The Savannah morning news. (Savannah, Ga.) 1900-current, 1903-03-01
ON THE MARTEN-R0AD
By Marstyn Pollough Pogue.

On the camboose in the middle Of
the camp a fire of green tamarack
sputtered and filled the camp with jig
cling shadows
Mulloy and sat on a bench close
TO the fire. Silence had fallen be-
tween us, and we had let our pipes go
out, for the warmth and the supper
We had eaten had wrapped US in
drowsiness, and we were nodding,
nodding; when Spalding stalked
through the open doorway.
He flung down heavy pack Of fur,
hung his snowshoes up on a peg,
pumped the cartridges out of the mag
azine of his rifle, thrust them into his
belt, leaned the Winchester against
the wall and stretched his hands out
over the fire.
"Snow-shoeing takes energy when
the snow is wet and cakes on the
filing" he remarked. I'm a little
tired and as hungry as wolf
While Spalding ate his supper, Null
10y spread out the fur which the
Wallling-boss had stripped from the
carcasses of the animals he had found
in the traps on Shegaug's marten-
road. There were the skins of one
beaver, three martens, one fisher, one
lynx, one red-fox, one cross-fox, and
a bear.
Where did you get the bear?"
asked Mulloy, who knew that Shegaug
had no bear traps set in the bush.
Near Tea Pail lake. answered
the walking-b boss. "I'H tell you the
story after supper"
When Spalding had finished eating
and lighted his pipe, we settled our
selves to listen.
Il have shot about fifty bears" said
he and trapped a few, but l never
ran from one until to-day
AT noon l stopped to eat my din
ner in a thick clump of balsams.
meant to melt some snow in my tea
dish and make tea. So L looked for
some dry stuff to start fire A few
yards from the balsams a big birch
tree doomed through the rain. 1 had
taken my snow-shoes off, and 1 didn't
take the trouble to put them on again.
but waded through the snow toward
the birch to strip off some bark to
kindle my fire.
L wallowed, hip-deep, halfway to
the tree; then suddenly 1 sank to my
shoulders. 1 had stepped over the
edge of a little pot-hole filled tn IFS
rim with snow.
l houndered and sank deeper, and
something stirred and upheaved under
my moccasins. A few feet beyond
my reach the tip of dropping spruce
bough trailed in the snow. 1 managed
to hounder within reach Of the branch
calght 1T, and slowly drew myself out
over the edge of the hole.
The next moment, in a furry of
snow a large bear followed me.
Rudely l had aroused him from his
long sleep. The pot-hold had been his
winter den. 1t was his body l had
felt stirring beneath my tramping feet.
I laughed.
'But the fun of his sudden awaken
ing did not occur to the bear. He bel
lowed with rage. 1 turned and plunged
back to the balsam clump, where I
had left my rife.
THE bear bounded after me. and
when I crowded between the balsam
branches and grabbed my gun he was
only few feet behind me and gave
me no time to wheel around and
shoot. l shouldered between the thick
boughs on the other side and the bear
showed through close behind me.
Wading knee-deep through the
snow, 1 circled the clump with the
bear swapping at my moccasin heels.
The second lap around the clump was
easier: there was a good trail; the
deep; l gained a little on the brute.
With all my energy 1 rushed around
again, increasing my lead, and when
the space between my heels and the
bears black snout had widened to
twenty feet or SO, l whirled quickly
and fired a snap shot.
The bullet struck the bear in the
chest, but did not stop him. With a
howl he raised himself on his launches
and came jigging toward me, tanning
the air with his fore paws.
L swung around, but in my haste
thrust one toe into the loop of a
spruce root. I fell and just as 1 roll
ed myself over on my back the bear
Sprang on me.
He reached down to catch my
shoulder in his jaws 1 raised my
rlile-butt toward the slavering mouth,
and the big jaw closed upon the
stock
Letting go my rifle 1 ierked my
buffalo knife from it's scabbard and
plunged the blade in the brutes neck.
That finished him; the second
vicious thrust 1 gave him was I'M
necessary His head sagged over and
drew my legs out from under his