Old Ephraim 327 



only a single blow ; yet that one blow, given with all 

 the power of its thick, immensely muscular forearm, 

 armed with nails as strong as so many hooked steel 

 spikes, tore out the man s collar-bone and snapped 

 through three or four ribs. He never recovered 

 from the shock, and died that night. 



The other instance occurred to a neighbor of mine 

 who has a small ranch on the Little Missouri 

 two or three years ago. He was out on a mining 

 trip, and was prospecting with two other men near 

 the headwaters of the Little Missouri, in the Black 

 Hills country. They were walking down along 

 the river, and came to a point of land, thrust out 

 into it, which was densely covered with brush and 

 fallen timber. Two of the party walked round by 

 the edge of the stream ; but the third, a German, and 

 a very powerful fellow, followed a well-beaten game 

 trail, leading through the bushy point. When they 

 were some forty yards apart the two men heard an 

 agonized shout from the German, and at the same 

 time the loud coughing growl, or roar, of a bear. 

 They turned just in time to see their companion 

 struck a terrible blow on the head by a grisly, which 

 must have been roused from its lair by his almost 

 stepping on it; so close was it that he had no time 

 to fire his rifle, but merely held it up over his head 

 as a guard. Of course it was struck down, the 

 claws of the great brute at the same time shattering 

 his skull like an egg-shell. Yet the man staggered 

 on some ten feet before he fell ; but when he did he 

 never spoke or moved again. The two others killed 



