ation. The other men who were watching other licks thought
I had surely been attacked by the wolves by the unearthly yell I was
making and the whole party were soon on the ground. The bear was soon
dressed and the men gave me the cognomen of the "The Great Hunter of
Kentucky" and so ended the killing of my first bear.

I am still in hopes to take the pelts from one or two this fall and
winter and later, I will tell of some of the incidents I have seen
and experienced while trapping and hunting among them. Perhaps, how a
brother of mine got a tenderfoot to ride the carcass of a deer down a
steep and hard frozen mountain when there was about two inches of
snow on would be interesting.

CHAPTER III.

My First Real Trapping Experience.

When I was about eighteen, I received a letter from a man by the name
of Harris, who lived in Steuben County, New York, wherein he stated
that a Mr. Lathrop had suggested me as a suitable party to go with
him to the region known as Black Forest. This section extends through
four counties, the southern part of Potter and Tioga counties, and
northern part of Clinton and Lycoming counties, Pa. Every reader
knows or has heard of the Black Forest region.

This section was and is still (1910) known as a good bear country. I
thought it strange that Mr. Lathrop, a man of much note as a hunter,
would recommend me, merely a boy, to go with Mr. Harris and into a
region like the Black Forest. As Mr. Lathrop lived about four miles
from our place I lost no time in going there to learn who this Mr.
Harris was. I was informed that he was an old hunter and trapper
about eighty years old and that he wanted a partner more for a
companion than a hunter or trapper. Mr. Lathrop had met Mr. Harris
while on a fishing tour on the Sinnamahoning waters during the summer
and said that he knew nothing of Mr. Harris otherwise than what he
saw of him at this meeting and to all appearances he was a fine old
gentleman. I showed the letter to father and asked what I should do
about it and he replied that he thought I could spend my time to a
better advantage in school, but he did not say that I could not go
with Mr. Harris. I therefore wrote him that I would be ready at the
time mentioned which was the twentieth of October.

Mr. Goodsil, the gunsmith in town, had been at work for some time on
a new gun for me. Now that I was going into the woods to hunt in
earnest, I was at the gun shop nearly every day, urging Mr