The Pensacola journal. (Pensacola, Fla.) 1898-1985, 1921-08-14
THE BEAR-A BEDTIME STORY.
(By Dixon Merritt)

+ The sheepherders around Big Piney,
Wyoming, are sleeping night now.
| They didn't for a long time.
| The epidemic of insomnia was cured
by one application ONO, it isn't a
patent medicine advertisement. The
| reader may go straight on through
with the assurance that he will not be
tempted to buy anything.
The sheepherders are sleeping be-
cause Uncle Sans hunters sent one
/ big black bear to Kingdom Come be-
fore his natural time.
This bear-they never named him,
but just spoke of him in awed voices
as The Bear-was one of the worst
actors that Wyoming or the west has
ever known. He was unduly fond Of
mutton, but that was not the worst
The sheepmen might have boarded
him, but he killed a great many sheep
that he never toUched-scared them to
death. That is, he frightened the flocks
so terribly that they piled up and
smothered to death by hundreds. And
still that was not the worst-not for
the herders, whatever it may have been
for the owners.
The bear took a deyilish delight in
destroying camps, tearing the tents
into tatters. breaking up the furni-
ture, carrying away the grub and
well, he never got a chance at any OF
the tenters. They stayed awake and
watched for him and always managed
to be just gone from home when he
arrived.
One day not long ago, Del Dearth
and Fl. P. Williams, skilled hunters of
the biological survey of the United
States department of agriculture, were
stringing out some traps along the
east boundary of the Wyoming nation
al forest. Williams, you may remember,
is the hunter who killed the infamous
Custer Wolf several months ago. And
suddenly, while they were fixing UP
a trap, something came thrashing
down the trail at a terrible rate. No,
it wasn't The Bear. 1t was a sheep
herder on the run and painting like a
lizard. He did not tarry with the hunt
ers. He just explained that The Bear
had chased him out of camp, and
threw the word back over his shoulder
as he went, IF you happen to, see the
owners of them sheep, tell EN- they
can herd 'em themselves if they want
'em herded."
williams and Dearth put out as
hard as their horses could go, hoping
to catch The Bear in camp, but they
were too late. He had torn the tent in
pieces, bent the stove around a near
by tree, scattered the grub and was
CONS. The hunters took up his trail
and followed it until they came to a
heap of pine needles and other forest
debris. It contained side of bacon
which The Bear had taken from the
herder's tent and filed for future refer
ence. Believing that The Bear was not
far away they took up the trail again
and didn't have far to go. The Bear
met them duly incensed at the rape of
his cache. The meeting took place in a
little opening in the woods where the
hunters had room to work their guns.
One of them placed three bullets near
The Bears ear and the other sent one
through his spinal column. At that,
he lacked only a few yards of reaching
them before they brought him down.
They say he was Just about as big
as black bear ever grows. His weight
was $50 pounds. he was feet inches
long. and his hind foot was II IL inch |
es long by 6 inches wide But there was
something in those woods that was not
afraid OF him, big and vicious as he |
was. He was badly battered and sliced |
and had evidently gotten the worst of
1t in some Dempsey Carpenter con-
test Of the jungle. The hunters knew
that a huge grizzly had been ranging |
In that district and they guessed that |
the two had met and fought to a finish
to find out which would be monarch |
OF the Wyoming forest.
But it was the black bear and not
the grizzly that had caused consterna-
ton among the herders, and all is quiet |
now. Which proves that. at least for 1
sheepherders in the bear country, the
best soothing syrup is government /
hunters rifle.