Chapman to a Mrs. Parks, how neighbor Codding
came near being killed yesterday?
"Mercy! no. How did it happen?
"Mr. Codding was in the woods splitting rails, and just as he was turning
around to take up his axe to cut a sliver, don't you believe he saw a
great bear sitting up on his hind legs, and holding out both fore paws
ready to grab him."
"Mercy on us! What did he do?
"What did he do? He took up his axe, and instead of cutting the sliver,
cut into the old bear's head. But the axe glanced and only cut into the
flesh, without killing the bear, and he ran away with the axe sticking
fast in the wound.
"Awful! Awful! How thick the bears are getting to be! Husband says they
have killed off most all of our hogs.
"Your hogs! Just think once, there was a great bear came the other night
and got hold of a hog in Asahel Sprague's hog-pen, and would have killed
him, if Mr. Sprague hadn't shot the old fellow.
"Yes, and last summer when Mr. Sperry was gone off to training, there was
a bear came in the day time and tackled one of their hogs right in their
own door yard; but Mrs. Sperry and the children screamed so awfully, and
gave him such a tremendous clubbing, he was glad to put off into the woods
again.
"Ha! Ha! She was about up to Jim Parker, who broke a bear's back with a
hand-spike in driving him out of his corn field, just as he was climbing
over the fence." [Footnote: Facts which transpired in the early history of
Bloomfield.
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