Los Angeles herald., 1906-11-18

oull men en- sentinel march was kept up for sew
ron ,ro4 nnnuaes, and then, to my great joy, she
went snuffing off along the ledge
Thinking she had abandoned the pursuit
l l breathed a sigh of relief, but in a short
time she came in sight, few hundred feet
away, scrambling down sharp pitch to the
rocks below.
My heart leaped in quick terror. had
neard somewhere that bear could not climb
tree small enough for it to reach around,
ana cast frenzied glance at the trunk below
to measure my chance.
My pursuer settled all doubt by gallopinp
10 the loot of the spruce and starting up its
body. ~ -''
:, The fallen pine had broken off the ton of
tne spruce, but | climbed as high as could,
and stopped, trembling with apprehension.
Ihe bear soon reached limbs, and l found
she could climb through these with perfect
ease. Unable to move, | watched her deter
mined approach with increasing terror
UP she came, breathing loudly. her pofv
yaws ana long white teeth presenting the
Si Siost lrlghttui appearance 1 had ever seen.
one stopped few feet below, and glared at
ton. pess eohui-
her additional weight caused the tree to
Denu violently, which made me hope that in
stlnct would teach her to remain where she
was, put after a short breathing spell, she
ing inch by inch.
L i made a spasmodic effort to condense NV
self, but could not move any perceptible dis.
tance. oA'
While I was looking appealngly to the skv
for aid, the bear climbed a little nearer and
before | was aware, one of her paws reached
my right foot, fastening it to the tree.
L tried to jerk away, only to feel her iron
claws driven into my ankle
9he MADE no attempt to drag me down,
ouI lot 1ull nve minutes held me- struggling
face. Ps uo"h my
L twisted into position to see her. She
snot wrathful glance, uttering fierce growl
as ss oy another effort l tried to iberate my
MY arms clasped but a frail branch. The
loot SO firmly held rested in a slight fork
while the other. was little higher up on ths
opposite side of the trunk
10 move seemed certain DEATH but while
l was trying to break off limb to beat the
brute with, the bear stretched up to my foot,
and her, teeth closed on it like knives. A
neyer,to oetorgotten pang shot. through me.
Sudden pain is somewhat endurable. When
limb is shot off, the blow deadens sensation.
but to be, swaying helplessly sixty feet above
a granite ledge, held by the foot in the teeth
OF wounded grizzly bear-that is different
torture.
Every nerve was strung to endure it, while
my teeth clicked and ground each other like
ice.
How long the torture lasted cannot tell.
1t seemed to me ages.
Once or twice the tension of my nerves be.
gan to give way, but as 1 struggled, sharper
pang made me strong again. It might have
kept me from fainting, but sheer desperation
would have made me throw myself from the
tree, had the agony continued longer than
it did.
Suddenly the bear seemed to grow uneasy.
Her cub whined piteously below, and with
savage growl she loosend her grip on my foot
and began to back down.
For moment my astonishment and delight
was so great that it took away all sense of
pain. The bear reached ground, and seemed
to stagger as she moved off. When she dis
appeared, descended, the blood triclxling
from my wounded foot in pattering stream.
i knew the danger of bleeding so much
and bound handkerchief tightly about my
ankle. At first the pressure, increased, but
until then did feel sick and think Of my
situation.
1t was past midafternoon, and was more
than three miles from camp. My gun was
on the ledge above but could get it by
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