Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1915-08-01
EVERYBODY CHASES BEAR
: EXCEPT LONE CRABBER
Circus Bruin Gets Loose, Flees to
Bay to Take a Salt Water
Swim.

Special Dispatch to The Star
OCEAN CITY, Md, July 31.-There
hasn't been a bear hunt in Ocean City
for SO many years that the oldest in
habitant cannot remember exactly
when the next to the last one occurred,
and it is sad to relate that this staid
old citizen was out grabbing Friday
when the entire population of the town,
minus one chased one large, hot, dusty
bruin all over a large part of the
county and finally lassoed him he
squatted up to his ears in the salty
bay.
There was a circus here Friday and
everybody went, except the aforesaid
citizen of grabbing propensity. The
side show wasn't as good as it was
last year and the fat lady had been re-
duced some (by the heat. everybody
here thinks), but the clowns were pret-
ty fair, only they. didn't have much new
stuff. The trained animal part was
great. and it was in this part that the
most exciting episode in Ocean City's
history occurred.
The ringmaster and animal trainer
went out in the ring. The ringmaster
had on a high silk hat and a dress suit,
although it was daytime, and"the ami
NAL trainer was all undressed in tights.
Pretty soon in came keeper leading a
great big grizzly bear by rusty
chain attached to a ring in the grizzly
bears near-leather collar. The bear
did not relish acting in circus tent
on a hot day like Friday, and sat down.
The keeper jerked the chain and the
chain broke short off at the collar.
The keeper grunted in b minor as
he sat down, too, with bump. When
pened. he yelled out at the top of his
lungs:
Audience Also Loose.
Most of the audience was loose at
that moment, also, and it is reliably
reported that some of the most digni-
fed persons in this county were seen
rolling under the tent at roller coaster
speed. The ringmaster and the keeper
and the trainer tried to coax the bear
into his cage. which was near at hand,
but he could not see it that way and
made a dash at his keeper. The man
took one look at the approaching grz-
zly and did hundred yards through
the tent to his dressing room in about
six seconds the bear after him all the
way.
keep on running yelled the fling
master, who thought that as long as
the bear had something to play with
it wouldn't want to come back there
in the ring. The keeper got in a
trunk and the bear went on through
the dressing room, got out by a side
entrance and made for marsh, which
he crossed, and then steered straight
for Lynchuxent bay.
Every One Brave.
After he had disappeared every one
grew very brave and large and en-
thusiastic gathering of men and boys
marched for the bay. The army was
euippqed with several rapid-fire pitch
forks, some hand grenade shotguns
and a grand array of clubs and spades,
the ringmaster keeping the diamonds
while the clown Swallowed the hearts.
The column deployed along the shores
of the bay and prepared to dig in
when outposts reported that the bear
was taking a saltwater swim. One
man. who would not give his name,
tried to get near the bear as 1t sloshed
around In the water and received a
hiff in the jaw from the bears paw
that would have floored Jess Willard.
The army halted it's advance at that
moment and John Bunting lassoed
hruin with a commonplace clOthesline.
The animal was dragged from the
water and driven. jerked and poked
back to the circus tent, where he was
prted into his Gase' Everybody agreed