Show 0 adventurers CLUB HEADLINES FROM THE LIVES J OF PEOPLE LIKE YOURSELF Fl 1 beast of the north H HELLO ELLO its EVERYBODY sixteen year old bob shreves of 1333 pacific st brooklyn N Y who crashes into the adventurers club today and wins himself the rating of distinguished adventurer A ten smacker check is on the way to him right now and bob dragged it down with the story of a fight with a wild animal on the streets of brooklyn now its been years since big game hunters roamed around brooklyn looking for animals to shoot hunting parties have been giving it the goby go by since the days when peter was mayor of new york and the town belonged to the dutch it took bob shreves then eight years old to get into trouble with one in november 1927 and just a few blocks away from the long island railroad station and the williamsburg bank it was just twelve noon when eight year old bob filed out of public school no 15 with a bunch of other school kids and started up state street toward his home which was then at south elliott place bog bob was going home for lunch but he in such a hurry to get it that he spare a moment to investigate a crowd of people across the street the bear looked harmless the crowd was standing at the back door of a large theater young bob went over and joined it on the sidewalk by the stage entrance was a huge brown bear bob learned later that the bear was a trained one part of an act that was playing in the theater two of the trainers helpers had him out there getting a little air 44 the bear was lying down says bob he was pretty old and looked like a harmless creature Theli The helpers elpers were holding him only by a small piece of worn clothes line tied around the collar on his neck that bear may have looked harmless but bob soon found out that he A lot of other people shared bobs opinion that the bear hurt anyone nearly the whole student body of public school no 15 had trooped down to the theater stage door attracted by the gathering A oo 00 L one great paw lashed out in a vicious swing crowd such a mob of kids you never saw in your life they pushed and jostled one another as they crowded closer they yelled to one another and directed loud shrill questions at the men who were holding the big brute the bear began to get nervous and then frightened and the helpers began to get uneasy too they coaxed the bear to get up and then began to lead him back into the theater again broke away and charged the crowd then that mob of kids began milling and pushing in their effort to follow the hear bear in bob shreves was way up in the front row being pushed along by those behind him when suddenly the bear fell into a panic he broke away from the two helpers with one toss of his hii great shaggy head then swiftly he turned around and charged the crowd he was coming right toward the spot where young bob was standing and with a mob of three or four hundred kids pushing from behind there was no way tor for bob to escape A big boy in front of him screamed and turned to flee and in his frantic effort to get away he ran squarely into bob and bowled him over bob bab fell hat flat on the ground for a moment he was confused all around him now he heard the screams of other kids then he looked up to see the bear charging straight at him almost on an top of him bobs heart leaped to his mouth and in another split second the bear was on him one great paw lashed out in a vicious swing at bobs head instinctively bob ducked if I 1 bob says he would have ripped my face wide open As it was he took away a piece of my scalp as big as a mans hand he was standing over me now snarling and growling and suddenly I 1 found myself in his big powerful arms 1 I was still conscious I 1 dont know why that slap on the head knock me out but it and at that moment I 1 even feel any pain up there but I 1 could feel the brute crushing the breath out of me with his paws I 1 could feel my ribs cracking under the pressure and I 1 could see him tearing at my shoulder with his teeth it was cold weather and bob had on a heavy overcoat that coat was all that saved his shoulder from being ripped wide open too but the overcoat was no protection against the squeeze of those powerful arms was slowly crushing the life out of him 1 I thought my chest was going to cave in he says and my lungs felt as if they would burst I 1 tried to cry out but that was impossible I 1 even draw a breath meanwhile one of the helpers had grabbed up the bears rope again while the other ran in to get the trainer little bob even conscious of that he conscious of anything but the big hairy animal that kept squeezing squeezing slowly crushing the life out of him the last thing he remembered were shouts in his ears and strong hands taking hold of him dragging him from the bears embrace the next thing he knew he was in cumberland hospital with a badly lacerated head and right shoulder and a broken rib and the doctors told him that it if he had an on a thick overcoat held hed have been maimed for life it if not killed outright but three months later bob was out of the hospital and all right except for a lasting sear scar on his head the bear weighed pounds and stood seven feet tall when erect he was the b ingest critter bob ever took on for a fight before or since and hes still wondering if or joe louis or even dempsey in his prime could have done any better with that animal than he did copyright service |