Shoshone journal. [volume] (Shoshone, Idaho) 1884-1931, 1896-08-21
RAIDED BY BIG BLACK BEARS

over the Alleghenies in this neck OF
woods. The black fellows show their
natural cunning in as many ways as an
old granny could shake her cane, but
one of the nealest affairs of old bruins
doing is that which occurred on what is
known as the Wells Mountain one day
last week. This mountain is famous for
its prolific crop of huckleberries and
rattlesnakes. Pickers of the former go
to this mountain with wagons and the
away from here annually would make
the eyes of a novice stick out with sur
prise. WiIliamsport affords the pickers
a very good market, and during the
berry season there are families who live
in the neighborhood of the wooded
mountains that make enough money TO
keep them the balance of the year. You
see, this picking huckleberries is fam
lily affair, for the children and adults
alike turn in and gather the little succu-
lent spheres.
But as to the bear story. One day
last week Isaac Wheeland, his wife and
seven children, long before daylight,
piled into big truck wagon, to which
were attached two big strong horses, for
a trip into the berry woods. They had
almost seven miles of a drive, so it took
until "sun-up" for them to reach that
part of the mountain where the berries
were plentiful enough for profitable
picking. Of the seven children there
were two who were too young to join
the picking brigade. These were Sam
uel, aged years, and the baby. Sarah,
who has not yet arrived at II months.
The wagon was driven directly beneath
a mammoth oak tree and the horses
tethered to saplings near by. Samuel
and Sarah were to stay in the wagon
during the absence of the other mem
bers OF the family. Besides the two
children there were in the wagon pro-
miscuous array of tubs, washboilers
and baskets-receptacles for the berries
as they were brought in from the woods
by the pailful and dumped by the pick
ers into these larger vessels. The fore
filled. The berries were "jist loaded
down on the bushes as Wheeland says,
and the pickers' deft fingers transferred
them from stalk to pail in a manner
surprisingly lively and only acquired by
experience. After lunch at the wagon,
shortly after MONDAY, Mrs. Wheeland
lulled the baby to sleep and then lay
the little tot snugly to sleep in one of
wagon. Little Samuel, likewise being
drowsy, was tucked away beneath the
seat on the wagon. Then the other
members of the Wheeland family took
up their pals and started into the woods
to resume picking.
The forenoon's work had stripped the
patches in the heighborhood of the
wagon, so that they were compelled to
proceed fully half mile away before
they reached a spot where the berry
bushes were we'll filled. Here they
worked industriously tor perhaps the
better part of an hour, when one of the
boys informed his father that he heard
one of the horses snorting. Before he
had finished speaking the family were
started to see one of their horses come
racing toward them on a canter. His
head and tail were up and the animal
showed evidence of fright. He had torn
the strap with which he was tied, thus
making good his escape. Mr.. Whheland
concluded that all was not right down !
at the wagon, so he and one of the boys |
dropped their berry pals and started on
a run for that point, while Charley, the
other boy. was directed to capture the
runaway horse.
It is well that Mr. Wheeland did act
quickly, too, for he found things at the |
wagon in terrible mixed-up condition.
The first thin gthat caught his eye was
half-grown cub in the wagon devouring
the contents of one of the berry tubs
while 4-year-old Samuel was out on the
end of the wagon-tougue that had been
propped high above the ground with
forked sapling. He was screaming lus-
tily and looking in the direction of
hemlock swamp about a rod from the
wagon. The second horse was in a
tantrum. He had tried hard TO Olsen
age himself from the tether, but in so
doing he had got his legs entangled
In the long tether, and when Mr. Wee