The daily morning journal and courier., 1899-01-16
THREE KINDS OF NERVE
Al TR4PPER'S PLUCK THEN MAN-
 GLED BY 4 BE.IR.

spirit shown by the Widow McCool In
 EIoping With the Man She Loved-Joe
 Lathrop's Nerve Displayed When Held
 Up by a Centipede and n Robber at
 the Same Time.
 Tn the days when I was knocking
 around among the Rocky Mountains
 and beyond" said Colonel Noah Par ker of Gordon, Pa, Git required a good
 many different kinds of nerve for a person to keep the lamp of life from go- ing entirely out, to say nothing of being comfortable and happy. I particularly remember three examples that illustrate how nerve had to be adapted to differ ent walks of life out there in those days in order that everything might come out right. One was the nerve of Jesse Bell, who made a journey of one hundred and twenty miles, with his upper jaw and part of his nose and cheek gone, half of his scalp torn off, one foot VI NSAACO anu lllillSlGb, HIS llSollL pii frightfully acerated and three ribs broken. Another was the nerve of the Widow McCool and Jim Kidd, who eloped in spite of Mart Huntoon and his gang of bad men, and Jim was stealing the widow away from Mart at that, or, rather, the widow was stealing herself away from Mart and taking Jim along. The third was the nerve of Joe La throp, who was. held up by a road agent and centipede at the same time, when simply a tremor would have un- loaded the centipede's cargo of poison into him or the movement of finger would have brought the contents of the road agents gun into his heart.
 Jesse Bell was miner, prospector, hunter and trapper, well known in the Wind River country, Wyoming. He had partner who went by the name of Arkansas Bill. I never knew what his real name was, but he was good one. The time was in that region Jesse and Arkansas Bill had been prospecting, hunting and trapping about the head waters of Snake, Wind and Green riv CTS for some time, and, meeting with poor luck, had worked down to the mouth of Horse Creek, where they found great signs of big game and good fur. Following herd of antelope one day, the chase took them eight miles to- ward high bluff, around one edge of which the hunters were cautiously creeping, Jesse in the lead. Turning a sharp corner of the rock, Jesse came face to face with big she silver tip, yearling cub and two spring cubs. toy r,6 saw Jesse as soon as he saw them. They were in a hollow, and the position and place Jesse was in made it a dan gerous spot either for an attack on the bears or for defence against them if they should attack. Arkansas Bill had crept to his companions side before Jesse could warn him what was ahead of them. Bill lost no time in getting back around the corner. Jesse was backing away for the same purpose when the old bear, her blood being up, made rush for him. Jesse fired as quickly as he could. The shot broke the bears shoulder, but she came on, more ferocious than ever. Jesse jumped one side, but the bear was too close to be evaded, and she caught him in the side. Hunter and bear tumbled in a heap, the bear on top, at Arkansas Bills feet. The bears jaws closed in Jesses side. her under teeth struck a heavy leather bullet pouch that Jesse carried slung over his shoulder by q strap, or her jaws would have come to- gether in Jesses side and torn it half away. As it was three of his ribs were crushed as if they had been pipe-stems. Jesse managed to give the bear a pow erful kick in the abdomen, and at the same moment Arkansas Bill fired and lodged a bullet just back of her shoul- der.
 Paying no attention to Bill, the bear turned her head and grabbed Jesse's right foot just below the ankle and brushed it to a pulp with out savage bite. Not content with that she bit and chewed at the foot and leg and tore away the flesh at every bite, Jesse all the while struggling to get his revolver out of his belt. This at last caused the bear to wheel about again and she made a grab for Jesse's head. Arkansas Bill rad his gun loaded by this tme-breech- leaders not having got out there yet and sent another bullet into the tough | old silver tip. This toppled her over
  feet and got his revolver in his left hand. The bear quickly recovered her. 1 Self and struck Jesse a blow with her paw on the head and face that knocked him down again. He held on to his re- volver and sent a bullet into her body. Before he could shoot again the silver tip seized his arlm between her teeth and crunched it entirely through. Bill shouted to him to move his head. Jesse | did so. At the instant he moved it the . bear snapped at it. Jesse Bell. in de- this situation afterward, de- ,lared that he could look right down the oears throat.
 'tArkansas Bill, who had been striving to get a chance at the bear, placed the nuzzle of his rifle at the silver tips ear and fired. She sprang back. She did 1ot take the trouble, though to loosen he hold of her jaws on Jesse's head and lace, but rasped her great teeth over hem, tearing away his upper jaw, part # his nose, one cheek and a piece of lis scalp nine inches long and five wide Then the bear fell over against Arkan- ,as Bill, dead. Her enormous weight carried him down with her. She fell tcross his legs and pinned him down. t was some time before Bill could get rom beneath the heavy carcass He vas badly hurt and limped with diffi- .ulty to the aid of Jesse, who was sit ing LID. While he was dressing Jesses ,caIp the best he could, the yearling ,oor which with the two cubs had