Rensselaer Union, Volume 7, Number 32, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 29 April 1875 — Bruin as a Dentist. [ARTICLE]

Bruin as a Dentist.

“I bad three terth taken ont rather curiously once,” said the stranger, raising his bearded ,lip, showing tlje vacancy occasioned thereby. “ And as we’ve got to wait for the cars quite a while yet, for, like yourself, I was unaware of the change of time. I’ll tell you the stoiy: r “ When I was a young man of twentytwo my father emigrated to the Far West —we arrived there in the fall —and from that time until the middle of the winter I had acontinued, unrelenting toothache, if the front teeth, which caused the pain, had not been removed they might have ached to this day, for aught I know. I became so nervous and cross that I was perfectly unendurable to myself and friends. “ One day, scarce knowing how to pass away the long, dreary hours, I shouldered my rifle and entered the woods. For an hour or more I wandered listlessly about, the pain from my teeth occupying my attention. When I discovered the distance I had traveled, I wished myself back home again, and regretted my folly, thinking that I might have been more comfortable by the fireside. “ I turned to retrace my steps, when I heard a low growl close at hand. Looking about me, I soon discovered the form of an almost famished she-beaJt My pain was forgotten in a moment. I raised my rifle and fired; the aniraal'i'eH and, in my folly, I ruslied forward. When within a few feet of the bear she rose upon her haunches and turned her blazing eves full upon me; her mouth was opened wide, her tongue protuding, and the froth and blood streaming therefrom. “ I’ll take you down from that, thought I, as I raised the butt of my rifle high above my head and struck at the bear; but she parried the blow very neatly with her dexter paw and sent my rifle flying from my grasp, beyond my reach. “I was a little taken aback at this specimen of skill; my fist was clenched and I struck at Mrs. Bruin. She succeeded in clawing off my cap, and drew her long nails through my hair, making a not very agreeable comb. My blow took effect on her snout, staggering her a little. She gathered herself and stretched out her paws ready to give me a hug in case I came near enough; but I was on my guard. Boxing was a favorite amusement of mine, and smart was the man who could get the best of me.- Of all the antagonists I have ever met, Mrs. Bruin was the most scientific. I was in a pretty predicament. I tried running, hut the bear was the fleetest, and when I paused she stood on the defensive. I became more fatigued every moment, while my four-footed antagonist appeared good for an hour to come. She now changed her tactics, as if she had discovered that my strength was failing. Walking along on her hind legs, she w ould near me and then spring forward, and I had to be pretty lively to elude her grasp, ■ “ I watched my cliaime, and when next she sprang, I planted my foot against her stomach and sent her reeling over. My .foot, caught in the underbrush, and I fell with her. We were both up at once; I struck her under the ear, and she brought her paw upon my mouth with such force that I fell headlong. I felt the uprooted teeth in my mouth, and spat them out; the blood was streaming from my nose and mouth in a small torrent; I felt the hot breath of the bear upon my face; a fierce growl of triumph, and she tore the clothes from my back, taking a fair share of skin along with them. That was an agonizing moment for me; I gathered all my strength and attempted to arise, but I was not allowed to gain my feet, for the fierce beast felled me to the ground again as often as I fried it. “ Well, mister, I thought my time had come. The blood was streaming from my wounds; the bear had one paw on my breast, which prevented me from arising. The burning eyes were looking into mine; the hear struck me on the temple. I heard the report of a rifle, and then I was lost to all around me. “ When I recovered, an old hunter named Bill Harris stood over me—the bear lay and dead a little ways oft'— and he said: “ ‘Me and Jim Kirk has been huntin’ arter this bar fur a long while; she ar ’bout starved, an’ I knew she’d fout like all natur, an’ if I hadn’t cum along jest, in the nick of time slic’d a fixed you. You sec I seed how matters stud, an’ so I bored into her —tuk her right in the heart —she drapped.’ “That’s the way I became minus three teeth.” —The Field.