The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1902-10-06
MONSTER OF A MOOSE
HE LIVES IN MAINE FORESTS AND
BEEN SEEN MANY TIMES
Said To Have Horns Eleven Feet Wide
Often Been Shot at but Seems to
Bear Charmed Life-WouId be Worth
Fortune If Captured.

4
BANGOR, Me-, Oct 5-The enor-
| nous moose that has been the wonder
| OF an sportsmenand the terror of SUI
| perStltIouS WoodSmen since 1891 has
/ again been seen, and people who have
| always laughed at the stories of "the
white moose" and "the spectre moose"
are beginning to believe that, after all
| there is some kind of an overgrown
] freak wandering around between Lob
ster lake and Mount Katadhin. A few
Gays ago a Boston sportsman, named
| M. A. Gushing, came down from the
| katadhin Iron works. region and re-
| ported having seen the big moose and
| having tried to get photograph of
| him. He had heard stories Of the white
| moose, but had refused to believe them.
but when, one day near Chairback
Mountain, he received visit from the
monster, ne was convinced. also so
! startled that he forgot all about his
| camera until too late to get a picture.
Mr. Gushing describes the moose as
| the largest by far that he has ever
seen, and of a dusty white color. ex-
| cept for brown patch under the chin.
He thinks the animal would be worth
| at least $1,000 when mounted.
They Don't Believe Stories.
Every story that comes from the
North Woods concerning this moose
makes him a little bigger than before:
but, allowing for exaggeration, it Is
reasonably certain that no moose yet
killed in Maine has approached this in
size. 1t was in 1891 that the moose
was first seen in Maine, by Clarence
Duffy, an Oldtown guide, who was
cruising around Lobster lake. Duffy
did not get near enough to the mon
ster for shot, but said he saw him
plainly, and gave a detailed description
OF the animal when he came back to
town. Everybody laughed at the story
and Duffy was set down as the great
est ronlancer- of his time. Not many
months after that, however, John Ross.
| a Bangor lumberman, was at Lobster
lake, where he had camps, and one
day, while crossing between Big Lob
ster and Little Lobster lakes in COM
pany with the foreman of W. L. Max
fields camps, he saw the big moose.
Mr.. Ross is no romancer, and when he
told his story people began to believe
that there was something up there
worth shooting at.
Will be Worth a Fortune.
For several years hunters searched
the woods in vain fer the big moose,
for 1t would be worth a small fortune
TO any man to bring him down. Not
until 1898, however, was the monster
seen again. In that year Granville
Gray, Bangor taxidermist, got sight
of the moose at some little distance
and since then he has had a second
view. In 1900 Gilman Brown of West
NeWbury, Mass, got nearer to the mon
Ster than had any of the others, actu-
ally getting several shots at him.
Brown aVerred that the moose stood
fully fifteen feet high, and that he had
antlers ten to twelve feet across.
Like most of the others who had
sight of the monster, Mr. Brown saw
the moose at dusk, but the animals
gray coat showed plainly, and Brown
got several shots at him, none of which,
however, seemed to have any effect.
He was so close that he could count
twenty-five points on one side of his
antlers, and thought at the time that
there were more. This is the greatest
number Of points that has ever been
known on any moose here or else
where.
Biker Chased Foxes.
Last year the only man to get sight
or the great moose was George Knee
land, of Sherman, who had charge Of
his brothers lumber camp at CULVER
Brook. In describing his experience
Kneeland said:
Il had to go to Macwahoc on bust
ness, and so got a bicycle and started
about o'clock in the afternoon to go
down by the road through the woods.
AS was riding along saw fox come
out into the road, and before I had
gone much further two more came out.
When they saw me they started
straight down the road. I gave a
Whoop and started in pursuit. I kept
so close to them that they tumbled over
one another in their efforts to escape,
until at last they went end over end
ont Of tho wood Tor IN
over their fright, and kept along.
well, I went to MacWahoc, got
through with my business there, and
started to return. AS I reached the
stretch Of woods, which Is about eight
miles long, and neared the place where
had seen the foxes, saw another fox
In the road, and had some fun chasing
him. Then, coming to long piece of ris-
ing ground, dismounted and walked.
/ had got to the top of the hill and was
about to remount, when I saw what
took to be a horse standing in the road
some distance ahead. Wondering what
horse could be doing there, stopped
and gave him a good look, when found
to my surprise 1t was not horse, but
a moose, and an immense one, too,
I waited a bit to see what he was going
to do, but I hadn't long to wait, for
he lowered his head and came straight
at me with the speed Of locomotive.
I tell you the way I dropped that BIZ
cycle and made for a tree would have
caused those foxes to laugh. 1t was
my turn to be scared.
And Moose Chased Biker.
1.-THE first tree I came to was too
small to hold man up. I tried an
other, and the limb broke under me,
and / landed on my back on the ground
l got into a good, stout tree as quickly
as I could, and climbed high. so that
would be out Of reach of the big fell
lows antlers and be able to see what
was going on.
Meanwhile the moose had lost no
time. He came tearing down the road
at terrific speed and his antlers reach
ed clear across the road at that place,
brushing the branches on either side.
I should think they would measure
eleven feet, all right. Well, as I said,
he came tearing down the road, max
ing straight for the bicycle, and, plant .
ing his forward paws on either side of
it., stopped to examine the wheel,
smelIed of it to his satisfaction, and
then raised his head, gave a tremen-
dous snort and raced off into the
woods, breaking down the small growth
of SaplfngS as if they had been ruShes.
The wind was blowing toward me, and
that probably Is the reason he didn't
discover me. I waited ten minutes in
the tree, and then, nndlnS that the
moose had really gone, slid down and
mounted my wheel, and the way
streaked it for home was caution"
The average size Of the moose shot
in Maine is from 800 to 900 pounds,
with antlers spreading from four feet
to four and a half feet, and not often
with more than eight to twelve points
on a side, while the bell, as the ap-
pendage under the animals neck Is
called ia generally eight or nine inches
long. All who have seen the great