Published in the New Hampshire Argus and Spectator in Newport, NH on August 7, 1896
A little over a week ago Mr Woodbury, the superintendent of the farming on the Corbin estate here, took back the sheep from their pasture in Blue Mountain forest to their former pasture on Colt Mountain, from which they had been moved to protect them from the attacks of dogs. But they met with a much worse foe than these. The total loss of sheep is estimated to be thirty seven, twenty of which were killed and the others nobody knows anything about.
Young Champollion, one of the late Mr. Corbin’s grandsons, now spending the summer at the Corbin farm, having been notified of the damage, telephoned to several forest game-keepers to meet him at the Head Station at 8 o’clock on the night of Sunday, July 26th.
The party consisted of five. The beginning of the night was spent lying for the game by his usual passage. This having continued for one hour and no game appearing the party divided; three went to the station to await morning and then to inspect the bodies of the dead sheep and get, if possible, some hint as to what did the damage. The other two laid in wait in a tree near the place where the last sheep had been killed. They saw what they thought was a bear or what they claimed looked very much like one. Yet they were not sure whether it was a bear or a wild boar. They would not shoot because the rules of the forest do not allow game-keepers to shoot the board without permission. Although faithful to duty this was a mistake very much to be regretted for future inspection proved the animal to be nothing else than a bear. The two men were Frank Clement and George Brown.
In the morning the rest of the party went out to inspect the dead sheep. Their belief until then had been in favor of a panther, but now they thought and were almost sure wild boar had done the damage for their signs around the dead sheep were very plain. Two arguments, however, contradicted this. On looking closely one could see the entrails of the sheep laid carefully at one side and untouched, an act which would not have been done by boar. The rest of the body was too mangled and disfigured to recognize in what way it had been killed. THe other contradiction was that if wild boar had done it why did they not do it until then? For the sheep had been in there all the spring and the killing did not begin till two or three weeks ago.
On further inspection a sheep was seen lying dead, perfectly untouched, except a small bite perhaps the size of a finger nail in circumference and two small scratches about two inches long on the thigh in the inside of the left hind-leg. The whole leg and a great part of the body were swollen. The death of the animal was plainly caused by blood-poison. This proof and Brown’s and Clement’s account made the whole party sure that a bear was the cause of the destruction and that the wild board finished the work after bruin – had satisfied his appetite.
Another expedition was decided for the night of Tuesday, the 28th. New plans were adopted. A sheep was staked where the last one was killed and a party of four men lay in wait at intervals on the favorable side of the wind, for it was supposed that the sheep would bleat as soon as he saw himself abandoned and thus attract the bear.
But contrary to expectation he did no such thing. This of course made this strategy a failure. Toward morning a blood hound was put on the track of an animal which had been heard in the night but it was a boar.
It is a pity that the bear was not killed, for he will surely do more damage among the game in the forest. He ought to have been dispatched while the sheep were still in the pasture.
