The Minneapolis journal. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn.) 1888-1939, 1903-10-05
SMOKED OUT

The following story is taken from Allen
Kelly's interesting book. Bears Have
Met-and Others. Drexel Biddle, pub
Usher, Philadelphia ss
t What a bear may do under given Cir
scumstances may be guessed with reason
able certainty by one who has had ex-
perience, but it is not always safe to risk
much on the accuracy Of the guess.
Bruins general nature is not to be de-
pended upon In special cases. He has IN
d1vidual characteristics and eccentrictties
and is subject to freaks, and these varia-
lions from the line of conduct which he is
expected to. follow are what make most Of
the trouble for people who are after his
pelt. Morgan Clark, the old bear hunter
Of Sisk1you, never hesitates about going
into a den in the winter to drive out a
bear, provided the. cavern is wide enough
to-: let the bear pass him. He takes
torch In his hand and stalks boldly in, be-
cause his experience has made the pro-
ceeding seem perfectly safe.
"All you've got to do" says Morgan.
rs to stand to one side and keep quiet,
and the bear'l1 just scoot by without no
t1cing you. It's the light that's bothering
him. and all he's thinking about is getting
out OF that hole as fast as he cam, He
don't like the smoke and the fire, and he
won't pay any attention to anything else
until ne gets outside, but then you want
to look out. He goes for the first live
thing In sight when he's clear of the cave
and the smudge, and he don't go very
slow either. Jim Bracket found that out
over IN squaw valley one day. He found
bear in den, and built fire at the
mouth to smoke him out. The fire was
burning rather slowly, Bracket thought
and he stood looking around and wait
ing for something to happen. While he
had his back turned to the den something
did happen, and it happened dog gone
sudden. That fire was plenty fast enough
tor the bear and the old cuss came out
without waiting to be choked He came
| out galleycahoo, and the first thing he saw
| was Bracket leaning on his gun and
! waiting for the show to begin. He just
! grabbed Bracket by the back of the neck
| and slammed him around through the
manz1ntta brush like a dog shaking a
groundhog:' Bracket told me that he
never felt so surprised and hurt in his
life He hadn't carlated on that bear
coming out for good two minutes more;
! but nebbe the bear had stronger objec-
lions to smoking than Bracket knew. II
LIT hadn't been for Brackets little cul
| dog' that he supposed wasn't fit for moth
I ing but barking at chipmunks, I reckon
I the pear would have chawed and thumpeG
| the life out of him. The cur seemed tc
| tumble. to the situation right away, and he
WeiIt 1oi the pear S neelS In good shape
/ 1t: generally takes time and a few knock.
out cuffs from bears paw to teach a dos
that there's two ends to a bear and only
1 one OF them safe to tackle but that LITTLE
ornery %kiyi knew it from the start. /
there's anything a bear can't stand, it's {
dog nipping at his heels, and when the
cur began, swapping at his hind legs ant
yelping, he lost. interest in Bracket ane
attended to the disturbance. in the rear
i The little cuss was cute and spry enough
to keep out Of his reach, tho, and he mad
sucn nuisance OF himself, without dom,
any serious damage of course, that thu
bear got disguised with the whole per
formance and hiked out thru the brush
Brackett was hurt too badly to follow hin
or to fire a gun, and 1t. was two month
before ne was able to get around. But h
wouldn't have sold that little scr,,h c1
for all the money he ever saw +
:, Budd Watson, who used to hunt an
/ trap on the Pitt river and the McCloud