Five Mile Beach weekly journal., 1908-12-25
I by
THEODORE ROOSEVELT

IUe SUES VI TIE CduyOnS. IutIt Mtlc
plenty Of berry bushes growing in
clusters; and all around these there
were fresh tracks of bear. But the
grizzly is also a fesh-eater, and has a
great liking for carrion. On visiting
the place where Merriield had killed
the black bear, we found that the griz-
lilies had peer there before us, and had
utterly devoured the carcass, with can
nibal relish. Hardly a scrap was left,
and we turned our steps toward where
lay the bull elk had killed. 1t was
quite late in the afternoon when we
reached the place. A grizzly had evil
IDENTIFY been at the carcass during the
preceding night, for his great foot
prints were in the ground all around
it, and the carcass itself was gnawed
and torn, and partially covered with
earth and leaves-for the grizzly has
a curious habit of burying all of his
prey that be does not at the moment
need. A great many ravens had been
feeding on the body, and they wheeled
about over the tree tops above us. ut
tering their barking croaks.
The forest was composed mainly of
what are called ridge-pole pines, which
grow close together, and do not branch
out until the stems are thirty or forty
feet from the ground. Beneath these
trees we walked over a carpet of pine
needles, upon which our moccasined
feet made no sound. The woods
seemed vast and lonely, and their 81
lence was broken now and then by the
strange noises always to be heard in
the great forests, and which seem to
mark the sad and everlasting unrest
of the wilderness. We climbed up
along the trunk of a dead tree which
had toppled over until its upper
branches struck in the limb crotch of
another, that thus supported 1t at an
angle halfway in its fall. When
above the ground far enough to pre-
vent the bears smelling us, we sat still
to wait for his approach; until, in the
gathering gloom, we could no longer
see the sights of our rifles, and could
but dimly make out the carcass of the
great elk
1t was useless to wait longer; and
we clambered down and stole out 80
the edge of the woods. The forest here
covered one side of a steep, almost
canyon-like ravine, whose other side
was bare except of rock and sage-brush.
Once out from under the trees there
was still plenty of light, although the
sun had set, and we crossed over some
fifty yards to the opposite hillside, and
crouched down under a bush to see II
perchance some animal might not also
leave the cover. To Il right the IA
vine sloped downward toward the val
ley of the Bighorn River, and far on
its other side we could catch a glimpse
of the great main chain of the Rockies,
their snow peaks glinting crimson in
the light of the set sun Again we
waited quietly in the growing dusk
until the pine trees in our front blend
ed into one dark. frowning mass. We
saw nothing; but the wild creatures of
the forest had begun to stir abroad.
The owls hooted dismally from the
tops of the tall trees, and W. or three
times a harsh wailing cry, probably the
voice of some lynx or wolverine, arose
from the depths of the woods. At last.
as we were rising to leave, we heard
the sound of the breaking of a dead
stick, from the spot where we knew
the carcass lay. 1t was a sharp. sud
den noise, perfectly distinct from the
natural creaking and swapping of the
branches; just such a sound as would
be made by the tread of some heavy
creature. "Old Ephraim' had come
back to the carcass. A minute after
- is4o-s.- xrf4l. cfr0ipo1 40 10, xHo
heard him brush by some dry twigs.
1t was entirely too dark to go in after
him; but we made up our minds that
on the morrow he should be ours.
Early next morning we were over at
the elk carcass, and, as we expected,
found that the bear had eaten his fill
at it during the night. His tracks
showed him to be an immense fellow,
and were so fresh that we doubted II
he had left long before we arrived; and
we made up our minds to follow him
up and try to find his lair. The bears
that lived on these mountains had evi-
IDENTIFY been little disturbed; indeed, the
Indians and most of the white hunters
are rather ehary of meddling with
"Old Ephraim," as the mountain men
style the grizzly, unless they get him
at a disadvantage; for the sport is
fraught with some danger and but
small profit. The bears thus seemed to
have very little fear of harm, and we
thought it likely that the. bed Of the
one who had fed on the elk would not
be far away.
My companion was a skilful tracker.
and we took up the trail at once. For
some distance it led over the soft.
yielding carpet of moss and pine nee
dies. and the footprints were quite
easily made out, although we could
follow them but slowly; for we had.
OF course, to keep a sharp lookout
ahead and around us as we walked
noiselessly on in the sombre half-light
always prevailing under the great pine