The Ocala evening star. [volume] (Ocala, Fla.) 1895-1943, 1911-09-08
BEARS AND OTHER BRUTES

ago, ne lived in OF the mountain
counties of Georgia.
Ii was a beautiful country-moun-
tains that were cool and green in sum-
mer. gorgeous and grand in autumn.
gray and grim. or shrouded in white
in winter-but always homelike and
companionable to those who knew and
loved them and took their imprint on
heart and mind to carry over land and
sea through all the years that follow
ed. Lovely little valleys lay between
the mountain ridges, and there were
springs and rivulets and creeks and
little rivers, running with cool. clear
sparkling water that neither love nor
money could obtain in many other
parts Of the world And one could buy
a gallon of very good whisky for
dollar; consequently the people were
seldom drunk.
1t was a good game country Bears
were seldom. deer occasional turkeys
and pheasants frequent. quail squir-
rel, rabbits, 'possums and 'coons plen-
tifuI Sometimes there was a wildcat.
and once in long time panther.
There were no game laws. None
were needed The people followed the
methods of the Indian in hunting. \
man would go out and kill what he
needed, and come home. Perhaps he
would shoot into a flock of quail
the ground and kill half dozen, but
he never shot at them all day. to show
his skill and see them fall The men
and boys were all natural born marks
men. Their guns were mostly old
fashioned squirrel rifles, for of
which a pound of powder and five
If nf
ammunition for a year. There were
some shotguns, mostly single barrels,
and few muskets used shotguns.
Breech leaders and repeaters were I'M
known So was stealing.
The writer was a new conner to that
country and couldn't shoot like those
to the manor born. But he possessed
gun, and managed to hit something
once in awhile.
IN the late autumn of the year 1879.
a bear came over the mountain range
to the northward and began to make
trouble. He had a fondness for pork,
honey and nocturnal rambles. He raid
ed pigpens and beehives. He was very
foxy, and managed to keep out of
harms way, but scared several people
half to death The few who saw him
said he was as big as a cow and his
tushes a foot long.
One wintry afternoon in December,
the writer left his home to go to the
postoffice-a little matter of a two
mile walk across a mountain ridge
about half as high as Lookout On his
way back, he made a detour to come
through a field where he knew there
was plenty of game. His gun was a
double barreled shotgun of English
Ia
and place, though it would be a back
number today.
AS aforesaid, the writer as a marks
deck. but that afternoon rabbit and
several birds managed to get in the
way of the shot he turned loose from
time to time. At nightfan. he was two
miles from home, and most of the road
was a narrow trail along the mountain
side-he couldn't walk it in daylight
now. but it was easy then.
But it didn't seem so easy. At one
place a little, narrow shelf of rock
not much over foot wide, ran be-
aween the towering mountain above
and a ffty-foot drop below. Two. PEG.
pie could only pass by the one outside
holding to the other. With gun and
game bag to the outside, and the innel
hand lightly patting the rock as hi
walked along, the writer was maybe
halfway through this narrow pas:
when a dark form and two fiery eye:
blocked the path, and a fierce "wh oof'
sounded like the trump of DOOM
A bear always says, "whoof" 81
does-but We anticipate.
Was the boy scared? Oh, yes, h,
was scared He would have died O
friy If no hadn't haap Sn badI,- 20.
that he didn't know how badly he wa
scared.
OF course it was the bear. It couldn'
be anything else. The reports of tn
animals size had been erroneous
wasn't big as COW. 1t was as bi:
elephant. It's eyes looked 1ik
two auto lamps, or rather how tw
auto lamps were going to look
The writer doesn't remember hoy
frightened he was. He only remem
bers he was frightened that tn
perspiration was pouring out of ever
pore. and that he was turning col
that he wondered if said perspiratio
wouldn't freeze on him.
After awhile he remembered hts gur
But shotgun doesn't amount to niue
against a bear, especially when a bea
is big a mastadon, with eyes lik
two moons and a mouth like a raj
road tunnel And the gun was loade
with squirrel shot. But he had som
buckshot in one pocket, and wit
trembling fingers he dropped half
dozen, or half hundred. he didn
know which. in each barrel.
Again the awful animal sai
"whoof, and began 10 move forwar
1t was do or die (and most like
hN% Nd Nd ha.
barrels spouted fire and lead at II
eyes tnow as big as suns) not tt
yards away.
The writer has heard many a cal
non FIRE since them. but none ev
roared like that 12-bore shotgu
Luckily his shooting shoulder was gu
side-had it been the other way
and the gun would have gone over Il
cliff together.
With a scream like steam calliol
the monster vanished in the blaze al
smoke and trepau6ouS crash told