The Van Buren press., 1896-07-04

me RTSt optHin out mere Auu KIN
find. We'll-hold on, Jack. Twist that
torch o. your'n up lords that shelf yum
i der. Ana! uh cunnin eussi
THE shelf Uncle Jim mentioned was
rather a niche in the wall OF the cavern
on one side, and all of IS feet from the
floor. As near as l could make out by
the torchlight, the niche was about ten
feet long and five high. How deep il
was l could not see. II was deep enough
for the purpose of comfortably hold
/ ing a bear, however, as | soon found
out.
Trouble with yous, continued In
Gle Jim, with his eyes fixed on the niche.
that your curiousness is too much fer
your cunnin'ness. Other WAYS, yuh
wouldn't got ketehed.'
81 hadn't seen anything all this time
to call forth these remarks from tie
old hunter, but just then Johns torch
was fared around and l saw two eyes,
glistening in the reflection of the light.
glaring over the edge of the niche. We
| stood about in the center of the cavern.
and as Uncle Jim ceased talking the
owner OF the eyes evidently made up
| his mind that he would take the intrud-
ers on his quarters in hand, for he
dropped out of the niche to the floor
like a monkey leaving his perch, and BY
| the flaming light of the torch | saw an
enormous bear standing on his hind
| feet against the wall The bear didn't
stand there long. but advanced sayagely
| toward Uncle Jim and John, who stood
side by side. John holding the torch
and Uncle Jim his gun. | stood step
or two in their rear, off TO one side. As
the bear came forward Uncle Jim
shouted:
Flash the torch in his eyes!'
John gave the torch a twist, and the
blaze shone square in the bears eyes,
dazzling them SO that he turned his
head around and lowered it little to
evade the light. He was but little more
than gun length away when he turned
his head, and as he turned it Uncle jim
fired. The huge brute dashed on toward
out of his way one of his immense fore
paws came down against Uncle Jim's
chest and the other caught John by the
shoulder.
Both men staggered back under the
force of the blows, but did not fall.
There stood all three, revealed TO me by
the light of Johns torch, which he still
held aIoft, the bear with both men in
.,is clutch, with an awful look in his
eyes and his mouth wide open, and
they standing motionless as il para
lyZed with terror. | was about TO send
bullet into the bears brain to save.
as | supposed, the lives of my COM
panions, when the fact that he had not
moved a muscle since he seized Uncle
Jim and Jack struck me. | stepped
quickly forward. The bear did not
move. He stood there erect and firm,
but he was stone dead! Uncle Jim's
bullet had struck him at the butt 8
the left ear and dislocated his neck.
The big fellow had dashed forward in
his death throes, died the instant he
struck his great claws into his foes.
and stood there just as he died. The
lcng, sharp claws were buried so deep
in the clothing of the two hunters that
] had to cut it away with my hunting
knife before they could be released
from the bears death clutch.
THAR" exclaimed Uncle Jim after
the bear lay stretched on the cavern
floor, I've killed many and many bar,
and had m die on my hands in all sorts
| ~ lt44 I'll 1,a f1INp1 if 7
one die a standin' afore. And this is
the first time | ever knowed a bar to
| try TO kill a Teller after he was dead his
self
But this amt my bear" said John.
My bear wasn't as big as one side Of
this bear. Can't be, can it, Uncle Jim,
that he could a waXed as big and fat as
this on bats since yesterday?
'But an idea seemed to have come
suddenly to Uncle Jim that puzzled
him. He took a string from his pocket
and measured the width of the bear
between the shoulders, and its height
if on all tours.
"'Two foot and q half wide said
Uncle jim, and four foot high. Thur
amt no ways that bar could figger SOS
he could git inter this here hole by the
door we come in by. But he's in here,
sartin, and consequently he must a
got in. How and whar? That's what
we got to find out, pertic'ly cause if he
couldn't III in the way we did, we can t
git him out that way, and I'm goin'
ter git that bar out o here hull. Any
bar that dies a standn' up and tries
to kill me after he's dead. I'm gointer
take home hull. Consequently, we must
find out how and whar he got in
"'But how about my bear, Uncle
Jim?' said John. L didn't come into
the bowels of Old Scarface to git this
bear. / came after the bear that fooled
me all day, and then crawled in here
How about himY
THAT bar replied Uncle Jim. find
in this dug-out took up by this old fell
Ter, maturity didn't turn him out. but
went scoutin' fer another un. Wen be
APP to run aerost him while lookin' fur
the place this bar got in
IL didn't relish much the idea of pros
pecting the tunnels and chambers OF
the hollow cliff for an unknown exit,
but didn't dare show the white feather,
particularly as | had been for couple
of weeks entertaining Uncle Jim and
John with some experiences of
mine in. the woods and mountains of
various parts of the country that were a
trifle hair-raising in the telling, and
! hnNe n renntafinn To snstnin With