TWENTY YEARS IN THE ROCKIES. 137 



It took us about an hour to go to camp and get our 

 pack mules, and, after we had secured the first four deer, 

 we went for the fifth one and were surprised to find the 

 shoulders torn to pieces and that the hams had disappeared. 

 From all indication we concluded that a bear had paid him 

 a visit. Tying the mules, we followed the trail up the can- 

 yon until it went under a large rock. The water had washed 

 over this rock, making quite an excavation beneath. The 

 bear evidently had found it a good hiding-ptece and had 

 made it larger. Into this place she had taken herself with 

 the hams of our deer. 



Steward got a long pole and prepared for business. 

 "When I punch her out, you take my gun and shoot her," 

 he said. 



"Thank you ; if you are going to punch her out, I will 

 take a seat on the top of this rock and try my Winchester on 

 her," I said. 



He made a thrust into the hole with the pole. The bear 

 caught it and broke it into pieces. This made Steward 

 very angry. He raved like a madman. 



"I'll I'll blow her out with a torpedo !" he yelled. 



I wondered where the torpedo was to come from, and 

 soon learned. He took a short piece of rope, pulled the 

 twist out of it, filled it with gunpowder, and then twisted 

 it up again. He then took a large handful of powder, put it 

 into a small buckskin sack, and dropped the rope fuse in 

 with it, leaving about ten inches hanging outside. He then 

 wrapped the sack with twine until it was as hard as a can- 

 non ball, tied it to the end of a pole, and set a match to the 

 fuse. 



"Now, look sharp," he exclaimed, "it'll make the old 

 varmint vacate them premises and no mistake." 



Forthwith he thrust the pole in as before. The bear 



