The herald., 1894-10-01
ENCOUNTER WITH A GRIZZLY.
The Thrilling Experience Of a
Tejunga Canyon Man.
A Monster Bear Weighing 1900
Pounds Killed.
Anten swsitzks Narrowly Saves HIS
Life aud Fires Three Bullets
with WsII-Directed Aim
at the Beast.

On Saturday O man named Anton
Sweitzke came into town from Tejungs
csf1on with the skin of grizzly beai
which he had killed few days before
after q thrilling encounter. The skin
is now the property OF Ed Tufts, of the
Tufts-Lyons Arms Co., aud is highly
priced. 1t measures fully twelve feet
long and has the paws attached, each oi
which measures 5x10 inches, showing
the enormous size of the big beast. The
bear weighed over 1000 pounds.
The story OF the encounter iB very in
teresting. Sweitzke owns q little bee
ranch away up in the cSfion of the
TejuDgs, one of those openings into the
mountain range which shows itself just
above San Fernando. He keeps hun
dred or more stands of bees, from which
ordinarily he derives his living. This
year, however, owing to tho disastrous
season, his bees have made no more
honey than will suffice to keep them
during the season when they will be
dormant. AS consequence he has
been very jealous of any sncroachment {
on the stores there put aside. 1t can be
judged then OF the anger of the hardy
bee man when one morning he went
out OF his cabin to attend his bees and
found a couple of hives overturned aud
the bees in the widest commotion,
One glance suficed to show that q thief
had been there and had robbed hie bees
OF their honey during the night. The
trscks in the ground showed who the
thief was only too plainly. Sweitzke
knew that bear of enormous size WAS
guilty of the deed, but be said that had
he known it was grizzly he would
have picked up his camp and moved or
let the bear have what was left. In
fact grizzly bears were not his style.
He did not know this. he said, and
supposine it to be OF the ordinary
brown variety, which are easily put to
fight if not killed, he determined to
play even. Sweitzke in appearance is
a large. powerful man, who will stand
fully 6 feet bigh, and will weigh at
least $50 pounds. Moreover, he is thor
oughly Injured to frontier life and the
hardsEips incident to mountain craft.
Every night after the frat assault on
his treasures he stood watch with his
trusty rife, but seemingly mindful Of
affairs the bear did not make his ap
pearsnce. The lone watcher WAS Begin
ming to think OF giving up HE vigil
snce, and had determined that in the
event he did not put in an appearance
that night. he would give it up for
while. and wait results. This was three
weeks ago Saturday.
The man had made one turn up
the csf1on, along which his hives were
ranged, and had returned to his abin,
when he heard something approaching
from the opposite side OF the csfion.
Not wishing to make any noise or
frightsn it off. for he supposed, and
rightly. that it was the long-looked-for
bear. he kept out OF sight and awaited
developments. 1t coon came.
Almost before be could realize it, the
bear was within 100 feet of him, and
without ado, proceeded to knock over
O hive and reach for the contents.
"You may laugh, but do you know
that it looked as big as an elephant to
me when finally got good look at it,"
said Sweitzks. when he told about his
encounter, the other day. He did not
lose any time, however, in trying a
shot on the bear, for the loss of his
honey made him angry. The first shot,
which was from q 1896 cartridge, made
the bear cease his feast and whirl
and start for the man. He took but a
few jumps before another shot was sent
after the first, with the effect that it
seemed to momentarily check bis pro.
gress. 1t was only for q moment, how
ever. for the next second the bear was
within few feet OF Sweitzke and in an
upright position with paws upraised,
mouth wide open and in perfect
frenzy of rage. Sweitzks aaid that he
knew that ii he turned to run he WAS
lost, as he could not reach cover in time
to save himself. His only course, he
knew. was to make the next bullet find
some vital point and then if it was a
case OF hand to hand struggle, he would
fight it out to the last. He said he
could take in the entire situation, and
can yet see the frightlul fangs and the
lurid tongue, and in fact could fairly
feel the hot breath OF the big beast as he
finally pulled the trigger.
The bear staggered, then fell over,
and began struggle to regain it's feet.
1t was fatal shot. The king OF noun
tain beasts had to give up, but in the
struggle, even at the last. it tore up the
ground in all directions. With last
gasp it finally gave up, and the man
who had such an escape grew faint, as
he realized his position and knew in
what danger he had been.
When finally it was skinned three
bullets beside his own were found en-
bedded in the skin, showing that some
other hunter had taken o shot, probs-
bly, from some safe distance, at the bear
in the past. All OF his own bullets had
taken effect in vital parts, the last one
penetrating the heart. He was mon
ster, and although Swsiizke has seen
many bears and had many encounters,
t.is one was the largest he had ever
seen in Southern California. He will
never tackle another grizzly, he says,
without he is in good, safe position.
Had his last bullet failed to reach the
exact spot, or had his nerve deserted
him Just as the bear Was reaching for
him, he would have been dead man
and no one would ever have seen him
again. 1t YVES very thrilling en-