The Washington bee., 1899-05-27
BEAR AGAINST MAN.
An Awful Grapple I'm Deadfau PIT I'm
Washington


pocket of a man than those in the DOS.
session of Ambrose Larsen, of Sehome
Wash.
Larsen's narrative of the incident,
leading to his wounding by a brown
bear and the securing OF four tusks as
mementos is as follows:
Il have pre-empted on a quarter sec.
ton of land lying about eight miles
back of Sehome. There / nave beer
living with my family for the last si1
years, improving the place, raisins
some stock and cutting shingle-bolts
In the latter part of last September tive
Of my pigs were killed by bears.
hunted and waited up of nights for the
bears, but could not meet them. Their
| bnilt deadfall, placing it directly
in the only trail the marauders could
reach the pigpen by. On visiting the
trap. one day. | found an immense
brown bear in it, the largest l. have
ever seen during lifetime spent in the
woods. The log of the trap had fallen
across its launches and broken its
back. The animal was alive, however
and full of fight. l put two bullets
from my Winchester into its head, anG
lAC OCdL OfST DIS III OodQ.
Il then climbed down into the pit
to see the best means of getting tc
work at skinning the animal. In doins
this it was necessary for me to pass
my right arm under the bears head
No sooner had my hand touched his
head than, with snap there was nc
avoiding, he raised and caught me by
the right arm, just above the elbow,
sinking his tusks deep into the bone.
AT the same time he sent his claws
into the leg of my right boot. For
tunately, | had brought my Winchester
into the pit with me, and had leaned
1t against the side, as it happened.
within reach of my left hand. The
bear had me securely pinioned, and I
could feel his tusks crunching on the
bone of my arm. What the agony was
you can only imagine; / cannot de-
scribe it. Getting the rifle stock be-
tween my knees, | managed to work
the loading lever with my left hand.
and, placing the muzzle of the gun
fairly into the bears right eye, fired.
The shot sent the big brute into it's
dying throes. Like wise it's Jaws set
tied down on my already crushed arm.
until it seemed that flesh and bone
must sunder, and the weight of the
bears head and shoulders would tear
the arm away.
However, endurance could not stand
up under a strain long. Getting anoth-
er cartridge into the rife by the same
tactics as before, | rammed the barrel
of the gun alongside this, where a
space showed between my shirt sleeve
and the bears tongue U.arson here
showed the tusk with the mark of the
rifle barrel upon iD, "and, showing the
weapon as far down the brutes throat
as my falling strength would allow of,
fired.
The bear was undoubtedly already
dead, but only slight relaxation of its
Jaws followed the second shot. | could
not free my arm The hold of the
claw on my boot, however, relaxed. |
With this advantage gained l dropped |
% my knees, and, using the rifle bar I
'el as pry, forced the animals jaws |
open. God only knows the awful ag-
'nly l endured during that prying oper-
alton, but at last / managed to free
myself. With my relief my grit gave
)ut, and | tainted. The next / knew
ny wife and neighboring raneher |
we're beside me in the pit, endeavoring
o stanch the bleeding from my arm. |
Wy wife had become alarmed at NV
ong absence. and. knowing my errand
when | left in the morning. had made
Ter way to the bear deadfall. Unable.
IN account of her feeble strength. to
alse me from the pit, she had walked
hree miles to the next cabin adioin-
ng ours TO procure the neighbor's as
istance.
Il was taken to Fairhaven and
hence to Victoria. Everything has
'een done that the surgeons of the
northwest are capable of. and that is
all that medical science can
ttain. for l have had good doctors.
The crunched bone of my arm will not
nit or form again. 1t continues 20
work. out in small pieces Every time
ne of these fragments of bone comes
the skin it forms an ulcer or boil
q its efforts to free itself The result
my arm, where the bears tusks pen
trated, is mass of useless flesh. The
ain comes from it constantly. I had
eclded to undergo an amputation
ihen friend told me of a surgeon in
an Francisco who had performed sew
raj difficult operations in cutting
way and piecing out of diseased bone
natter, and | am going to him as a last
ope. II he cannot help me the arm
1ust come OFF. for | cannot stand this
Wful constant pain much longer"