4 
FOREST AND STREAM 
January, 1919 
that was in the lead, I pumped away and 
had the satisfaction of seeing him spring 
high in the air, run a few yards and fall. 
This disconcerted the other one, and after 
running a short distance he stopped to 
look back. This was easy, as it was only 
about seventy-five yards. I caught the 
bead and fired, and down he went with a 
bullet a little high behind the shoulder. 
One was a sixpronged buck and the other 
nine on one and ten on the other. I 
dressed them, hung them up as best I 
could and started on and had gone no 
more than half a mile when Trailer 
struck a bear track that was fresh, and 
away he went, yelping at every jump. I 
followed slowly along, thinking perhaps 
he would overtake and tree it near where 
Temp was, as it went in that direction. 
I COULD hear him going, going, for 
quite a while, and finally he passed 
over a ridge and out of hearing. I 
stood still and listened a while, and then 
started on down in that direction. All of 
a sudden I heard him again, this time 
coming back towards me. I got up on a 
log now and waited. I could hear him 
coming nearer, nearer, all the time, and 
in a minute I saw the bear coming just as 
straight as a line right to me. When he 
got up to within one hundred yards. 
Trailer had got near enough so that he 
was in sight of him. Now he quit bark- 
ing and came on like the wind to overtake 
him. It was a pretty sight to see them 
come. The big black fellow lumbering 
along straight to his doom, as he was 
close enough now so that I could fill him 
full of bullets before it would be possible 
for him to get away especially with a dog 
behind him that had never failed to get 
his game, and was gaining on him at 
every jump. On he came and as he gotl 
closer I held my gun on him ready to 
pull the trigger if he ever made a turn. 
But he did not know that I was there 
and just as he got up and was pausing 
within ten steps of me Trailer overtook 
him, and, making a lunge, caught him by 
the ham and give him a yank. Around 
he went, and struck viciously at Trailer, 
but the dog let go and got out of the way. 
The bear turned to go, and Trailer came 
full tilt to get him again. Just then I 
fired and he sunk right down in his 
tracks. Trailer was coming so fast that 
he lit on top of the bear’s back, and grab- 
bing hold, commenced to shake at him, 
but old Buin was done for and the scrap 
was over. 
But another was coming which I little 
dreamed of when I was dressing this 
bear, which did not take long. I picked 
up my gun and started down the slope 
, thinking that perhaps I would run across 
Temp down in that direction. In this I 
was not mistaken, for I had not gone 
more than a mile when, bang, went a gun 
off to my right. I threw up the horn 
which I always carried and gave it a toot, 
and I heard Temp hollering for me to 
come. I sent Trailer and followed up as 
fast as I could, and when I got there I 
found Trailer and Temp at the foot of a 
big fir; upon looking up the tree I saw 
two cub bears, one about half way up, 
and the other away near the top. He 
told me that he had shot at the old one 
and missed, and she had run off leaving 
the cubs. I asked him what kind of a 
bear it was, and he said she was a big 
brown one. He was awfully excited and 
was in for shooting them out without any 
ceremony; but I cautioned him not to be 
in a hurry, for I knew that in his present 
excitement he couldn’t hit a barn door, 
lo he waited a while but finally got so 
eager to shoot that I told him to go ahead. 
But I warned him — “Let me tell you 
something. Temp. If you make a bad 
shot on them cubs and cause one of them 
to squall we will have a fight on our 
hands just as sure. For the old one will 
come just as sure as she hears.” 
He said he didn’t care; he w'anted to 
kill them. He had never killed a bear in 
his life. 
“All right,” I said. “Go to it.” 
He pulled up to shoot, and I saw he 
was shaking like a leaf, so I said, “Hold 
on. Temp. Wait until you get over that.’' 
But he paid no attention and bang, went 
his gun, and the cub commenced to squall. 
I called to him to look out, and/ ran over 
to a tree about thirty steps away, and 
stopped with my gun ready. We did not 
have long to wait, for she came sure 
enough, and like a cyclone. Trailer met 
her just as she dashed into the opening, 
straight for Temp. She passed the dog, 
but he was too quick for her, and sprang 
at her, seized her by the ham, swinging 
her clear around, and let go to get out of 
her way. Just then I shot, striking her 
in the shoulder, breaking it. By this time 
Temp had got turned around and got his 
gun into action, putting a bullet through 
her body. Trailer kept working on her 
hams, and we kept pouring the bullets 
into her until she rolled over. Temp now 
had only four cartridges left, and com- 
menced to shoot at the cubs, but missed 
every time. I was going to shoot them 
out then, but he begged me to let him 
have my gun, as he had never killed a 
bear. So I gave him my gun, and after 
shooting eight times he brought them 
down at last and was happy. 
We now had four bear and two bucks 
on our hands, so we had a job of packing 
in the next morning. During this time 
As he strides through his native woods. Bruin’s leisuerely. lumbering gait is not without a certain regal dignity 
