THE GAME ANIMALS OF CANADA 111 
that most of the bears have been killed on the islands, 
particularly on Princess Royal and Gribbell Islands. As 
Mr. Kermode has pointed out to me, this does not mean 
that they are any more common on the islands than on 
the adjacent coast of the mainland; but it shows that they 
are more easily seen and hunted on mountain slides on 
these islands. There are no white goats; whereas, on the 
mainland, when observed from a distance, these bears are 
likely to be mistaken for goats, owing to their size and 
cream-white colour, both these animals being found on the 
open grassy slide country, which is a favourite feeding- 
ground for bear in the spring. 
PROTECTION OF BEARS 
Attention already has been called to the great need of 
giving protection to the polar bear, which is rapidly de- 
creasing in numbers in the more accessible regions of the 
Canadian Arctic coast, although their numbers are, no doubt, 
being maintained to a greater degree on the more remote 
islands of the Arctic. 
Only in the provinces of Quebec and British Columbia 
are there close seasons or bag limits on black bears. In 
Quebec a close season on the black bear is maintained from 
July 1 to August 20, which covers the mating season. 
In British Columbia a close season on the black bear was 
instituted in 1918; this season is from July 1 to September 
30. In view of the great decrease of grizzly bears in the 
United States, owing to the absence of any restrictions on 
the killing of this animal, it would seem very desirable to 
give it more protection in Canada, as continuous and assidu- 
ous hunting will undoubtedly seriously jeopardize its future, 
and a bag limit should be fixed, if only as a precautionary 
measure. I received a report of big-game hunting in 1916 
in the Cassiar region of British Columbia, in which one 
