Barbour County index. [volume] (Medicine Lodge, Kan.) 1880-current, 1904-07-06
bear wanted me to rescue them vouas

Dear wanted me to rescue them young
uns o. her'n.
That was the hull sitiwation, as
fingered it out in jiffy. Ifergot all about
the ham, was so fetched by the longin'
the poor mother bear, and so all'per-
yadin' mad at the kidnappin' catamount.
l throwed off my coat, and up that
saplln' l Skinned. l wasn't long gettin'
10 wnere the catamount was crouchin' !,
glarln at me as come, and spittin' and
growlln' enough to skeer REQ Injin, but
holdln' on to the whinin' bear cubs like
grim death.
The varmint couldn't climb any
nlgner, an SEEM she coulon' skeer me
Dack, she thought shed Go better TO take
the chances Tor jump than to git into
my clutch, and she aimed Ter branch
OF tree on TO one SIDE O. the one we was
IN and away she went The Jump was
more than she could land, and down she
went, still clutchin' the cubs, kerpiunk
on the ground.
Before l could git down out o. the
tree the old bear had shattered the cata-
mount into shoestrings, and was jest
more than tickled over gittin' her cubs
back
She didn't have to have the gift of
CAB TO thank me. She looked it more
than words could tell it.
When | got to the ground thnnk
about that ham l was needin', and kin
See the sorrowin' look on that old bears
face now when l cussed the luck and
hollered
never kin ketch that wagon nowi
Never! And won't have nethin to eat
fer a week."
steaked it for the turnpike. any
now, hopln' | mowt ketch the wagon,
but when got there heered it rumblin
down the road, half mile beyend any
kind o hearin.' / come back here mad
and tired and hungry and cussed bears
and catamounts all night.
was foolin roundin here this fore
noon, when | herd a scratchin' sort of a
knock come to the door. | opened it, and
l most fell in faint when see that old
she bear standin' there with that doe
over her shoulder
AS soon as she seen me she laid the
doe down, give me a look that there
want no mistakin' and trotted off into
the woods. l was fetched to the heart.
"Gratitude!" says l, "Sorrowin' be-
cause she had knocked me out O. gittin'
my meat and swellin' with gratitude
cause l saved her cubs fer her, she has
gone and run down nice fat doe and
brung it to me b 'arthstone!" says.
And drug the doe in and was mus
no of in cfo
skinned it out, and now to think she stole
it! Me supposin' she had run it down
herself and brung it to me, and now to
think she stole it!
This is heart breakin'! Where do
you s'pose she stole it, Sam?'
Where DO you s'pose she could "a,
Dick? says Sam.
The unblushin' critter!' says Dick.
She knows!' says he.
Yes says Sam. And Jerry says he,
the thing fer you to DO is to whisper in
her ear that unless she Jugs that doe
back and hangs it on the peg where she
snaked it from, therell be more than
kidnappin' catamounts prowlin' round
and pouncin' in these woods!' says he.
Then Sam and Dick went in the woods
to see how the signs fer game was keepin'
up, and when they got back to their cabin
along in the afternoon, 10 and behold
We! there the doe hung!
Dick says Sam, what amazln
things bears does dol says he.
'Amazin'est kind says Dick.
And poor Jerry was weighted down
so under the heft O. woe that disapp INT
in she bear had give him that he throWed
up hir peelin contract and went to raft
in I'D on the ,headwaters. IN. Y. sun.