Fifty Years a Hunter and Trapper: Autobiography, experiences and observations of Eldred Nathaniel Woodcock during his fifty years of hunting and trapping.Woodcock, E. N. (Eldred Nathaniel)
General
Fifty Years a Hunter and Trapper: Autobiography, experiences and observations of Eldred Nathaniel Woodcock during his fifty years of hunting and trapping.
Woodcock, E. N. (Eldred Nathaniel)
Hunting; Trapping
The first bear trap that we came to, we found a "porky" in it. I
could see that Mr. Jacobs was very much excited and began to ask many
questions as to bears and bear trapping. When we came to where the
second trap was setting, we found things generally torn up and the
trap gone, and it was plain to be seen that it was no cub that had
taken the trap this time. The bear had gone only a few yards, when he
had gotten fast in some saplings, and he had gnawed the brush and
raked the trees and "raised Ned" generally; but had finally released
the clog and had gone on down the hillside.
By this time I had discovered that Mr. Jacobs had become pretty
nervous and was shaking rather too much to do good shooting. At every
rod we advanced along the trail, it was plain to be seen that Mr.
Jacobs was becoming more and more excited. We did not follow the
trail far when we discovered Bruin fast again. We went up within a
few yards of the bear, who did not seem to like our company and would
chank his jaws and snort similar to an angry hog.
I told Mr. Jacobs to shoot the bear, and he did shoot somewhere, but
I could not say that he shot in the direction of the bear. As my
attention had been on the bear, I had not noticed Mr. Jacobs in
particular, but when I saw that he had entirely missed the bear, I
looked at him and he was shaking so from excitement, that he could
not have hit a barn, and drops of sweat stood all over his forehead.
He had a double barrel rifle, and as soon as he fired the first shot,
he advanced a few steps toward the bear and fired again, and at once
began to reload his gun, all the time going nearer to the bear until
I was afraid that he would get so close that the bear could reach
him. I had to caution him and tell him to step back, that he was
getting too close.
When Mr. Jacobs had one barrel of his gun loaded, he immediately
fired again, with the same results of the other two shots. I told him
to take my gun and try it, which he did with no better results. Mr.
Jacobs was all the time becoming more and more excited, and the sweat
was running off him like a man in the harvest field. I loaded my gun,
while Mr. Jacobs was loading his, and after Mr. Jacobs fired another
shot with no better results, I though that the fun had gone far
enough, and shot the bear.
After the bear was dead, Mr. Jacobs wondered why it was so hard to
hit a bear's head. "Just look at it," he said, "it is as large as a
dry goods box". As soon as the bear was dead, Mr. Jacobs wanted to
know if I would sell the bear. When I told him that I expected to
sell it, he asked what it was worth. I told him that I thought the
hide and meat would bring thirty or thirty-five dollars. He drew out
his purse and said, "I will take it." I told him that if he wanted
the bear, that we would call it twenty-five dollars, as he should
have something for his part in the game. He declared that the hunt
had been worth a hundred dollars to him.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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