Pennsylvania Game News - December 2014 - 19

A large black form was lying uphill
and slightly to the right of their
tracking position. He reached ahead
and grabbed Bill's coat pulling him
to a stop. He pointed over his friend's
shoulder. Bill looked knowingly and
resumed bobbing. Kurt stopped him
again and whispered, "You got him,
Billy! Put another one in his neck. No
use taking chances."
Bill nodded and went back to
bobbing. Kurt spoke clearly, "Shoot
him again, Bill, or I will."
Bill responded in a matter-of-fact
voice, "He's dead. Don't do that. Let's
finish trailing him." They did.
The big bear was lying like a lazy
cat stretched in a beam of sunlight.
His front legs were extended with
paws turned down. The back ones
were behind and turned up. The large
head was tilted to the left. Bill stood
and gazed at his prize, while Kurt
tentatively touched an open eyeball
with his rifle's muzzle. The bear was
quite dead.
Bill looked unimpressed despite his
friend's enthusiastic back slapping.
Kurt pointed to the bear's shattered
skull and said, "How'd he run away
after you did that?"
"Didn't," Bill muttered. He bent
forward and pushed a finger into a
round hole in the bear's side. "First, I
got him in the chest," he said quietly.
That's where I was aiming."
"You shot him twice?" Kurt asked.
"I heard two shots, but how...?"
"Tell you later," Bill cut him off. "Let's
go to work."
"Gimme your, knife," Kurt said. "I'll
gut him for you, but I want to do it with
your knife. Not many men can say their
knife gutted a bear."
"Get it out of my backpack. I left
DECEMBER 2014

it on the ground at my stand," Bill
said quietly.
"Naw, I don't want to go all the way
back," Kurt responded. "I'll just use
my own."
"I'll get it then," Bill said.
He walked a few yards into the laurel
and bent down. He came up with the
canvas bag and fished around for his
big pocket knife.
K u r t 's m o u t h h u n g o p e n i n
comprehension and shock.
"Why didn't you tell me right away
that you got him? Wonder why he
made a complete circle?"
"Figured he was coming on back to
git me," Bill said softly. "When he first
came out of the fog, I thought I was
back in . . ."
"Yeah, back in where?" Kurt asked.
"Back in the Ardennes. I used to
think those panzers looked like mighty
big bears coming out of that blasted
German fog. Sometimes you couldn't
see them till they were on you. Come
at you like big ugly bears."
"So you shot yourself a German
tank?"
"Naw! I knew it was a bear, but I
want to tell you it gave me a start at
first."
"How'd it get behind you?" Kurt
asked.
"You see the trail. I knew I nailed
him, but he ran away. Started to feel
creepy so I watched my back. Good
I did because he was coming back for
me."
"What made you look back that
way?"
"Don't really know, but I've been
feeling something lurking on my trail
since the war. Think I just got it before
it got me. How're we gonna get this
'tank' outta here?"
19
Pennsylvania Game News - December 2014

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