Newport weekly independent., 1903-10-02
SIMEON, THE BEAR AND THE SHEEP @ Case of a Man Who Insisted on
 Running Against Nature.
T NCLE JASE sot a minute" said
 Ithe man from the Knob country.

| Ithe man from the Knob country, land then he says to the Squire, sort of as clincher:
 Squire,' says he, happens that Si- neon was an ancestor O mine, he says, and not so long back, either he says, and it's a leetle queer, seems to me- he says, that I never heerd of a bear maxim him out to be a sheep thief he says.
 First place, says to the Squire then, and I'd say it to him now:
 Squire,' says, you hadn't ought to done it. S'pose you have got idees about Uncle laser I says. 'Spose one O them idees is that no matter what folks thinks as to the leetle statement Paul made in his haste about mankind in gineral, they don't hesitate minute to say that if it don't hit Uncle Jase plumb as a shot in the bullseye, then the iightnin' never hit barn?' I says There's such a thing as goin' lettle too fur, Squire, I says, and you hadn't ought to done it!' I says.
 But the Squire he jest only grinned
 Uncle Jase is from the Rocky Hill deestrict, and he's a feller-citizen that most folks has toler'ble strong idees about, particularly the Squire, and Uncle Jase had come in this time and told about Evander havin' snuck up onto a bear that was asleep and got a rope around it before it could wake up and clutch him; and, more than that, had yanked the critter in spite of it. self, all the way into his clearin ], where he had it tied to pole, safe and sound, that very minute. Then the Squire had said to Uncle Jase, jest as if he didn't have no more doubt about that bear than he did that he was set tin there, that Evander had run his head slam ag'in natur', and he'd better keep his eye peeled.
 eff there's one thing that bear won't never forgive nor fergit, says the Squire, shakin' his head solemn at Uncle Jase, and lookin' fer all the world as if this doin's of Evander was worryin' him like all-possessed, its bein' ketched and done fer while it's asleep, cause then you're runnin' slam ag'in natur', he says. 'Natur is wonderful, he says, and you can't beat her. And there ain't nothin' she's so wonderful in as she is in bears,' he says.
 of you sneak on to bear when it's asleep and git the best of it. says the Squire. look out! You're tryin' to beat natur', and natur' won't have it!' he says. If you ketch bear in that way, it's bound to have it in for you and git even, and to make it sorry day for you when you done it. There ain't nothin' natur' is so wonderful in as she is in bears, and Evander wants to keep his eye peeled. says the Squire.
 "Then Uncle Jase sticks up his nose and says; 'Poof.'
 "Jest ezac'ly what poor onfortunit Simeon up and says to my gran father! says the Squire, holdin' up his hands. And I rather calc'late he lived to see the day he was sorry, poor feller!' says he. Simeon had snuck up onto sleepin' bear jest like Evander has been doin' and got rope onto it and yanked it home and tied it to a pole.
 My gran father says to Simeon, says the squire, that he had run his head slam ag'in natur', so he had, and that if he didn't put ball into the bear and end it's future right there, he'd find sorrow and tribuIation ahead of him worse than rassalin' with a sawmill; but Simeon only jest turned up his nose and says: "Poof!"
 "My gran father says the Squire, knowed bears from A to izzard, and how wonderful natur' was into 'em, and he went away sorrowin', cause he knoved there was day O reckonin' for Simeon if he didn't kill that bear he had snuck up and ketched when it was sleepin'. And natur' is natur' now and bears is bears jest the same as they was then, says the Squire. T feel sorry for Evander,' he says.
 ''Then Uncle Jase he says 'Poof! ag'in as scornful as Sam Hill; and the Squire he shook his head and says Too bad! Too bad!'
 "As fer Simeon,' says the Squire, The want partic'lar poplar in the deestric' that's so, but he hadn't never done nothin' wrong as anybody knowed on. Yit he had ways, and folks didn't care much fer him. Then along about that time some one took to stealth sheen around there most tremendous. Who was doin' of it nobody couldn't git no idee.
 cone day.. says the Squire, my grant father was talkin' to Simeon, and he says to Simeon that it'd go hard with the sheep stealers If they was ever