Alexandria gazette. [volume] (Alexandria, D.C.) 1834-1974, 1899-05-30


Down n Snow Covered aIouontuin
Side-N Close Call, In Which the
Man Just Escaped With His Life.
To roll down a snow covered noun
tain side tightly clasped in the embrace
of grizzly bear is an experience few
men pass through and live TO tell. But
that is what happened TO Frank Lecky
of Fresno and when it was all over ne
had only a few scratches and bruises
and big bearskin to show as signs of
his terrible encounter.
at was the wickedest fight 1 ever
got into. said Frank when telling OF
his experiences, and I have been in a
good many, going out hunting in the
Sierras every winter. as do,
This big fight happened up in the
Whitney country. 1t was just a few
miles east of the Minarets and in the
spot where a fellow is always pretty
sure to find big game,
1T was pretty late in the afternoon,
and I was all alone in camp, as the
other boys had not returned from deer
hunt they started on in the morning.
al had been doing in the tent all
dav.% but came out to have a look at the
Az. As I glanced along the top Of
hint few hundred feet from the camp
Tsaw something dark moving about.
"Tbat>was enough for me. got my
rife and started right after 1t. The kind
Of came was going after didn't con-
cera me at all. Del I really didn't ex-
Dect bear. at least s-leit big cantanker-
Gus bear.
Taking a roundabout way through
the snow, l soon reached the top Of the
bluff and began 10 crawl along care
fully in order to get good resting shot
and not come upon my game too sud
denly
FINALLY caught q close view of a
big dark body moving behind clump
of bushes. It was 50 large that for
moment I thought had been stalking
COW and was ready 10 kick myself
Then a long drawn sniff and deep
growl told me it was bear l was sight
ing. Instantly I was all excited with
interest and strained every nerve 10 gel
the beast in line and so plant bullet IL
theright spot The bear, however had
mind 10 keep his eyes on me and kept
movingsabout as he peered between the
branches Of the brush
Suddenly one Of the horses down il
the camp neighed loudly and attracted
the bears attention. As the bear turn
ed and exposed his side l fired Down
went the bear like a bag of wheat, and
I thought my rife ball must have gone
clean through its brain. Without stop
ping to consider whether my shot had
really been fatal, I rushed forward. As
I stopped down to see where the ball
struck, the bear jumped up, and then
I knew l had only creased it-that is,
just grazed its head or spinal cord and
knocked it senseless for a moment.
Before l could swing my rifle for
ward to get in shot the bear had
knocked it out of my hands and was
right on top of me- Somehow l man
aged to draw my knife and get in few
labs >that did no damage The bear
Rugged me tighter and tighter, and l
kicked harder and harder and jabbed
wildly with my knife Then we both
rolled on the ground, and the bear tried
to bite my face, but kept off his fest
clawing blows by hugging tightly
against him. I jabbed and jabbed as
we rolled over and over, and the bears
face and claws We're pretty badly cut
and one of his eyes was put out of ser
vice. The snow ali around was torn up
and spattered with blood
Before knew it we were just on
the edge of the bluff, and an almost
vertical wall of snow lay just below Us
for over a hundred feet to the bottom.
This frightened me more than the
bear, for l knew what it meant, but be-
fore I could think Of doing anything we
were over the edge and rolling down at
lightning speed
. sit could not have taken more than
a fe,Y seconds but it seemed to me like
years Now was on top Of the bear,
and nowNCnderneath. Snow filed my
eyes and ears> and was scratched and
wounded and bumped until I thought
my end had come.
cit seems to me that kept striking
at the bear as We rolled, or rather shot,
downward, for we were going ar the
speed of cannon ball. Then there was
a sudden bump while was on top, and
the bear gave a moan of pain and let
go of me.
"Thet gave me my chance, and I
drove my knife into his heart,
1.-THE skin. measured over seven feet.
1 found out whiie we were cutting him
up that when ne struck the rock at the
bottom Of the hill ne shattered his
spine. 1t was just piece Of luck that
the bear struck the rock and not my
self. San Francisco Call
l have been d sufferer from chronic
disrrhoea ever since the war and have
used all kinds of medicines for it. At
East found one remedy that has been
Il success as cure, and that is Cham.
berlain's Collie Cholera and Diarrhoea
Remedy.-P. E. GRESHAM. Gaars Mills,
La. For sale by J. H. Janney, Drug
gist, 701 Kingst.
Rates to Communication Points.