Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1910-11-08
PARADISE FOR BEARS.
Grizzlies So Tame In the Northwest
Thoy Eat From tho Hand of Man.


A grizzlies paradise par excellence
has been located in Il great berry
patch along the international boun-
dary line between the Dominion and
Alaska. about thirty miles inland
from Taku Arm. The bear are OF
the species known as the Alaska
brown. They range in size from cubs
Of two feet from muzzle to tall, to
aged monsters ten feet long. To shoot
them would be wanton slaughter.
Abundance Of food has robbed them
of their fierce instincts. So tame have
they become that they established
peace pact with a Dominion govern
ment survey party which spent the
summer in that vicinity, engaged In
the work Of eliminating the boundary
line. The grizzlies, young and old.
paid frequent visits to the camp
when seeking change Of diet, and be-
came so friendly that they would
stand up on their hind legs to grap
choice tidbits thrown at them from
tie cookhouse.
This was the remarkable story re-
lated in all seriousness by Mr.. II. 5.
Mussell, of Ottawa, who has just ar
rived here. He has been engaged In
boundary survey work since 1904.
His experience this summer was
UNIQUE. Mr.. Mussell, his assistant
Mr.. n. ]. Ogilvie. and eight men ar
rived on the Princess Beatrice from
Juneau.
THAT Is the greatest bear country
in existence l never saw anything
to equal it, even on the Stikine river
where I put in several seasons SAID
Mr.. Mussell in relating various incl
dents Of the seasons work. I'VE soon
realized that the animals, thanks TO an
abundant food supply, were disposed
to be friendly. They never attempted
to modest us from the very start ana
they soon inaugurated series Of daily
visits to the camp They were III
tie shy at first, but the smell or fry-
ing bacon proved irresistible. AT last
thew would approach within twenty
Yards, sometimes half a dozen at
time, and stand on their hind legs to
grab at the feed we threw at them.
THE animals finally undertook to
visit the camp at night to forage for
themselves This we did not like, as
we feared they might stray into our
sleeping tents. However, L must say
they respected our privacy, and the
meat supplies were cached out OF
sight. 1t was also not uncommon 10
meet them on the trail up to glacier,
where we were engaged in triangula-
ton work. We usually gave them the
right of way. Once Jack Sheppard,
of Nanaimo, one Of my assistants met
four big. brown bears three miles
from Camp. Jack must have been In
bad humor that day, or else he feared
an attack, for he leveled his rifle and
blazed away. He killed three, and
the other monster, mortally wounded,
managed to escape. After that the
bears did not visit our camp so often'
Mr.. Mussell describes the country
as the toughest region he had ever
visited. 1t is a vast series OF high
peaks. covered with glaciers or eter-
nal SHOWS. 1t was impossible TO plant
boundary pillars, and the triangular
ton work and photographs Will form
the record of the location of the
boundary in that locality. In all
about 400 square miles of the terri
tory were covered. This involved the
climbing of high peaks, some OF them
having an elevation Of over 5000
feet. Several glaciers had to be
scaled The men had to be roped
toge her in order to make the peril
Gus ascent. One false step and death
would have resulted, as the glaciers
were unusually gashed with deep
crevasses.
I'VE resumed the work left off in
1906 at Boundary Peak. on Deviis
Paw, as it is described in the award
of the London tribunal" said Mr..
Mussell I'VE were on Muddy river,
a tributary of the Taku. 1t rises at
the foot of a glacier which 1 believe
to be the largest ice field in the world.
This glacier, not counting its arms
and the SHOWS in the vicinity, Is easi-
ly twenty-four miles long. We scaled
and crossed 1t at different points, and
I can assure you it was exciting work,
Here and there, owing to thaws, there
existed a series of depressions or
lakes in the glaciers. On two occas-
ions they wore through the icy banks
and swept down the mountain side
with the speed OF an avalanche. In
eight hours the river rose twenty-five
feet, compelling us to move our camp
and supplies to a higher location.
We got out in q hurry. The region
we visited is about 100 miles from
Skagway. 1t is the toughest place |
NNV hVh" en.
zigzags a good deal, but in general
way it is about thirty miles from the
coast."-Vancouver correspondent st.
Louis Globe Democrat.