The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1896-03-06
THE ANNA L WORLD.
Remarkable Fight With Big Bear on "a
Lake in Canada.

They had been telling all sorts of hunt
ing stories, some almost too miraculous
to be believed, except by hunters who
had had experiences and knew what
strange things sometimes OCCUR far away
amid the forest wilds when there are no
witnesses. The last man had told of deer
hunting in the water, and squat,
heavy-set man sitting in the corner
seemed particularly interested in the
tale.
''That reminds me, . he said. when he
had chance to come in, "of an expert
enoe once had up in the lake region of
Canada. A party of us were in camp
there, along in the fall, and were having
great sport with the rod and gun. We
had secured specimens of all the game
and fish for which the section was note d
except bear, and of that tracks had
been reported not far from camp, and we
were to try for bruin as soon as we had
made proper preparations The day be-
fore we were to start out on the bear
hunt I had gone off up the shore of the
lake in light canoe we had to fish for a
couple of hours and get fry for sup
per. I had nothing with me in the canoe
except my fish ing outfit, and no sort of
weapon unless the canoe paddle might
be called one. But man didn't need a
weapon to catch fish with, SO gave no
thought of it, had found nice cave
up the cove about mile from camp,
and there stopped the canoe about fifty
feet from shore in deep water and threw
out my line. Luck was good, and had
pulled in five or six fine fellows and
was having rnore fun than anybody ex-
cept the fisherman, when was startlad
by splash from the thioket lining the
shore, and the next minute whoDping
big bear was making for me lickety split.
To say that | was scared doesn't half
express it. l was paralzyed. I didn t
even have sense enough left to grab my
paddle and try to get away. [ simply
caught it up and held it in my hand as 1
would a club and waited. But the bear
didn't walt. He was very evidently hun
CRY, or he would never have attacked me
out there in the boat, and he was coming
straight for me. l waited for him to
get close enough to bat him one, and
then gave it to him with the canoe
paddle square between the eyes. 1t dazed
him little, but it was far more disas-
cIOu5 w ullo pdulucs dHu Wfl6Q J. SUrdlRnt-
ened up from delivering the blow I had
only about two feet of the paddle left in
my hand. The rest of it, splintered, was
floating in the wake of the bear. He gave
himself shake after l hit him, and the
next minute he had caught the side of the
canoe with one of his big paws and was
manifesting violent desire to get
aboard with me. AS he weighed about
400 pounds and was as powerful rs
horse, 1T did not require a very strong
haul to settle that part of the proceed
ing early, and instead of his coming
aboard with me the canoe was upset, ana
went into the water with him.
BY this time a portion ofsamy wits
had returned, and l had sense enough as
the boat went toward the bear, to go off
into the water with the boat between the
bear and me. was a good swimmer
and had a faint idea if got headed to-
ward the shore | could outswim my enc
my and get away, so / turned as soon
as I got Strengthened out in the lake, and
put back the other way. The bear, in
the meantime, had started around the
other end of the boat, coming my way.
l don't know what it was, whether in
spiration or fear or bravery, but certain
ly it was something out of the ordinary,
for, as went around one end of the boat,
and the bear was at the other or quits
near it, ] was struck with az 4 "a, and,
instead of trying speed Wit ,ur j."
the shore, concluded to / u VT
him right where we were % swun..
on to the end of the canoe which was
bottom side up, and as the bear came to-
ward me tilted the other end up, and
with sudden jerk dropped the inverted