Richmond dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1884-1903, 1895-12-08
BEARANDHlS NATURE
COL. PARKER's TALES OF HIS WIS
DOM. WIT. AND MELANCHOLY.
Nninc hears smart. Impudcnt' an"
Tough-Pennsyiva Bears h"-
morists-Eiorida bears sihs"'"'
Epfcurcan.
Epicurcan.


lnTtuEH
when | say that. although they are VI
the same family, the bears OF dhiere"'
localities have different qualities. l hea"
the black and brown bears. For instance
take the bears Of Maine. Now. all bears
are smart. but the bears OF Maine 'ha'
dwell along the New Hampshire border
are q little the smartest bears ever
ran I'D against one specimen OF tnelr
shrewdness is enough 10 show TINS. Inc
moment they steal a pig or sheep from
backwoods farmer they make tracks 10
get across the New Hampshire Inc
once over in that safe they know they
are safe. why? There Is bounty oil
80 on a bear in Maine. IL IS only y
in New Hampshire No Maine hunter lie
going to knock himself out OF s. by Kill
ing a bear In New Hampshire, and no
New Hampshire hunter will Kill bear
until he can drive II over into Name.
where he can knock il over and get }iV
Tor it's scalp, instead Of s.. All he Maine
bear has to do. then. is to keep from
being driven back across the line into
mis- native Stale. and he is shrewd enough
to manage that so long as danger
threatens him there. THIS smartness OF
the bears, .hough, is bound TO get them
into hot water, for their habit o. takna
up their quarters In New Hampshire
frequently fns hat State 50 full OF uears
that they are unpleasant to the people.
and the New Hampshire Legislature T.
going to raise the bounty on bears e.
SO Then the Maine bears will have to
lus le. smart as they are.
In other parts Of Maine. where the
New Hampshire border is not convenient
he bears are habltuaily the boldest and
most impudent OF any bears l have found
anywhere. They don't care a snap for
4 man. although they must know OF he
dig price that Is on their heads. They
must know that. being Maine bears.
When / say they don't care a snap for
. man, | don't mean that they are any
more apt to tackle man than my own
Pennsylvania bears are. or the ali gator
lighting bears of Florida are, or the
lighting bears Of the Arkansas swamps
or any other bears are | mean that
these particular Maine bears VIII 20 into
mans barnyard after calf or a sheen
or a pig into his orchard after apples
into his corn-feld 10 husk his corn. into
his yard and knock over the bee skps
for the honey. although the man NAV
be standing not three rods away, witt
4 gun at that. Those Maine bears can
carry more lead. too, than any othe,
bears I'm acquainted with, and know
en- all ] killed one. after shoOtir
nine bullets into HIM. on Moose river
lnce. that yielded fourteen other bullets
+ assorted sizes. nine buckshot, and cd
time round musket bail and fine sho'
90 numerous 10 mention Round musket
balls have been out OF fashion these
thirty years. I Judge from that, this
bear must have been getting along IN
years
But when II comes to fun the Penn
ylvania bear Is fuller Of IL than any ~
his relatives, although all bears hava a
'unny streak in them ! often think
hat we oughtn't to take our Pennsyl-
Vania bears seriously, even when they
ire walking off with our sheep: they do
I with such a swagger and such a devil
may-care sort Of ar Talking about
hem sheep puts me in mind OF an IN
stance OF their fun-loying propens' ties
7 had big ram once that | used as q
churn-cheep. he was so strong. and
was ugler than a mad bull / was the
only one that could do anything with him
and IL kept me so Close at home that
sold of half my cows 50 we needn't b.
Obliged to make much butter. and a
smaller sheep could do the churninp
ram
INTO pasture by hims H. 10 be as ugly
IS he pleased. 1t used to amuse me Il
see him take a notion. every once ir
awhile, TO butt the stone walls dowr
ma he'd batter away at them until you'd
mink he'd smash his skull. but It never
chased him
one day / was watching him take p
title exercise in this way. when | sav
ne head Of big bear rise above thu
wall, nifty or hundred feet from wher.
me ram was taking his running shot.
u H. me ram didn't see the bear ThC
Dear looked on at the rams % rformapc,
Tor minute. and / could see by the ex.
preston on his face that he was ticklef
| Just about TO death over it, Pretty 500
ne turned his head. and. looking behino
| him. beckoned with one paw Prett,
| luick another big bears head came II
1bove the wall. and there the two bear
stood enjoying the fur. They couldn'r
see me where / stood
THE WHEELBARROW ACT.
'Therell Be more to this said | Z,
myself Them bears amt goin,g 10 STAN
| there long without taking a hand i'm #
themselves
| i was right. By-and-by the two bear,
.hinbed cautiously over the wall into tn
! lelu. The ram was so busy with hi.
ssaults on the wall that he never saw
! mem. They came slowly down towar,
! the vicious old cuss. stopped within ST,
eel OF him, and rose on their hind feet
! rhey stood we'll apart As the ran
| packed away TO take another run a III.
wall he turned his head and saw IN.
bears. He was surprised but only 10
second. He turned toward the bears
'owered his head. and with a bla-a-a
nat made the ground culver he rushe,
ipon the biggest bear as II he had beer
urled from a catapult
IL he hits that bear said u nv
If, he'll 10 through il like a red-ho
noker through pine shingler
But the bear stepped deftly asil.
nd tie ram shot past MIN As he went
by, quicker than flash. the bear turfa o
and GRABBED the ram by Zach hinder
near the noof, and had him Just like you,
nave wneelb1rrow by the H. ndles. Anc
then maybe he didn't trundle that oil,
ram! The ram couldn't b Up himself. but
mad to keep going on his fore-feet as the
bear pushed lin along by the hind feet
The other bear just roll-d on the ground
and kicked his heels and howled
thought I'd split. because | didn't dar.
laugh out loud for fear ia spoil the fun
| After using the old ram for wne lbar
row Tor minute or two, running min
Io"Iu ana ROUND IN circle. the bear
dropped him, and stepped back, to Sc,
what the next move wolld b, On. but
that old ram was madl He ripped anc
tore. and made things actually b.ue. he
projected himself al first one bear anc
then tbs otaer. and they would iumf
aside and laugh at him. He WAS so b.inc
In his rage that he couldn't see that the,
were only having fun with him. by anc
by they put Lin through the wheelbir
row-act again. and when thy dropped
him tnis time he never said a word. bu
went OF rod or so and lay down Thi,
tickled the bears heap. too, and. after