COL. CROCKETT'S ENCOUNTHR WITH A BSAR. 319 



COLONEL DAVID CROCKETT'S ENCOUNTER WITH A BEAR. 



Itf his autobiography * the Colonel gives the following 

 story. His dogs had once attracted his attention to a 

 tree where there was no game. He thus proceeds : 



When they saw ine coming, away they went again ; 

 and, after a little time, began to bark as before. When I 

 got near them, I found they were barking up the wrong tree 

 again, as there was no game there. They served me in 

 this way three or four times, until I was so infernal mad, 

 that I determined, if I could get near enough, to shoot 

 the old hound at least. With this intention I pushed on 

 the harder, till I came to the edge of an open prairie, and 

 looking on before my dogs, I saw in and about the big- 

 gest bear that ever was seen in America. He looked, at 

 the distance he was from me, like a large black bull. My 

 dogs were afraid to attack him, and that was the reason 

 they had stopped so often, that I might overtake them. 

 They were now almost up with him, and I took my gob- 

 blers from my back and hung them up in a sapling, and 

 broke like a quarter horse after my bear, for the sight 

 of him had put new springs in me. I soon got near to 

 them, but they were just getting into a roaring thicket, 

 and so I couldn't run through it, but had to pick my way 

 along, and had close work even at that. 



In a little time I saw the bear climbing up a large 

 black oak tree, and I crawled on until I got within about 

 eighty yards of him. He was sitting with his breast to 



*Life of Colonel David Crockett, published by G. G. Evans, 

 Philadelphia, 1859. 



