Himtiiig the Ginsly. 



329 



plight of their comrade, seized his rifle and fired at the 

 bear. The bullet went through the beast's lungs, and it 

 forthwith dropped its prey, and running off some two hun- 

 dred yards, lay down on its side and died. The rescued 

 man recovered full health and strength, but never again 

 carried his head straight. 



Old hunters and mountain-men tell many stories, not 

 only of malicious grislies thus attacking men in camp, but 

 also of their even dogging the footsteps of some solitary 

 hunter and killing him when the favorable opportunity 

 occurs. Most of these tales are mere fables ; but it is 

 possible that in altogether exceptional instances they rest 

 on a foundation of fact. One old hunter whom I knew 

 told me such a story. He was a truthful old fellow, and 

 there was no doubt that he believed what he said, and 

 that his companion was actually killed by a bear ; but it is 

 probable that he was mistaken in reading the signs of his 

 comrade's fate, and that the latter was not dogged by the 

 bear at all, but stumbled on him and was slain in the sur- 

 prise of the moment. 



At any rate, cases of wanton assaults by grislies are 

 altogether out of the common. The ordinary hunter may 

 live out his whole life in the wilderness and never know 

 aught of a bear attacking a man unprovoked ; and the 

 great majority of bears are shot under circumstances of 

 no special excitement, as they either make no fight at all, 

 or, if they do fight, are killed before there is any risk of 

 their doing damage. If surprised on the plains, at some 

 distance from timber or from badly broken ground, it is 

 no uncommon feat for a sinele horseman to kill them 



