A Desperate Escape from a Bear in Covington
A settler finds himself treed by a pair of angry bears and relies on a faithful dog to help him survive the encounter.
The story, cleaned up
A cleaned-up reading of the newspaper page: spelling and layout repaired, one story lifted off a crowded page. It follows the original closely but it is not a transcription. The original page is below; read it if a detail matters.
John Houghton, who lives in a little ravine in the northern part of Covington township, set out to walk from his clearing into the corner of King County last week. While resting near a ledge of rocks, a large bear emerged from a hole behind him. Houghton scrambled into a stubby hemlock tree, but the bear repeatedly tried to pull him down. His dog, a Newfoundland-shepherd mix, attacked the bear's legs, forcing it to descend. A second bear soon emerged and attacked the dog, ultimately killing it while Houghton escaped, leaving the two bears quarreling over their prey.
“Houghton jumped from his feet like a flash, ran a few yards down the hill, and hastily climbed into a stubby, low-limbed hemlock tree.”
While Covington has transformed from a rugged frontier into a suburban community, stories of human-wildlife encounters remain a part of the Washington experience. This account provides a glimpse into the dangerous reality of life on the edge of the forest in the late 19th century.
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