The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1900-06-24

out, kinder singed. / picked up a long
stick and began to knock off the boards
/ that was afire, but the idiot that built
I the cabin had nailed 'em on from the
inside. and when 1 knocked 'em off
/ they all tumbled inside of course, and
/ had to run in and drag 'em out, and
1 burnt my hands pretty bad. The
/ otner teller had been standin' off
laughin' kinder sarcastic.
Much obleeged to you for wakin
+ me, L says, as he started back to his
1 camp.
'Sich blamed careIessness [ never
see ne srowls. You've got to repair
( my cabin or Day for it
I cut few saplin's and set 'en I'D
/ agln the open end of the cabin. It was
/ moonlight and I could see pretty well.
Ihen l crawled into the bunk again.
dldnt prop the door this time but
l wished L had afterward. My hands
HuFI me so bad that l couldn't sleep,
ana l turned and twisted for an hour.
All at once 1 heard something. NV
blood all turned to ice and my hair
brlstled like a shoe brush. II was q
SoIJ put heavy tread, and a loud.
hOarSe breathin' jest outside the cabin
close to my head. And then I smell
something ike a pig-sty. l knew well
enough what it was There was only
the thickness of split clapboard be-
| tween me and big grizzly bear!
began to think like chain light
hIhS Inc shotgun-'twa'n' loaded,
ana II 1t had been charged to the muz-
zie 'twould only sting him and make
MN as mad as a hornet. l might climb
upon the cross beams. Pshawi They
wa mt seven foot from the floor, and
one scope of his paw would bring me
down like ripe plum.
Not thinkin' CT anything sensible to
90, didn't do nOthin' but / KEEP as
sun as ever KEEP in my life. l fairly
Shrunk up like withered potato.
The bear walked slowly around the
cabin breathin' as if he had the
asthma Pretty soon I saw him
through the saDlin's, and I knew he
could brush 'em away like smoke. He
lifted uD his big head and looked
toward me, and I'll take my solemn
oath that he was bigger than any bull
that ever paved the earth. He stuck
out his nose and shifted with a dread
full noise. I tried to think of the Lords
prayer.
But pretty soon he moved on and
heard him chompin' the bacon rinds
outside He walked around the cabin
four times, and every time he stopped
and shifted closer to the saplin's. Twas
only the smell of the fire that KEEP him
from comm in, that's sure. Then he
moved off, for I didn't smell him any
more.
IAN Of a sudden I made one jump to
the door, cUssin' myself for darned
coward There I'd been thinkin' bout
myself all the time when that other
poor teller was sleepin' in the open,
and the bear would be sure to visit
him after fnishin' with me! And he'd
been kind enough to save me from
burnin' up, too. 1 run out, hollerin' to
him:
Look out, pardner; there's a griz-
Fly aroundr
Tell me some news, will you,' come
a grouty voice out of the air, it seemed
to me. l looked up and saw something
dark up the oak tree, about as high as
a man could well go.
You're roostin' high 1 says. Did /
he take after you?
seen i'm a-cOmin' and I didn't !
stop for lunchS says he. Me blankets /
is ribbons. and he's eat everything but 4
the ak and fryin' pam
Well, slide down and make a /
break for the cabin. He amt in sight |
now
Thank We, I'm comfortable says
he
However, I talked him into comm |
down, and he made a very pretty run /
for the cabin. I couldn't have beat it /
myself, and I was pretty spry in those !
days Ke slipped in and propped the |
door, and he began to cuss a fool who |
would come away and forgit his am
munitiOn.
Daylight was an awful long time |
a-cOmin'. but it showed up at last. We |
built a fire and made some coffee, but |
we didn't fry no bacon.
1.-THE other teller seemed kinder blue. /
1 felt sorry for him, so 1 says:
" My friend, you can have this |
ranch. I don't like TO interfere with |
anyDody's plans, and my business in |
town is Dressin'. anyway. You can
have my blankets and what grub is |
left, and I'll bid you goodbye
" No you don't he hollered. jumpin' /
up. This ere ranch is yOurn. l was
only jOkin last night. The climate ERE
don't agree wi me. must be off,
" I couldn't think of it, says l. You
can make a nice home out of it. Good
luck to you
" I means what I says he growls,
real huffy. This ere ranch is yourn,
and don't you insult me by insinivat-
ing that I'm tryin' to git it away from
you
well. the upshOt Of it was that we
had a bigger quarrel than we had the
night before"
Ezra Tucker laughed and slapped his
knee.
But how did it come out?" asked
the deputy assessor.
"Oh. the other feller is Rose, my I
partner. We got over our scare and
now, and I guess dinners ready"