The southern sentinel. (Winnfield, La.) 1883-1910, 1903-05-22

bo0I9 D MS Jug OoCHy, uhN " AS -
was dom of it Uncle ST suddenly hauled
up and banged away up the creek a.
some thin.
I'VE heard howl, and then some
thii,fyent smashin' and dashin' on up
the creek. though we couldn't see what
i. was for the thick laurels. Uncle 81
had just begun 10 tell us that 1t was
bear, and that ne only see one OF Its
eyes as the bear was peepin' out O the
brush. when some one from up that
way hollered:
".Hi, down there! What in Sam Hill
you dom? That was my bear, and I've
been follovin' it more'n ten miles!
What you jumpin' in and skeerin' It
away for?
"Close onto that holerin' the man
that made it came breakin' out o the
laurels. 1t was Old Jake. and he was
madden than wildcats. i guess mebbe
there'd a been quite some hot squab-
bin betwixt him and Uncle 81 if jest
then we hadn't heerd two shots beyend
the laurels, ard we all hurried on to see
what was up; all but Joe. who disklv-
cred that he had gone lame. and so he
had to turn and go back home>
.Beyond the laurels who should we
come out on 10 but Gabe and Josh,
holdin' their guns in their hands and
lookin' skeert. f9fEk
".Bears come a-tumblin' out o. them
laurels like bees out of a hive! says
Gabe. They went over the hill and
down into the holler yonder skltln.
I don't know how many me and Josh
filed with lead. but seen one of EN-
hump himself and sort o fall behind
the rest and look tired
"Then Eyander spoke up and said
that he'd be darned if he was goin' to
tag on behind a lot o bears without
rittin' chance to have a shot at 'em,
and so he'd GO back home.
".More'n likely that'll be good idea
for Won. Evander.' says Uncle ST. for
the chances is that the bears have cir
eled round and gone back to the creek
ag'in.' he says, .and you can't help but
run ag'in two or three of 'em on your
way IN. ne says
$50 Evander said he didn't want to
take no setch advantage as that of a
party like our'n, and he stayed with us,
eve went down in the holler and
SEARCHED and secuted and s'arched, but
we couldn't git track o. that drove o.
bears, nowhow. BY and by we heerd
some one hollerin' and yellin' for help.
off in a little swamp. He wanted help
cause he was freed by bear. he hol-
Tered. and all of us but Palsy's Bob hur-
ried over there to help him.
"Paley's Bob said he'd be consarned
if he hadn't lost his pocketbook COM
in down 10 the holler, and he must go
back and look for it. / guess he must
a had hard time a findin' of it. cause
he hadn't got back yet when we left.
"The Teller in the tree was young
Ike. A big bear was at the foot of the
tree. sure enough, but see to once
that he was dcader'n a milestone.
"'Him and another one came tearin'
in here says young Ike. comm down
GU to- the tree. lookin' sheepish. and I
skinned up-.Eis tree. Tother bear
went on, but this un squatted right at
the foot o. thu, tree, and thought he
was treein' me, and waitin' fer me TO
tumble out says young Ike.
odd Jake .swore up and down that
the dead bear was the one he had
chased ten mile. Uncle ST declared it
didn't make no difference whether
Jake had chased the bear ten mile or
twenty, itswas the bear he had sent his
rifle bullet into up in the laurels along
the creek. or it wouldn't be layin' there
dead like it was.
Ell reckoned that the bear was one
that would be alive and well yet il
he hadn't sent that charge of lead into
it Just after young Nose had shot the
bear. dog Socky. and Gabe and Josh
wanted TO bet all they was worth that
the bear was one that had bumped it
self and got tired after Gabe and Josh
had banged away into the drove Of
bears up on the hill.
NO tellin' what mawt a. happened
by and by if Big Jim, from Ball Hill,
hadn't come along with gun on his
shoulder.
"'You'll find load o. buckshot in
that bears liver says he, and not an
other ounce o. Lead he says. The
buckshot slid out o. this here gun o.
mine about half an hour ago, over
yender in the swamp he says
"That's what they found in the bear
IA big load o. buckshot in its liver,
and nothin' else. Big Jim took the
bear, and we came home. 1t was con-
sider'ble osa bear hunt, but I've got an
idea that Uncle 81 didn't jedge Pete so
hasty that mornin' after
AIN. Y. Sun.