The weekly Thibodaux sentinel and journal of the 8th Senatorial District. [volume] (Thibodaux, Lna. [i.e. La.]) 1875-1898, 1895-01-05
SHERIFF REDGRAVE.
STORIES OF A DISTINGUISHED BRIT
iSH COLUMBIAN.

!SH COLUMBIAN.
The Gloomy Anniversary Of His Friends
Death-How the Bear Ket arned q Bull
let-The Sheriff Isn't a Doctor, but He
Stamped OFT a Smallpox Epidemic.
Lying in the picturesque valley OF
the Columbia river in British s'oiuliioia'
with the Selkirk mountains on one S'oe
and the Rocky mountains on the other,
is the town Of Donald, on the Canadian
Pacific railroad. 1t used to be known
as a ''wide open town." but j. is uuw
Il sedate little place of uearly 200 in
habitants. 1t is thc meeting place of
divisions Of tha railroad, and from that
reason takes on a commercial impor-
lance that other towns Of the same size
along the railroad lack. 1t also has an
added Importance from the fact that it
is the home of Sheriff Redgrave, the
chief official Of all that country around
for a great distance
Sheriff Redgrave is a distinguished
man not only because he holds the chief
Office ~thereabouts for many miles, but
because he has a notable past. He has
had many fierce campaigns with the In
dams, has fought his full share of dead
ly duels with desperadoes, has drop
ped' his man on more than one occa-
sion, knows what roughing it means in
a country tho widest of the wild, and
for years before such a thing as a rail
road was thought Of in that country was
a marked man.
Sheriff Redgrave is always amiable
and almost always cheerful. Once a
year, however, he is manifestly trou-
| bled and downcast. 1t is a custom in
! Donald on these occasions to wait until
a goodly collection Of citizens have ar
! rived, and then this conversation usual
/ ~ ensues:
Good morning, sheriff. You seem a
little troubled this morning. You look
blue. Nothing gone wrong, has there?"
some one will say, and the sheriff will
make this response:
ooh, no." with all apparent effort to
throw off his careworn look, nothing
is the matter, but the fact is this is the
anniversary of a very sad day with me,
and / never can shake off its remem-
b%rance."
"Indeeds" some one will say, and at
that invitation the sheriff will tell this
story Of an eventful day in his career,
one that annually fills his soul with sad
ness:
1T was just 80 years ago today that
I was up in the Caribou country with
the dearest friend 1 ever had. He was a
noble fellow, one that l would have
gladly given my life to any day were
there occasion to do so. We were walk
ing through a gorge n afternoon, and
by q lamentable oversight had only one
gun with US. My friend had that. Sud
denly we came face to face with an
enormous grizzly bear, n Of the old
time bears, tremendous fellows, such as
we used to have in these mountains.
The bear was angry, and | think had
been stung by some bees He showed
fight, and I saw at q glance that it was
either his life or II or perhaps both Of
ours. He came right for US, roaring and
determined to kill us.
my friend was q nervous man, and
l could see that he was a little fright
ened. Now, you know that I neve lose
my nerve, and so l said to him that /
thought he had better give me the gun
and let me kill the bear, SO as to make
sure of the job. He agreed and seemed
to be glad to have the responsibility off
! his hands. The bear came straight for
US, and took deliberate aim. He had
his mouth open, and l aimed to shoot
him there and let the bullet penetrate
the brain. and thus make a neat job OF
it. When the bear was about ten PAGES
off. l pulled tho trigger. That bullet
went straight to its mark, of course, but
do you know, just as it struck the bear
in the mouth, that animal for some rea-
son or other turned on his heels. The
bullet passed through his head, and the
bear, turning just as it was passing
through, DETECTED the bullet, so that
it flew back to us and killed my friend
instantly by my side. Yes, this is al
ways a very sad day with me, and I am
sure you will excuse me if l don't show
my accustomed cheerfulness."
! Sheriff Redgrave has another thrill.