IN THE GRIP OF A GRIZZLY.

Taranaki Daily News, 7 October 1916, Page 9

IN THE GRIP OF A GRIZZLY.

HIDDEN IN SNOW, TO MAKE i - FUTURE MEAL. Hidden in the snow by a bear which intended to make a meal of him at some future time, Ford Stirling, the famous cinema- actor, who, with his friends, had been on a hunting expedition througih a wild and rugged part of Northern Canada, was only able ,to escape with his life by feigning death. "It was about midwinter," says Ford Stirling in relating his terrible adventures, "when I set out on my grim mission. One morning we decided to separate, and each hunt on our own throughout the day, But alas! soon I saw staring at me a huge grizzly. "So horrified and startled was I that I did tflie worst thing possible. The brute would not have attacked .me had I turned and walked quietly away, but instead I threw -up my rifle and fired. To my further ■horror the bullet merely cut a channel through the coarse hair on the grizzly's back. Next'moment I beheld the great lumbering beast ambling towards me at the speed of a galloping horse, and uttering a low, coughing groivl as it came. With a cry of real fear I turned arid fled panic-stricken. "What I did next was done more by instinct than anything else. I had often heard of men escaping a wild animal bv feigning death, but I had no time for studying such things. . With a cry of pain I collapsed limply in the snow, allowing myself to roll over and over till I reached the frozen' bed of the creek, The seconds that followed were the most awful I ever experienced. I felt the brute's hot breath about my neck and face as it. sniffed all round, but I was conscious of no desir« to make a aash for freedom.

"After examining me thoroughly the grizzly got hold of the strap by which was supported a small wallet 1 carried, and began to drag me. The strap gave way almost immediately, at which the griziily renewed its hold, gripping my strong hunting jacket .between the shoul-der-blades, and thus secured a firmer hold.

"In the meantime I was now trailing through thick undergrowth to an accompaniment of low, unmusical growls. Suddenly the bear stopped and laid me down. It began to sniff at the ground, then commenced to scoop away the snow away from under me, scattering it in a clumsy way over my head and shoulders. A sudden ray of hope came into my mind. The bear was 'caching' me under the snow, just as hunters 'cache' surplus meat for future use. In a few minutes I was completely covered, and I heard the 'bear walk away. For a minute or two there -was silence, then the bear came back silently, sniffed suspiciously, and again went away. "Three times the brute left me, and three times it came back after an interval of two or 'three minutes. The third time the bear left me I waited what seemed an eternity, then leapt to my feet. That moment was perhaps the worst of all, for I thought that in all probability the grizzly was lurking and watching somewhere near. There, was no sound, however, so, talking my bearings, I began to creep away, quaking in every limb. I hardly know how I dragged myself away from the horrible place, or how I finally reached the camp."