The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1894-10-28
LIVE BEARS ARE HEAVY.
Hut a Dead and Harmless One that Weighs
1000 Pounds IL - Monster.

NfNHs ANfss
| have hunted and trapped for years in the
Rocky Mountain and coast ranges. the home or
the grizzly, just for the money, that ! made by
IL. and in all my experience | have never killed
nor even seen a bear that | thought would weigh
half rs much rs some ] have read about, and !
have never known any one who ever saw u bear
weighed that tipped the scales at 1900 pounds.
Nine out OF every ten bears that are reported as
weighing al The way from i!oOT pounas Up 10
The largest bear I ever killed, or rather helped
TO kill. was when my partner and | were hunting
and trapping on the Yak River in n~orthwester1
Montana, in the winter OF 1889. We had had
and other land fur. Along toward spring We
took a pack OF grub and blankets on our backs,
ard went up a creek a. mat ,bs em Iocsi, IN 10, Sae 4 s AK:
and. as we always take the easiest way TO hunt,
we kin an elk, deer, or any kind Of game We
come. We had lots OF bait up that creek; and
killed some more on another, creek Then
through the hunting. When We got
through packing our grub We Ssssh ht 20 zee
warm Chinook wind al that time did the work,
for we were killing one now and then. We bad
We were kept hustling taking care OF the hides.
had not been up 20 the furthest bait for sew
ssa w SaEi' ks " len me- H eomp paHS as he wanted 10
raise a cache OF traps lac had made In the fall
when trapping for beaver: We had got almost
whale. | told d.. that most likely tho old boy
WAS handy around the bait, for the tracks were
ths bear had either heard or smelt US, Tor
We saw that he had been eating on the
sStt; Ss 2St ~, Ssm aoss G Fast 'h as 'S vac co MD
travel, over wind falls and through underbrush,
with snOWshoes. We have shoeing away into
the spring in the mountains. We had not gone
more than half q mile when I heard one Of the
dogs howl. Then | knew that the bear was our
meat. We went down 10 where the dogs were,
and there was a bear that was the grandpa OF
all the bears either Of as had ever seen. ~ was
4 bald faced grizzly; lie vas nshu1g bas doss;
would bite him on his heels. II was lsuEhable
10 see him. file did not know what kind OF a
Jackpot he was in. Finally he thought II was
getting TOO warm for his rear end, 80 he sat up
on his launches. That Was the OPPORTUNITY We
were waiting for. We both turned loose with
our 1850 Sharps. and the bear tumbled all In a
heap. We skinned him and found where one OF
the bullets had broken his neek' and the other
/ had never seen such an animal before for
size. asked ID. what II would weigh IhSt
WAS the frat bear | had ever wanted 10 weigh.
Il. said he had no idea. but ne could ri and pull
him; We could Just move him 10 Sas lying on
snow that WAS pretty solid. We had q stick
through his gSnibrels. so we had a good pull at
him. Both OF US were over SIX teet thl ana
weighed Over sS9 B Boa1 liz " %sishf OF The he ssalg,
and We thought he would probably weigh sO0
pounds. His hide when stretched measured 10
: feet o inches wide. When We went down IN
the spring We showed the hide around, and old
hunters SAID that ii was the largest beAr hide
We Killed sixteen bears that spring. but none
Of them VAS as large BY one-third A. the big one.
I do not believe that the big one would weigh At
the very most 300 pOundA and he was very fat
| him he had nOt Been out yeTy long. a. u was
IN ADrl when he Ma killed. Nov, my notion IL
that ali these bears that weigh from 1000
pounds up have been killed around = camp nre.
would Ike 10 hear from any one who ever saw
: bear weighed thai tipped the scales a. 200
pounds. A person whO had never seen bear
running Wild would say ON seeing his nTst that
IL Vas the biggest thing ever STaPped Up In
hide. The nrst bear ! ever saw looked a Dig a.
a mountain. buI after / had killed him he
shrunk down TO AsmAlfblark one. could pack
Lin Al AE00nd. be Was ~ smauL