The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1905-03-12
MUNCHAUSENS OF THE WOODS,
STORIES rom BY THE SPORTS
NEWS SNOW GUIDES.
The ChimmS Fish and the Jnpunctual
Mantle bear That knew Good
beans-Rea Fly Fishing -TenderfOOt
IuCk Grizzlies In the Canadian Rockies

The guides who have been entertaining
! New Workers at the Sportsmens Show
are wonderful story tellers and can mix
fact and fiction so easily that unless one il
an expect woodsinan and knows the ropes
! 10 is hard TO know where to draw the line.
/ They came to this city to tell Of the adj
vantages Of The part o. the country in
I which they live and some Of them related
I wonderful stories Of the chase. They
were shrewd lot Of men too. and could
I easily size up the man they we're talking TO.
{ They knew at once whether ne was sport
or a -tenderfoot "A sport is the term
/ applied to any New Yorker who knows
anything Of the woods, and tenderfoot
( il novice. Granbory Gray, from Bangor,
Me- was one of the best Of these romanoers.
He is called Gran by his friends and has
had years of experience in the woods. He
is said TO be the best man with paddle
that ever clipped a canoe in Moosehead
Gran was talking fish one afternoon
and told the story OF Pete, landlocked
salmon that weighed eight pounds. Gran
talks slowly and with a slight drawl. Pete
was hooked one afternoon he said, and
he looked 30 pretty and so intelligent
that dec. ded to try and save him; so took
him home IN n can Of water and put him
into a tank. Now that fish had almost
human intelligence and soon became quite
pet with the children He learned to know
Us all and he was very fond Of me | had
caught HIM but had saved his life, and he
seemed to know that he could end his days
in peace and quiet and would not have to
work for a living any longer or worry about
the seductive flies of the fisherman. Now,
that fish learned my footstep and as soon
"a he heard me coming into the house he
would flop out Of the tank on to the floor
TO lnee, me | would pick him up, say a
word or two 20 him and put him back into
the tank, where he would DO as happy as a
girl with a new bonnet He got 10 be very
friendly with the cat. strange as that may
seem, and ne and the cat were very ohummy.
The neighbors used TO drop In to see that
fish drink milk out of the same saucer
a. the cat / tell you that fish was a
wonder
Il kept that fish for two and a half years
and last fall he was big and plump and
as fine ish "a you would want 10 look
at. One day when | got home Pete Topped
ont to meet me az usual, but an important
piece OF business was weighing on my mind
and ! had to hurry away and forgot all
about the fish. 1t was an hour and half
later when I got back and then ! thought
Of Pete Thcre he was on the floor just
breathing hi> last and the look he gave me
as l picked him up and tried to resuscitate
him | shall never forget. ! was too late,
though. for Pete died / have his body
stuffed and 1t hangs in my rarlor All
visitors to Bangor stop in TO look at that
fish.
In all my experience ! never heard
Of but one fish that in any way approached
Pete That was fish owned by Capt.
Barker Of the Birches, Rangeley. IL bat fish
would follow the Captain mp and down
tho road and one day he slipped through
corduroy bridge into II brook and was
drowned.
viii Mclean. another Maine guide, told
IN odd experience he had with a bear
that gave the tendcrfoot a new idea OF
the cunning 81 those animals Mclean
va hi. Il was out once with a sport and we
we're looking for bear. We had not had good
luck and our stock II meat waA running
low. p We had left was some beans and
bottle Of joniment wonderful stun for
burns and stngs. II was late one night
when we made camp, and before turning
in put the bean pot in the hole by the fire,
30 a. 10 have beans for breakfast. Then
wa rolled up in our blankets and prepared
for sleep. The bottle Of 'ioniment was placed
al my head. We had not been there long
before i heard a slight noise outside the
tent and. knowing at once II was bear
attracted by the smell Of the bean, told
the sport and We reached for our guns.
Much 10 my surprise the bear entered the
tent and reached for the joniment' bottle.
! knew at once what was the matter. He
had burned his paw trying 70 get the beans
out Of the pot. but his action 80 surprised
me that | Just had to watch him. He poured
the 'jOniment' over his paw and then walked
ont OF the tent picked the bean pot out of
tho hole and started for the woods. A
soons as We had recovered from our sur
prise we followed, but soon lost all trail
Of the bear.
Suddenly | slipped on the ground and,
feeling about 10 find out what had caused
the tumble, | came across some warm
beans That bear said |, Is walking
on his hind feet. he il holding the bean
pot with one paw and feeding himself
with the other Well we followed the
trail Of the beans and soon came up with
the bear. II was Just as had said and the
bear was so intent on his beans that we had
no trouble in getting up TO him and placing
a good shot
Capt. Bill Graham WAS watching the fly
casters one afternoon. The contestants
were whipping the water vigorously and
Capt Bin remarked Those men may
be able 10 cast well but they are not In il |
with follower Of I2aak Walton once saw !
fishing on tho I4iifey in Ireland. That man /
was d wonder. He never put a fly on his |
hook. When ready for cast at likely /
spot he simply cent his line over the water |
and the hook would impale a fly a. it shot |
through the air. Then the fly would skim |
the surface OF the water and every time |
he landed trout. That was fishing, and /
never saw any one else who could do any !
thing like that.
You New Workers are wonderfully /
lucky men," said an Adirondack guide, |
VINO had been telling Of his experiences. |
-This story may seem exaggerated, but | |
was present at the time and know what / /
am talking about. IL was on one Of the |
Ia kes in our region last year that | had /
a sport who wanted to try his luck at trout |
fishing He wasn't very good with the |
rod, but he could hold rifle pretty straight.
as YOU will see. We had been out a little
while when a six pound trout jumped
The sport drew a bead on that fish and
fred. The bullet went through tho fish
and struck a good fat buck on the shore in
the head killing both. We landed 10 get
the buck and then got little curious TO
find out where that bullet went after leav-
ing the buck and found that II had struck
a stump a nd made q hole out 81 which honey
was running We cut the stump down
got $50 pounds Of honey aud a live rabbit
That sport seized the rabbit 10y the hind
legs. and in swinging il around 10 knock
it's head against a tree I'll he darned II he
didn't lang II against five partrldges that
were Aging along. killing every one.
hope ! may never shoot another deer II
that isn't true. That man had got so