOS |
could talk. "Must been a wound-up
bear, with wheels inside of it," | says.
But l went on a skirmishin, an
hadn't gone mOre'n a quarter of a mile
when | come on to a sight that was so
amazin' that | jest had to set down an
wonder how I'd ever dare to tell it,
even in the Eldred country, where
they know'd how smart our bears was
an s'pect to have my neighbors ever
recognize me ag'in as a Teller citizen o
truth an veracity. An what was the
sight seen? On the limb of tree
more'n forty foot from the ground a
bear was hangin' head downwards by
his toes. Suddenly he pulled himself
up an grabbed holt O the limb by
his paws, an went to skinnin' the
cat, ,lwistin' hisself back ards and for
ARID vixt his forelegs jest as easy as
if,selr been born and brought up to
dNE a. O that kind.
,isht hadn't seen it," says. 81
visit l hadn't seen it, fer I'll have to
keep 1t all to myself, an I'll bust"
says.
But if 1 wisht I hadn't seen that
much, what do you s'pose my feelin's
must ben when | seen the rest that
was comm After the bear had skinned
the cat mebbe half a dozen times, he
pulled hisself up an hung by his toes
ag'in. Then he begun to swing, an
when he got to swingin' SOS he almost
stuck out straight one way an t'other,
he all of sudden let go his toes on the
w. hot TO bn, ;,,,l
ketched on to it with his paws He
swung there till he got a goin like all
possessed, an then he let go o the limb
an sailed to another one an ketched on
to it with his toes. An so he kept on
agoin' till he got so fur l couldn't see
him.
III pike for home now These bears
is gittin' little too spooly fer me, l
says.
picked myself up an started fer
home, but l hadn't gone fer when a
bear jumped up on log an went to
standin on his head. l didn't wait to
see what more he could do, but made
break on a short cut to git out O them
woods.
THE strain O keepin' this to myself
II be moren kin stand as it isl saws.
81 wish these bears hadn't done it,
guess I'd gone mebbe mile when l
come out into a little openin', an fer
minute | was sorry had come that
way. But only fer a minute After
that was glad, fer right afore my
eyes was the hull business bein' made
clear. A tremendous big bear, the
color of a saddle, an with collar
round his neck, stood in the middle of
the openin' Around him was dozen
bears, all of 'em young chaps. l had for
got all about that big brown bear, but
recognized him. Last year couple
of Italians came through our district
with that bear. He was trained bear,
an could do more tricks than any bear
l ever see. He could turn summersets,
an dance, an throw handsprings, an
stand on his head, an skin the cat from
a pole, an do lots of other things. The
bear liked the fun, but he didn't seem
to like the company he was travelling
with, an one night he gave 'em the slip
an run away. The Italians hunted
high and low, but they couldn't find
him, an they went away feelin' bad, |
tell you. Nobody never seen nor heard
nothin, ~ tho trainad hear not Till I