McKean, Cameron and Potter.

The names of these men who perhaps were the most interested in bear
trapping in the section above mentioned were, Leroy Lyman, Horatio
Nelson, Lanson Stephan, Isaac Pollard, Ezery Prichard and one or two
others, including the writer.

The traps mostly used were bear pens and deadfalls. It was considered
a fairly good day's work for two men to build one good bear pen or
two good deadfalls. Most bear trappers, however, had a few steel bear
traps for it may be said that nearly every country blacksmith knew
how to make a bear trap and how to temper a trap spring. This cannot
be said of the average blacksmith of the present day.

Bear forty years ago would migrate then as they do now. We used to
think that bear would travel from the Virginias and from Northern New
York if not from the New England States to Pennsylvania or from
Pennsylvania north or south as the case may be. This was proven from
the fact that if there was a good crop of mast in one locality, while
a scarcity in another, the bear would all seem to be moved north or
south as the case may be as though they had some way of informing one
another where plenty of food was to be found. At such times when bear
are on a migratory tramp it is not an uncommon thing to find a bear
track near your house or barn on going out in the morning when there
was snow on, so that the track is plain to be seen. This was no
uncommon thing forty years ago, neither is it at the present time
(1910) when there is a general scarcity of forage crops such as beech
nuts, chestnuts and acorns. I have seen it stated by some writers
that at certain times bear will move in a drove and at such times it
was not safe for a man to meet a bear for they were very dangerous
and would attack any one who chanced to be in their way.

In my upwards of fifty years experience of woods life, I do not call
to mind of ever seeing more than three bears on one trail at the same
time and these were an old bear and cubs. It has been the writer's
observation that when bears were on these migratory trips in search
of food or from other cause, they travel singly and not in droves or
even in pairs.

During the summer when bears are existing on nettles, wild turnips,
berries and other green food, it is not out of the ordinary to find a
bear in pretty close proximity to the farm house and close around the
fields where he can occasionally get a sheep or lamb.

I have seen and heard much