The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1898-12-11
SIX BEARS AND ALL TIpSy
a MERR PMAKING AROUND 4 RIM.
PRESS IN THE UOODS NH

Sight Witnessed by Farmer NI,nnn"'-
temperance Lesson IN II Bears E,,.
WILLIAMsPoRT. Pa. Dec. 1O.-Bhh Cb,r,A.
lain's theory that Pine Creek bears arc ,n"" H
ing In malice finds n believer IN Frodo.l,
Monroe. o farmer living in the Put.rh,,,.ss
Mountain district. near tho head wo,oss
Larry's Creek. This is n famous rogi,, )"
black bears. rs nuts and acorns pbo,sn,
there. Monroe is a firm believer in tho ir,oW
Gence OF black bears. He says thnt. soyo ~.
horse, there lie no animal SO sagacious Ito ,is
believes that they are fond of a good uno
Il see that Bob Chamberlain, up 10 rod..
Run. thinks the Pine Greek bears are n II,t,.
smarter than the common run of bears h,
said. but saw something q year ago M,
fall that goes TO show that the Larry's Croos
and Puterbaugh Mountain bears are a s,.S
ahead Of Chnmberlain's. I have nv cid..
press away from the house about thrcc.on,,
ters of n mile along the main road. Neo, N.
press runs a little stream of winter that coma.
tumblinG down through n rocky ravine. TIT,
ravine. l learned years ago. is a famop. an
way for bears. There's not n fresh snow !.
winter but what l see tracks either COMING ~
or going Town 10.
"A year ago last fail l made cider FAR PIN
Schultz. Abe Myers and myself. and az ia M,
custom. / shovelled the dummies ont onto,
pile back Of the press. Myers's APPLES wo,.
nearly all sweet. and. aS YOU know. these a.
harder to get the Juice out OF than a crisn
sour apple. Well. when I'd got through viii
the cider making there was quite n pile n
'pummies'-seems to me there'd been ,u;
wagon loads Of them. The day after we oui,
PRESSING 1t rained nearly all day, and ,hns.
dummies swelled IN to double their size,
The next two days were warm. During m.
middle OF the day the sun was hot. and It beo,.
down on that pile Of wet 'pummies' until IN.
whole pile Just dubbed with Fermentation
Now. fermented dummies. II you eat enough-o,
them. give you q worse case of tanglefoot than
the strongest kind OF applejack. and | tell you
my Dummies were in great shane. had in,
tended hauling them into the meadow. hut
didn't want to handle them when they were N
sour. 80 I let them lie there.
We'll. before the.week was over the 'pum.
mics played a part Chrome OF the funnies,
things I ever saw. 1t was this way. Ny boy
John. who goes to see one OF Nose Henry,
daughters across the hill. was coming homs
close onto midnight. AS he was crossing thu .
field above the house he heard a queer nolse
down toward the cider press. At first hs
thought the hogs had got out and were root.
ing in the acorn woods. but when he had
stopped and listened he made up his mind that
the noise was not made by pigs. but by bears
Now. the night was almost as bright as iay
from the full moon. but John wasn't Guits
brave enough to venture down into the ravins
alone. SO he came into the house and told ma
what was up. ,
Hold on says I. wait until I get dressed
and get my gun. I'll go with you Before I
got ready my daughter Sadie. about 10 years
of age. and one of the best rifle shots you ever
saw, heard the racket. and she was bound, to
gun-slipped down the road toward where the
bears were at work. l just reckoned that they
ed to find what we saw when we come around
s abovs BENZ tbs cids the nr road on Thna little Little incline incl jus.
light almost as e it had been midday. ',WeI.
down into the road at the press our eyes iel
on q funny sight. Right in the middle Of the
rron read were three, fpll,Erown bears, dancing
set eyes on at a husking bee or an apple.
over to one side of the road next the cider
press were two half-Rrown cubs. and the way
they were hugeing and iabhering and rub.
bling noses was a caution. These two little
apple s%nitzin', while the old bears that were
da9cing-l In the:Ioad were as Jolly as possible.
indeed; We hadn't watched the queer sight
into the road from the direction OF the nummis
pile. He was as drunk as q lord. His lag was
made the, three dancers In the roadway stop
20 look at him., He managed to get along 50
long as he could, lean against the side of the
cider press shed. but as soon as he reached the
End q that he went sprawling into the road
n, q heap.
squeaied and Chartered, but the old fellow
Deacon Miller could be here to see that old bear
the way. he walters around in the road aftera
laws visit to town. John he wanted to fire:
,ays. No, sir. john. You don't e shoot a od dru K
white, alley sadie says as hSy She She th%ushtt
IN leavin' the pummies where the bears could
ret hold of, 'em and learn bad habits, She i.
said she had been rradin' just, the day before
md teaching the Indians how to drink fire
and to chew tobacco and now we were
=, Wei, we had lots Of fun Watching them
fpsy bears. The youngsters were lust having
lovely time until one Of them fell asleep and
possum. Then the other little devil so up
such a pitiful howling Tint one Of the old
nd ,cuffed his ears for certain. The three
lancing bears were evidently better drinkers
h.}n the 2ne that had been laid out. for every
,ummie pile and wet their whistles, and then
hey'd come back into the road and dance I
shooting them. but at last / compromises
him by agreeing to let him tie the hope
ess old fellow who Law Eroaning In the road.
{ took John:abouta minute to run to The shed
pd get a LONG, hay chain, with which 10 make
4 the hill frightened the bears. drunk ms they
'ere. When they saw us coming toward
hem they gave the drunken bear a few labs
y the ribs. to which he answered with so many
rnnts.. and then the three. followed by The
he thicket.
When John and / began to fasten the chain
round the old bears mock he sort of found out
mt something unusual was going on. but le
'as Just too drunk to care very much. SO in
few minutes we had him prisoner and tied 70
tree We rolled him over out Of the road.
ntll daylight. Sadie allowed as, how she
idnt propose to see n bear trlcked into cat
WHY In that way. so she went back to he
o.use., scolding like q mother-in- law.
Well, long toward daylight old Mr., Bear
oused himself. When he heard the chains rat
Ing he acted too stupid for anything. He SAT
D on his hunkers. poked his paws into hlI
yes. and then looked around sort Of like liip
an Wrinkle does in the play. as II he was won
ering how long he had silent. Then he set
yes on John and |. He tried to get away. hut
ouldn't. Then didn't he get mad. Saw, n
.ornet's, nest Is nothing to that old bear when
9 saw that he was In a tran. and we were pok-
e fun at him. We left him rave for ten min;
ties; and then John up and took him haGk q,
le left foreleg with q rife ball. Tina; iN"i
- H. L.