We got up into the foot hills where Trinidad, Colorado now stands. The wagon boss and I were riding along together one afternoon. I looked at my watch and saw that it was about time to be looking for some meat for supper. I asked him in a joking way what he would like best for supper if he could get it. He replied that he would like a Cub Bear for a roast tonight. Up to this time I had not seen a bear, although I had seen some signs of them, and I had no more idea of killing a bear that evening than I had of flying when I started out to get something for supper.
I struck out on a low ridge that ran almost parallel with the trail. I had gone but a short distance when I came on a patch of huckleberries, and they certainly looked as if they might be delicious. They were the first I had seen that year. I jumped off my horse and went to picking and eating as fast as I could. In a few minutes my horse gave a little snort. When I turned to see what was the matter, I saw that something had frightened him. I went to him at once, and not over fifty yards from him was an old she bear, and she had two cubs with her, and I thought they, like myself, were so taken with eating berries that they had not noticed the horse or me either.
I took my rifle, dropped down on one knee, fired and broke one of the cubs' necks. The mother bear ran to the dead cub and pawed it with her foot. While she was thus engaged, I mounted my horse drew my pistol, rode up to where the mother bear and her two cubs were in a bunch and shot the other cub and broke this one's back, and it looked for a few minutes as if I must run from the mother, as I did not want to kill her for the reason that I had no use for so much meat. So I rode away a short distance and watched her a few minutes. She pawed them over a few times and seemed to think that they were no more good and with a few low growls she trotted off into the brush, and I saw no more of her.
I then rode to the dead cubs and dismounted from my horse. I picked them up and strapped them both on the back of my saddle and struck out to overtake the train, which I did just as they were going into camp.
When the wagon master saw me coming, he came to meet me, and when he saw the load on my horse's back, he exclaimed, "Mr. Drannan, I would like to know if there is anything that you can't do that you take a notion to do. I had no idea that you would bring in a bear this evening than I had of doing so myself. I was only joking when I suggested bear meat for supper."
I answered, "Well, you had your joke, and you and the rest of us can have Bear's Foot roasted for supper, and as I have wanted some bear meat for several days, I can please you and myself at the same time."
The whole outfit was amazed when I spoke about roasting the bears' feet. They had never heard of such a thing before. When I got all the feet roasted, I took one from the coals and told the men to help themselves. They all gathered around me to see how I fixed it so I could eat it. When I had it ready to eat, the wagon boss said, "Well, who ever thought of eating Bears' Feet? But it does look nice."
He watched me eat a few minutes and then made the remark that, as I seemed to like it so well, he guessed he would try one, and it was not long before the boys all had a taste of Bear's Foot.
After he had demolished a whole foot, the wagon boss said, "I have tasted almost all kinds of meat, but I must say that I never ate any meat as good as Bear's Foot."
Some of the boys asked me if I could get some more Bears' Feet for supper the next night, and one said he would give me a dollar if I would get a big foot for him.