32 



Rod, Gun, and Palette in the High Rockies 



"Fred" 



"How many?" 

 "Maybe five or six," 

 and he turns a slice of ham, 

 shifts it to one side, and lays 

 another beside it. "One 

 pretty nearly gets me once." 

 And as he cuts bread, juggles 

 ham, duck, and fried pota- 

 toes on to their respective 

 plates, and makes coffee, 

 with unhurried calm, he 

 proceeds: "I sets a trap — 

 I catches them in traps, you 

 know — und I chains dot 

 trap to a green log. I 

 guess he was five hundert 

 pounds, maybe more as five 

 hundert pounds. Und 1 don't 

 see him for two or tree days, und then I thinks I better look 

 at dot trap. Und I goes mit my gun. Und dere was a bear all 

 right. He vas catched by der forepaw. Und he was mad — py 

 golly, he was mad. He was shoost raising hell in der woods. I 

 hears him a long way off. Und he haf dragged dot green log 

 half a mile from where I set der trap. Und when he sees me he 

 gets madder yet. I reckons I better shoot him. Und I don'd 

 make a good aim, und I only hits him in der leg. It hurts him 

 so he gets so much madder he tear his paw loose from der trap, 

 und he runs to reach me very fast. Py golly, you bet he comes 

 on business. Und he foam at der mouth, und his eyes is red. 

 Und I shoost happens to remember I ain't got only that one more 

 shot in my gun. So I don't afford to dake no chances. Und I 

 has to let him get pretty close so I don't miss. He vas a big bear." 

 "How close was he when you fired, Fred?" 

 "Oh, aboud six feets." 



And Fred carries the grub into the messtent, and proceeds 

 to hand it round, with a cheerful care that the diners shall each 

 receive his due share of the fruit of his labors, that shows his pride 

 in his job. 



Whitman reports that the storm of which the present 



