304 Old Ephraim. 



diers of a cavalry regiment came to their death at the 

 claws of a grizzly bear. The army surgeon who at- 

 tended them told me the particulars, as far as they were 

 known. The men were mail carriers, and one day did not 

 come in at the appointed time. Next day, a relief party 

 was sent out to look for them, and after some search 

 found the bodies of both, as well as that of one of the 

 horses. One of the men still showed signs of life ; he 

 came to his senses before dying, and told the story. 

 They had seen a grizzly and pursued it on horseback, 

 with their Spencer rifles. On coming close, one had fired 

 into its side, when it turned with marvellous quickness 

 for so large and unwieldy an animal, and struck down the 

 horse, at the same time inflicting a ghastly wound on the 

 rider. The other man dismounted and came up to the 

 rescue of his companion. The bear then left the latter 

 and attacked the other. Although hit by the bullet, it 

 charged home and threw the man down, and then lay on 

 him and deliberately bit him to death, while his groans 

 and cries were frightful to hear. Afterward it walked 

 off into the bushes without again offering to molest the 

 already mortally wounded victim of its first assault. 



At certain times the grizzly works a good deal of havoc 

 among the herds of the stockmen. A friend of mine, a 

 ranchman in Montana, told me that one fall bears became 

 very plenty around his ranches, and caused him severe 

 loss, killing with ease even full-grown beef-steers. But 

 one of them once found his intended quarry too much for 

 him. My friend had a stocky, rather vicious range stallion, 

 which had been grazing one day near a small thicket of 



