The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1896-07-12
THRILLING BEAR HUNT.
MAI. LAMAR SAVES THE LIFE OF
COL. Ron hobo.


From the New Orleans Picayune.
Shaw. Miss, July 5.-The scope OF coun-
try. bordering the Mississippi river on its
eastern shore and extending from Horn
lake, just below Memphis. 70 the mouth OF
the Haz0o river. above Nlcksburg. and ly-
ing west OF the hills OF Walnut bluns. on
the east. IS known as the delta, and IL IS
the golden spot OF the world.
II has but seventy-one square miles less
land than the whole OF the Nile delta in
Egypt. and this latter has been known in
ancient and modern history as 1.-THE gran
airy OF the world"
The region OF the Yazoo Mississippi del
ia is wonderful country. The finest cy-
press oak, ash and gum timber grows
here. Trees. whose limbs are a hundred
Feet above the ground. and whose bodies
are as straight as a lance and free from
Knot or blemish, await the woodman's
ak 70 convert them into marketable mer-
chandise. and when the soil is denuded Of
Its timber It Is then the richest on the
continent, and yields more TO the hus-
bandman's touch than any other. Two
/ crops Of corn. peas, potatoes, oats. rye
barley and other cereals. can be grown
| with absolute certainty each season upon
each acre, and for whole lifetime with
out pound OF artificial fertilizer. and IL
can be bought so cheap now that in the
commercial traveller of the world, You'd
/ think you'd stole it,"
did not set out. however, to sell a
/ body OF timber land, or a plantation In
/ the Hazoo Mississippi delta, but to tell
about bear hunt with dogs and cOngen-
ial friends in this delta region. for. rich
l as II is In soil and timber II is the home
| OF the deer. bear wolf. panther and great
/ gangs OF Wild turkeys. as well as opos-
/ sums, raccoons. wild cats and squirrels of
every variety. black. white, gray and fox.
/ with an occasional mixture of all, like
/ listed hog or spotted COW.
Not many moons since I Joined my
/ friend Bobo, of Coahoma county, the no
/ ted bear-hunter Of the delta, before
/ whose unerring aim more denizens OF the
/ forest have fallen than any living man,
and with camp equipage. negroes, guns
ana dogs, We cut a trial to one OF the
/ most secluded regions within the whole
! delta There we erected a good camp on
! the banks of a slough, or bayou, and as
/ the shades of night fell and our camp
| nres cleaned brightly, we whiled away
! the hours with camp stories OF former
hunts until the stars told us It was time
! to seek after hunks and court the goddess
! OF sleep and refresh our tired limbs and
prepare for our hunt on the morrow.
As the gray dawn broke the next day
we were aroused by the sound OF tim
! pan vigorously pounded by our black
cook, announcing that breakfast was
poured
! out"
Leaping from our hunks we hastily dom
ned our hunting boots and garb. Splash
| ing cold water over our hands and faces,
| we complete our camp toilet, and sit down
! TO a delicious breakfast of fat venison a
bear chop, strong coffee and biscuit and
! cornbread. We eat with a gusto only
hungry men can. Then, blowing the
! horns and assembling the dogs we
! mounted our horses and rode off I'm
| search of a monster bear, whose track
one OF our camp followers had seen the
day before. After about two hours Of
hard riding through canebrakes and down
| dry sloughs, we descended the bank of a
deep bayou, whose margin was lined with
many a great cypress tree whose trunks
were more than eighty feet without n
limb; and magnificent oak trees. equally
as large and tall, full of acorns on which
| Ola Druln was wont to feed. In the soft
moist earth of this bayou bottom we
| could see the tracks of a real Lord Bruin
| IN fact the largest / had ever seen in the
| Hazoo Mississippi delta. Instantly we be-
came inbued with the idea that we were
Song 10 nave the chase of the season. ."
our dogs began smiling the ground in all
| directions, for Lord BrJiin had gathered
aeorns all around, like a BARNARD mig.
The older dogs just trotted along at our
| heels, paying no attention to the yelping
| OF the younger pups of our pack; this was
Kept up for possibly a mile when sud
denly old Dublin, Bobo's favorite STRIKE
dog large, blue, wired-haired brute
10 the earth, then raised his
mead, gave a deep, sonOrous bark and
! started briskly forward, followed bv ali
the rest of the pack, as he was the leader.
| Away they went with a rush, we keen
| ing, up as close as possible. We passed
| water hole and here every dog gaze
mouth, and the woods rang with the
| sweetest music that can greet the hi,nt
er's ear, and the echo through the for
| ests OF those giant trees was like the
chords OF music played by master hand
| IN some cathedral grand. Each dog seem
ed TO vie with his running mate in giving
vent to his loudest notes, but above them
all rang deep and clear old Dublin's note
for he was close on my Lord Bruins
heels, and determined to force him to
! stop. Lord Bruin kept to the densest cane
| and widest ridges. For more than an
| hour we followed upon our horses. then
our pathway became too rough and stun
| born for our horses to get through Dis-
| mounting in an open slough, at the polnt
] of a dense cane ridge, we pastured our
horses and followed on foot, Bobo on one
side OF the ridge and 1 on the other.
Here voices told us that battle royal
| was on in earnest and our whole mack
| was fighting desperately.
| l began to crawl into them and came
| to a narrow opening or glade a few vards
| wide, when suddenly Lord Bruin made
| break and shook the dogs off and dartcd
across the open glade a hundred Yards
| ahead Of me closely followed by the dogs.
| | sent Winchester bullet into the yraa ,
| beast, and as / fired the dogs closed in
upon him. ! ran up, and as he shook tho
dogs off and began his race anew. as he
rose over a great fallen ash log / cot
! another glimpse Of him and sent another
ball from my trusty rife i'm pursuit This
| ball cut three toes from his fore nav. ana
passed through his Wndpipe This stag
| gered him, and he rolled over on the on
posite side of the log, and again the dogs
closd in with him. and several were badiv
| hurt. ran to their help as fast as he
| thick cane would allow By this time
! Bobo had crossed the ridge and came ~,
alongside of me. The dogs were so thick
around and upon that bear that IL was
| almost impossible to shoot without kin
| ing one or more Of them. As we reached
| them Old Bruin had two of Bobo's fav-
critics under him in a terrible embrace.
dropping his gun Bobo drew his hum,
ing knife; he darted to their help. / fol-
| lowed close up to him. he directly in
front and between me and the bear. The
dogs, encouraged by his presence. ma lie
a fresh attack, and as Bobo raised his
knife to strike the monster rose and
struck at him with his shattered
| paw a vicious blow, knocking Ma
| knife away and splitting the back
| of his hand severely and at the same time
| he rose on his hind feet and with an an
| cry growl he drew Bobo toward him. AS