Jasper County Democrat, Volume 22, Number 62, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 1 November 1919 — OFF FOR BIG GAME COUNTRY [ARTICLE]

OFF FOR BIG GAME COUNTRY

Jasper County Party of Hunters „ Leave for Michigan Tomorrow. Tomorrow Jasper county’s band of mighty hunters, composed of Emmet Pullins and son of Barkley, Len McCurtain and Ernest Comer of Union, and John Marlatt, Joe Pullins and “Frenchy” Deschand of Rensselaer, will leave via auto for the big game country of the upper peninsula of Michigan, and if the deer, bear, catamount, et cetera, are at all wise they will take a hike out on Lake Superior as soon they get word via wireless that this bunch Is on the way. If the lake hasn’t frozen over yet they had better get a raft, for these hunters mean business and no quarter will be given, although it may be asked. All the boys will be armed to the teeth, and Frenohy, whose sole ambition on this trip is to kill a “bar” and bring its hide home to show . “Gum” Pefley, has ha<| a double-edged hunting knife made out of an old army bayonet that is about two feet long and has a couple of edges on it as kharp as a razor. If Frenchy gets in close quarters with Mr. Bear he expects to cut his way out with this weapon. It is a trifle unwleldly, but Frenchy says all he has to do is to hold it out in front of him and if Mr. Bear wants to run against it, all right. Of course, Frenchy will depend

on his ample artillery of firearms to stop his bearship before he gets close enough for the knife, but he is taking the latter along for an emergency, such as he has read about occurring to others and says “nobody can tell what a hear is going to do, or whether the bullets are going to stop him or not.”

He has heard of cases where the bear caught the leach in his teeth as fast as it was pumped into him, all the time advancing on the hunter and finally catching 'the latter by the slack of the pants and shaking the life right out of him. He doesn’t propose to be caught this way, and if he runs across any old lead-eating bear he will depend on his trusty bowle before executing any undignified retreat to a tall saipling. So we may look for Frenchy back alright, alright. Now, John Marlatt doesn’t have any yearning whatever for bear. Jqhn wants to bag a deer and not at too close quarters either, especially if his deership is an old buck and a fighter. If John meets a bear he expects to get into his three-league boots p. d. q. and quietly fade away. He doesn’t like bear meat anyhow, and is perfectly willing for Frenchy to carry off the Carnegie medal for bravery when it comes to this part of the sport. John has also heard about a bear sometimes turning hunter and he has no desire whatever for any close acquaintance with the species. The party expects to be gone two or three weeks. They have a log cabin leased for the time they will be in the wilderness and no doubt will have a fine time. Emmet Pullins has been up there before and is an old hand at the

business of slaying deer. He never fails to bring one or two deer home with him on such trips, and if the carcasses are not selling too high up there at present we may .confidently expect that he, at least, will bring back some venison.