THE OREGON SPORTSMAN 253 
HUNTING DEER AND BEAR IN YAMHILL 
COUNTY 
By Deputy GAME Warpen O. B. Parker. 
For the benefit of the readers of “The Oregon Sportsman,” I will 
endeavor to relate the experience of B. A. Johnson, of Corvallis, and 
Ace McKern, of Yamhill, while on a hunting trip near Fairdale, Yam- 
hill County. 
On August 16 Mr. Johnson succeeded in killing a three-point 
buck and Mr. McKern fired several shots at a large black bear, which 
he missed, as he claimed his gun was not in good working order; 
‘but the boys at camp think it was probably his nerves that were out 
of condition. On the evening of the 18th they decided to go up on 
Fairchilds Creek and try to get a bear early the next morning, as 
there were several using in an old orchard near by. They did not 
succeed in killing one, but Mr. Johnson killed two fine buck deer, 
thus making his limit for the season. He left camp and returned 
home, Mr. McKern deciding to remain and try his luck for a while 
longer. He went hunting a few days later and was rewarded by 
killing a buck. The boys around camp were joshing Ace about 
seeing a bear every time he went hunting, so he told them that he 
would go out on a real bear hunt and show them that he could kill 
one. Ike Williams, who thinks he is a great hunter, volunteered to go 
with him; then Mr. Figgins, who claims to have one of the best bear 
dogs in the state, told them they could take him along, but he said 
he very much doubted if Ace could kill a bear if the dog ran one 
over him. They left camp in fine spirits and went about a mile and 
a half to an old blackberry patch, where they knew there were some 
bear using. McKern went upon the ridge and Mr. Williams started 
the dog in the berry patch, and in a few moments he jumped one. 
Ace saw a large bear and shot at him. He then went across the 
canyon to where he was sure Mr. Bruin fell, but he could not find 
any trace of the bear, so he returned to camp, and in a short time 
Williams came in. His bear had got away, as it would not tree. 
The dog would bay it every four or five hundred yards, but by the 
time he would get there the dog and bear would be gone. Ace told 
him about shooting a bear, and made up -his mind the one he had shot 
was the one the dog was after, but Ike said he was certain it was 
not the same bear, and suggested that they go back and see if the 
dog could not find it. When they arrived at the hunting ground 
Williams asked him where he was standing when he shot at the 
bear. Then Mr. McKern pointed over on another ridge about two 
hundred and fifty yards from where they were. Ike took the dog 
and went over there, but failed to locate the bear. He then came 
down into the canyon about fifty yards from where Ace stood when 
he fired the shot, and the dog found the bear lying under a log, much 
to their surprise. Instead of being on the ridge across the canyon, as 
Mr. McKern supposed, he was standing on a large log that lay across 
it and only about fifty yards from where Mr. McKern was when he 
did the shooting. 
It created a great deal of amusement among the boys at camp 
that an old hunter like McKern would make such a mistake in the 
distance, and had a lot of sport joshing him about wearing spectacles 
when hunting, but Mc. only smiled and consoled himself with the 
fact that he had killed a big bear and had the best of Williams on 
that score. 
