The Wrangell sentinel., 1929-07-25
CATCHING CUB BEARS
 IS LIFE-SIZED JOB

The warlike tactics of a mother black bear who was doing her best to raise a family of four cubs caus- ed the strategy of two men who had made up their minds to catch a cub to go awry and almost brought the campaign down to the hand-to- hand stage when help arrived in the nick of time.
 They arrived in Fairbanks with the cub and 8 story, says the News Miner.
 The story started when Dick Cal lahan came in with a report that he had seen a mother and four cubs north of Richardson. He was Scof- fed at at first, for while she bears are known to be of maternal dispo- sition they are not in the habit of having quartets. It was finally de- eided that two of the cubs had lost their own mother and had joined another family.
 Now the scene shifts to the place where the bears were gambling when Callahan passed; shortly at- rewards Harold Holbrook and companion drove up. The compan- ion remains unidentified to all ex- cept Holbrook to this hour, his movements from the time the cubs were sighted being so rapid that no one was able to recognize him.
 The cubs were playing near the road but the mother was not to be seen so it was decided to catch a cub for a pet. The cubs were :4ot of the same notion however, for two of them took to the woods and the other two climbed up the tree. With the light of victory shining in his eyes the unknown climbed after them while Holbrook remained on the ground.
 When the unknown" reached an advantageous position, he leaned down to speak to Holbrook but saw instead the mother bear testing her claws preparatory to doing bit of climbing herself. In an incredibly short space of time, so the story goes, Holbrook had reached the auto and armed himself with the only available weapon, small hammer.
 From then on events moved rap idly. The bear would start to climb the tree when Holbrook would ap- proach and divert attention to him. self by shouting. The bear would chase him back toward the car and would then return to the tree where the cubs and the would-be capturer watched with keen interest.
 No exact count was made of the
 
 the bear was showing less of a dis position to chase Holbrook and more of a desire to climb the tree when Marion Ralph and Harold Smith drove up.
 In their car was a rifle and they went into front line action immedi- ately. They sent the mother bear running with few shots in the air and then approached the tree from which Holbrook's companion was descending in a more cheerful mood than he had been a few minutes be- fore.
 A council of war was held and il was decided to bring the cubs down by shaking the tree. The plan was a flat failure, however, for one cub scampered off when he was brought down and the other clung tightly to his perch.
 An axe was then brought into play and when the tree ha1 been cut down Smith, a former football player, made a flying tackle, land ing squarely on the cub. Round and round they went. The witnesses of the struggle report that Smith got in as many bites as the cub but the latter had the advantage of his claws.
 Do you want me to help you hold him.? one of them called.
 "Help-help him to quit holding me" panted Smith.
 Finally the cubs were subdued, loaded into the auto and brought to town.