The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1898-02-27
4 WRITE FACED BEAR.
He Was UE y, iormidnbin and Fond OF Mutt
ton. nnh lie Came To Grief at LAST.

ton. ANA lie Came To Grief at LAST.
Anybody with II squirrel gun is safe to tackle
a black bear; / mean one OF the little hog bears,
as we call them hereaEouts.' said Tom Meserve,
the Maine guide, up at Lake Chesuncook. "A
white-faccd bear is another thing. With one of
them he has got TO be sure OF his weapon and
play his points tinr. There's q difference Of
opinion among hunters us TO what n white
faced bear really is. Some hold that he is of n
breed distinct and separate from the common
black bear: others that he is u freak
of nature. like II white deer; and. again.
others say that he is nothing more or
less than an old black bear with his
nose turned gray from age. just as a mans
whiskers whiten with years. One thing all
agree on-that u whi,c-faced bear is tho biggest,
longcst-legged cunningcst, orncriest, and uEliest
specimen ofthe boar family that can be found
between the Maine coast and the River st.
Lawrence. He can run like n greyhound, is q
great traveller. and greedy; when one OF them
comes down from the green woods and gets
to killing sheep or young stock he is heard
from in a new place every day-one day here. to-
morrow in the next county. and the day after
twenty miles in the other direction. You
can't do anything with him. II you set
traps he will walk round them. or spring
them in such a wny as not to get caught, and
then eat the bait at his leisure. If you hunt him
WIN uobs Jou j III u u uhFu CHHse, ana are
pretty certain TO lose your dogs il they happen
to como up with him.; and you are in good luck
If you don't get near enough the boar to be
rough handled yourself. I've heard of q good
hunter shouldcring his gun and walking the
other way when he happened to come upon one
OF these brutes unexpectedly in the woods; he
was quite w~illing>to call Off il the bear would.
This brings me to the particular bear that I
want to tell you about-a bear known as old
White Face, that roamcd the woods round the
foot of Mooschead Lake many years ago. My
father and people who lived about the lake at
that time have often told me OF his doings. l
saw this bears skin. / was q small hoy then,
but I remember that it. was a very big one. and
that the nose and a little OF the forehead were
grayish white. while the rest of his pelt was
blnck. Those who saw the bear said that his
white face gave him a very vicious look-such
an expression as a blaze.faced horse has.
This bear had q history that ran through
half a dozen years. He was first seen catching
fish at II brook that comes into the lake a few
miles above Greenvllle, and it was the only hon
est thing that over was laid to his credit. Tho
man that saw him had TO gun, but he stayed 10
SEQ tho bear fish. keeping well out Of sight him
self. 1t was in midsummer and the br, ok was
about dry. with little pools along the bottom in
which the nsh-trout, sinners, and redins-had
gathered, The boar would jump from u high
place into a pool lllcd with fish ana make u
"hoii hCll'lli'E "Nl' anu llbu buI over
the dry sand and gravel around. Then
he would scramble on, and nail as many
they were carried with the water back into the
pool nFain; The man came home to Groenvll!o
no said about tho bears ~ilshing-that's a trick
OF the animal which every old hunter knows-
but when no said thtt tho bear was whi.e;facea
his story arterward. though, for IT. wasn't long
before old White Face was heard OF again. and
he soon got his name up in piscataquis county.
He killed sheep all over the county, visiting
the fanny rds ana pastures as regularly as the
f his wi msn' "M fasting IN and and ihpi' niw 20 si m nT s' am.
other raid in the fall before he went to sleep for
diet with berries. and he usually m"naged L
scare n few BURBERRY pickers half TO death every
season. He was a cheeky fellow who wouldn't
turn out for q man. and he got moro independent
every year. He stopped the Bangor stage between
Shirley and Greenville, and made 1t wait In the
road until he got good and ready to move out OF
the way. The four horses at sight OF him were
all on their hind logs at once, and the DIR ycr mad
passengers, from going, over into the ditch, The
same bear met Levi philbrick on a corduroy
the logs into the water and soft mud. and it was
q miracle that the man ever got clear OF tho
m Rna passed %as HAo ke Si a eHs rSs1 he Sidd% a rT matSr ' 6sa 6sSF
that bear after this. and, queerly enough. the
chance came AT last for him TO pay 1t of.
There were more stories going about the
doings OF White Face than l could tell YOU II /
were to talk tho whole night long. lie was
sort OF difference with him. The hunters would
come back with the story OF a dog or two killed.
and White Face would turn up as usual when ii
was his date TO come round for mutton. But
his time came at last, and : was in this way:
1T was we'll along in the spring. and Levi
Philbrlgk. who was a log surveyor. was coming
down MoOsehead Lake on the Ice. Tho sun and
Levi, on snowshoes, took the risk for sake of
easy travelling. keeping near shore as he went.
A few miles above Green Vile old White Face
came out OF the woods on the shore. He was
lean and hungry and he didn't wait. but started
straight for Philbrick. IL was near midday and
the Ice had soflened since morning. IL would
bear Levi on his snOwshoes. but White Face
went through into the water six rods from
shore and tho leo gave way under him every
time he tried TO claw himself out upon 1t. Ho
could neither light nor run. and tho laugh was
with Levi this time.
"'Drive me into a swamp again, will you, you
white-faced old reprobatev Levi said, and
Some dshormen who came along helped get the
bear from the water. and he brought the skin
into GreenYllle that night"