The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1895-10-17

the river.
This ravine. starting level with the
grounds surface, but at its lower end
worn by spring and fall rains to
depth of forty feet, was quite narrow
and heavily fringed on either side by
dense growth of evergreen trees and
bushes, SO that, even at midday, every
part of it was much darker than the
surrounding woods.
Jack, fully aware of the risk he was
about to incur, entered the gruesoIne
place, and went cautiously along its
gradually descending floor until, at
spot where the banks were about i've
| feet high, he came to great fallen
pine, whose still green top lay squarely
across the chasm. Being nearly six
! feet in height, the young man was
necessarily obliged to stoop in order to
pass under this tree, about which, in
the dim light, he noticed nothing I'M
usual.
Bending low, he was in the act of
| gliding between two down-hanglng
branches. when suddenly there de-
scended full upon the back of his neck
a violent blow, ripping his coat collar
to shreds and sending him headlong
and half stunned to the ground.
For some moments he lay dazed and
unable to move, but soon recovering
his senses, he looked up at the tree-top,
trying to discover the cause of his
downfall. There was nothing there.
He could see through and through
the pine spray; something which, he
/ III T. Of 4 II, hA.
fore. Then like flash the true state
state of the case occurred to him; and
running back to where the bank was
low he scrambled out of the gully,
pressed through the fringe of brush
wood, and saw, ambling slowly along
in the more open forest and already a
hundred and fifty yards away, the
Devil Bear himse f.
TO Jacks startled eyes the great
beast looked as big as a young ele'
plant; and when, dropping on one
' knee, he hastily fred at it, it was nc
wonder that his bullet flew wide of The
immense but too distant mark. Before
: he could recharge his muzzle loader
the bear, apparently making straight
for the'river, had disappeared; so, jump
ing back into the ravine, Jack ran will
1 all his might along its smooth bottom
hoping by this easier route to intercep
the brute at the waters edge.
e Five seconds after the excited boz
t had reached the mouth of the gully
: and while still painting from his DIES
1 perate race, old bruin came leisurel,
S out of the woods, hundred yards be
e low him, and stood on the shore as
a listening for sounds of pursuit. Nov
e was the young hunters chance.
+ Steadying his nerves as best he could
he took careful aim at the creature
l. broad shoulder and once more fired
S seemingly scoring another miss, for
e at the rifles crack, the bear looked Ia
IS lilly around, plunged deliberately int
n the water, swan down the stream fo
}, little distance, then dived beneat
d the surface and was seen no more.
l. Jack quickly reloaded his gun an
e rushed to the spot just vacated by tn
t. mysterious beast, supposing that
n must, of course, shortly rise to TAX
1. breath. But no such thing occurred
d Fifteen minutes passed away, ant
t. though the puzzled hunter could sc
d every inch of the water for hundred
lie of yards up, down and across STREAM
not the slightest break could be d.
lie tected on its surface.
u The young backwoodsman was L
ID fool He we'll knew that two minute
l. at furthest after diving the bear mu
g; somehow have got air, else he woul
n now be dead from asphyxia, and h
IL carcass, being a mass of fat, wou
TO float.
e. Rejecting on these facts Jack vel
IS, sensibly concluded that the KNOWN
n old brute had somewhere near at ha1
rs a comforta BILE retreat, the entrance
which, like that of a beavers hous
e, was under water.
n Feeling quite sure of his premise
is, and much elatei by the prospect
en- solving the long-hidden mystery, t.
pc young fellow now hurried home al
er; brought Turk back with him. Kee
on ing the hound in hand. he then we
ge slowly down the rivers bank in t
up direction taken by the bear. For nef
he ly two hundred yards Turk jogg
ne carelessly along, showing no intere
Sd in the proceedings; but when the pr
he came to high hummock crowned
re three great interlocked cedar tre'
at whose gnarled roots spread far oy
the ground and into the water as we
Ird he suddenly awolSe to new life, dash
gh forward, and, with savagely ang
he growls, began to tie ar furiously at
ad mounds surface.
be- "Ho! Devil Bear! Devil Bearl you
ad found at last!' exultantly shout
om Jack; and, carefully timing the int
walls, he at once fred the three agre
of signal shots.
Ter In less than ten minutes the otl
nd hunters began to straggle in, and
he fore half an hour had elapsed
ne whole fifteen were on the groul
red Then, while the dog was still franz
ich ally digging, Jack told his story, c
! Guiding by saying: The old pig-kil
the has his den in here, certain. All we
rn- got to do is to let daylight into it q
/, a ill him full of lead"
"Sho, boy! the hounds only scrat
ing after a woodchuck There a
old any bar here, reckon" said one
me, the men.
hin Turk don't bother his head alb