The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1897-03-06
B[NS ADVENTURE.
BY s @ LAPIIS

corn
""ell. Dan. don't you go traipsin of
hunt,n Dinner'I be ready in an hour
SO; an when you have gun on your
SHOULDER you don't never know when to
come back, replied his wife.
All right" was the ncn-committal an
swef. and Dan closed the cabin door and
strobe away in the direction of the corn
patch As lie reached the wood pile in
'front.' OF the rude domicile that he called
nome a bright faced lad of 10 years
cropped the load of wood that he had III
his arms
Are you goin?" his father asked
Hes- in jest a minute. l got to take
this wood to man." He carried the arm
ING them upon the floor in a sprawling
heap. ran out to rejoin his father. To-
cether they climbed the low rail fence
tnat surrounded the house, and chatting
merrily. they proceeded on their way TO
tie corn patch down by the edge of the
forest.
A CUNNING HOG.
Mr. Daniel Hartzeil-for such was the
settlers name-carefully inspected the
fence all along the border of the wood,
but could not discover no break in it
through which an enterprising porker
/ might force its way; and he was about
to abandon his search and return to the
cabin. when the rafting of the corn
blades and startled grunt admonished
him that the marauder was in the corn
patch at that very moment.
Ben" he said, addressing his son, you
| run up there in the corn an start that
shoat down this way. Well chase him
out. an thereby find out where he got
in: fer I'm sure there amt more'n one
| place he gifts through
Ben did as directed and soon the shoat
| dashed past Mr.. Hartzell and made its
egress at point that the latter had just
| carefully examined.
Don't that beat all creation" NUT
tered the settler; talk about Sense-that
shoats got more mother wit than half
the people in the valley
Ben examined the place and burst out
| laughing. A hollow log ran through the
bottom of the brush pile communicating
with the corn patch on the one hand and
the forest on the other; and through this
log-as through a tunnel-the cunning pig
! was in the habit of passing into the
! enclosure and our again.
IN stop that cunnin' bugher's tricks
| by closin up his gate, remarked Ben's
father, Juggling at the log.
He dragged it from its position and
rolled it out of the corn patch into the
woods; then he took his ak and cut a
quantity of green limbs. with which to
repair the gap that he had made by re-
moving the log.
Nov. Ben he said, sitting down to
rest, call up the shoats and let's see if
J they're all here
''Peeg-peeg. Pooy-pooyr' bawIed Ben
Justify. making a funnel of his fat hands.
A series of grunts and squeals, resound-
ing from points far and near in the
woodland, was the immediate result of
Be- strange bellOwingS.
| Decentralization counted Mr..
| Hartzell. until he reached ten. IVY,
there's only ten shoats here. an there
ou-ht to be 'leven. That tarnel she bear
ove- on Turkey Runs got another one
of en-. Ben, you run up to the cabin
an say to yo' mann that I've gone over
tat way TO git a shot at that bear I'd
give horn O. powder to draw bead on
e- jest once. She wouldn't eat no more
shoats.''
Can. go, too. pap?" pleaded the boy.
smiling the battle afar off. Il can ketch
uD with you after telling man.
I don't care-ask y'r mann. Be off
now
THE CUB.
And Mr.. Hartzen shouldered his long
CUR and STROBE away as Be- sped in the
direction of the cabin. The latter. on
reaching the house, informed his mother
| OF his fathers intentions. and then with
out wasting time TO gain her permission
he spranS away in pursuit of his male
parent.
He passed the corn patch and was fly
ing over the ground as fast as his sturdy
young legs could carry him, when his
attention was attracted to a clump of
bushes a few yards to his right A strange |
commotion seemed to be going on in that
clump of bushes, and Ben paused momen- |
tartl.' to investigate. AS he did so he /
was surprised to see a cub bear tumble
i-to the open and waddle toward him. |
1t was a fat little thing. not much |
larger than full grown raccoon, and as
playful as a puppy. Ben Immediately re- |
linquiShed all idea of following his father. |
He would capture the bear cub and take I
4 home in triumph.
He started toward the cabin, proudly |
bearing his burden, and had just reached |
the edge of the corn patch when a blood |
curdline sound-half growl, half roar
caused his hair to stand on end and his |
youthful knees to knock together. II was |
the mother bear, and she came numbering /
out of the forest in pursuit of the kidnap- !
per of her offspring.
Ben Rugged the cub to his breast and 4
rar as fast as he could scamper. He /
WAS so badly scared that he never
thought of dropping the source of all
LIS trouble and danger. The mother
over his shoulder, he was Mortified to see
her but a few feet distant. standing on
her hind legs. her paws outstretched and
her open jaws dripping foam and ready
to catch him.
He screamed at the top of his voice. but
Rugged the cub the tighter and ran on.
Al obstacle appeared in his way-it was
the hollow log that had served as Sc
cret tunnel for the enterprising porker. 1t
lay directly in the boys path, and he at
tempted to spring over il, with the result
that he stumbled and fell. dropping the
cub and bruising his own Sims The
baby bear set up pitiful whining, and
the mother CRASHED her teeth and
reached for the unfortunate youngster.
IN THE LOG.
Ben scrambled to his feet, but the bear
was almost upon him, and he gave him
self w. for lost. He staggered TO the
end of the log over which he had fallen.
and in fit of sheer desperation dropped
quickly to his hands and knees and
nimbly crawled into it,
The log was about 10 feet in length.
and much smaller at one end than at the
other. Ben had entered the larger end,
and had crawled nearly to the middle of
the cavity. Here his further progress had
been stopped by the lessened calibre of
the hole so. drawing his legs well under
him he waited and trembled-
The bear shifted at the log, Deered into
it and then tried to gain an entrance;
but her bulky body refused to be
squeezed into so small a space and she
she uttered a growl of evaporation and
disappointment and thrust first one paw
and then the other into the log. IN a
vain endeavor to reach the crouching and
covering lad.
Finding that her former efforts and de-
vices had failed, she commenced to claw
and gnaw at the log in most cruel and
manner. The hollow cylinder
rested upon sloping blt of ground and
the mother bear, in her earnest en-
deavors to tear it to pieces disiodged ii
and sent it rolling over and over into n
little hollow so feet from its former rest
ing place
Ben could not imagine what had oc-
Cured. He was whirleo over and tossed
about until he hardly knew where he
was. When the log came to a sudden
halt from striking against stump of
a tree. he was thrown into a Dromscu
Gus heap, and realized that he had re-
ceived q number of abrasions and con-
tusions as a result of his revolving ride.
Ben lay quite still for Ions time. his
cramped limbs aching and throbbing
painfully. Not hearing nor seeing any