Shoshone journal. [volume] (Shoshone, Idaho) 1884-1931, 1909-04-02

and then. and switching their tails.
The mir was still. the sky glorious
blue; at that hour In the afternoon
even the September sun was hot.
When the shadows began TO length
en-, | shouldered my rifle and plunged
into the woods At first my route lay
along a mountain side; then for half a
mile over windfall. the dead timber
! piled about in crazy confusion After
that | went up the bottom of a valley
by a little brook, the ground being
carpeted with a sponge of soaked
moss.
I At the head of this brook was a pond
covered with water lilies; and a scranl-
Bile through a rocky pass took me into
high. wet valley. where the thick
growth Of spruce was broken by occa-
sional strips of meadow. In this valley
the moose carcass lay, well at the up
per end.
In moccasined feet / trod softly
through the soundess woods Under
the dark branches it was already dusk.
and the air had the cool chill of even
ing. AS neared the clump where the
body lay walked with redoubled eau
ton. watching and listening with
strained aIertness. Then | heard a
twig snap: and my blood leaped. for
knew the bear was at his supper In
another moment | saw his shaggy
brown form. He was working with all
his awkward giant strength. trying to
bury the carcass, twisting it to one
side and the other with wonderful
ease.
One he got angry and suddenly gave
it tremendous cuff with his paw; in
his bearing he had something half hui
morous. half devilish. I crept up with
In forty yards: but for several minutes
he would not keep his head STILL Then
something attracted his attention in
the forest, and he stood motionless
looking towards it. broadside to me.
with his fore-paws planted on the car
cass. This gave me my chance. |
drew very fine bead between his eye
and ear. and pulled trigger. He drop
ped like a steer when struck with
pole-axe.
If there is good hiding-place handy |
it is better to lie in wait at the car
cass. One day ON the head-waters of /
the Madison, found that bear was
coming to an elk | had shot some
days before; and az once determined
to ambush the beast when he came
back that evening. The carcass lay in
the middle of valley quarter of
mile broad The bottom of this valley
was covered by an open forest of tall
pines: a thick jungle of smaller ever
greens marked where the mountains
rose on either hand. There were
number of large rocks scattered here
and there, one, of very convenient
shape, being only some seventy or
eighty yards from the carcass. Up
this | clambered. 1t hid me perfectly,
and on its top was a carpet of soft
pine needles, on which | could lie at
my ease.
Hour after hour passed by. Every
slight noise made my pulses throb as
lay .motionless on the rock gazing
ntently into the gathering gloom |
'egan to fear that it would grow too
lark to shoot before the grisly came
Suddenly and without warning, the
,reat bear stepped out of the bushes
nd trod across the pine needles with
uch swift aud silent footsteps that its
ulk seemed unreal 1t was very eau.
ious. continually halting to peer
round; and once it stood up on its
ind legs and looked long down the
alley towards the red west. AS il
cached the carcass l put a bullet be-
veen its shoulders. 1t rolled over,
lille the woods resounded with its
lvage roaring Immediately it strug
led to It's feet and staggered off; and
IL again to the next shot, squalline
I'd yefHng Twice this was repeated:
he brute being one of those bears
hich greet every wound with a great
ltcry, and sometimes seem to lose
leir feet when hit-although they
i'll occasionally fight as savagely as
eir more silent brethren. In this
Sc the wounds were mortal, and the
ar died before reaching the edge of
e thicket
spent much of the fan of 1885
lnting on the head waters of the
lmon and Snake in Idaho and along ST
G Montana boundary line from the ia
g Hole Basin and the head of the as
isdom River TO the neighborhood Of hi
u Rock Pass and 70 the north and WI
st OF Henry's Lake. During the last bl
rtnight my companion was the old ca
'untain man. named Griffith OF lu
ifiin cannot tell which. as lie was br
Ways called either Hank OF gr
rih'-" He was crabbeofy honest nj
fellow. and a very skilfu hunter; WI
he was worn out with age and cai
and his temper had failed no
"A faster than his bodily strength. fir'
showed me greater variety Of as
ne than had ever seen before in so del
rt tine nor did ! ever before or an'
sr make so successful a hunt. But raj
was an exceedingly disagreeable hat
lpanion on account of his surly,
ody ways | generally had TO- get m