The Morris County chronicle. [volume] (Morristown, N.J.) 1877-1915, 1902-05-09
HIS BEAR CROP
A FAILURE
Bob Skies, Hunter, Laments
Bruins Ingratitude.
II GUESS OF Bob skiles won't never

muzzle-loading shotgun. 'And it
sarves him right, so it does"
Bob Sliles is famous in the neigh
borhood of Kettle Creek, Pa, as a
bear hunter and one who pretends to
use philosophical forethought as an
aid to his hunting. Thus, one day last
spring he discovered family of bears
in the woods along Polly's Run. 1t
consisted of a big and savage mother
bear and three cubs. The cubs were
but a few weeks old.
Skiles' first impulse was to put
ball through the old bear as she
rushed toward him from her retreat
beneath the roots of fallen tree, and
to carry the cubs home alive, but on
second thought he resolved to spare
the family. He knew that the cubs
would pine for their mother and per-
haps would not live under alien care
and treatment.
"I'll just let the hull caboodle of 'em
alone" said Bob. "Six months from
now them cubs'll be in fine shape to
give me some fun in the woods, and
the OF woman b'ar'll have a nice new
coat o. fur on to her. I'll let 'em live,
and reap the harvest o. my bein' kind
to 'em along when snow begins to fly
next fall"
So he did what no other hunter in all
that spread of waters would have done.
He passed on and left the bear family
to itself.
About two weeks before Thanksgiv-
ing he had the satisfaction of knowing
that the cubs had grown to be more
than half as big as their mother, fat as
pigs ready for the killing, and with
coats of fur of the blacklist and
glossiest. The mother was also in
superb coat and finest condition. They
were snugly housed in Tamarack
swamp.
"Guess I'll let 'em pick up for
week or so more" said he. "Then
they'll be ready for me to have fun
with"
A couple of days later he saw the
bear family again. The old bear and
two of the cubs went into the swamp
and the other cub started away on his
own account, over toward an old wood
road, and down the road toward Bly's
clearing.
"That amt regular" said Bob. "That
bar amt actin squared"
So he followed the cub, which went
along at a lively rate, and turned into
the woods, at the further edge of
which Bly, had few sheep in lot,
with long fence around it. Bob
Silkes hurried on, and came out of the
woods into the lot just as the young
bear had cornered the sheep and had
killed one.
"That bein' the case," said Bob, "I'll
have to have my fun with this young
cub right now"
And he killed the cub and gave it to
BLY, because it killed Bly's sheep.
A day or two afterward Bob had
an offer of good price for big
bearskin, and he went out to get the
mother of the family. He got on
her trail The two young bears were
with her.
Bob followed her for an hour be-
fore he got shot, and the old bear
turned on him so fiercely that if it
had not been for his dog she might
have got him instead of his getting
her, but he got her. The two young
bears went up big tree.
'I'll leave 'em," said Bob. "I'll
have Thanksgivin' hunt with 'em.
and have a lot more fun. I'll get one
of 'em on that day and then I'll
keep t'other one for a Christmas
hunt. They'll wait for me-"
In less than a week after that,
though some one from the county
seat sent word to Bob that if he
could send over a couple of bears,
young, fat and juicy, right away, he
could get his own price for them, so
Bob concluded that he wouldn't keep
the two remaining members of the
family waiting for him any longer,
and he started out bright and early
to get them for the man at the
county seat. Sabin Budd tells the
rest.
"'Tain't fer me to be the jedge o.
folks doin's," said Sabin, ''but when
Teller has nosed around in the
woods as much as Bob Skiles has, an
then goes an puts his confidence in
bars, it sarves him right if he gifts
fooled. / was settin' on a log over
this side O. the big cranberry mash,
waitin' fer a deer that I thought
mebbe mowt come along to chew
some O. the wild grass on the edge
of it, and who should I see but Bob
with his gun on his shoulder, bound
for somewheres.
"'Hello, Bob!' I sung out. Where
do you think you're goin'?'
"'Goin' to git them two bars o.
mine that's over on the edge O. old
Tamarack, waitin' fer me-
"'so?, I says. Hope you'll git
'em,' says.
"'Course I'll git 'em!' says Bob.
81 didn't say nothin' more, an on
he went. / looked arter him till he
got out O. sight. Then says to my
self:
Sometimes teller is a leetle too
sure O. things. Specially if it's bar
I says.
$50 1 got on the log and sort O.
pondered, an by an by long come a
slammin' nice buck to chaw wild
grass at the edge o. the cranberry
mash, an knocked him over, skinned
him out an took him home. An as
I was goin' home / says to myself
ag'in:
"'Sometimes Teller is a leete