THE LARGE BEARS. 



207 



been torn from that part of the person, the skin 

 was not broken nor the man injured beyond some 

 slight bruises. He explained that the blow, throw- 

 ing him forward on his stomach, had knocked the 

 breath and consciousness out of him. When he 

 recovered his senses the bear was smelling at him, 

 and, knowing the consequences of moving, he lay 

 still. I have never heard a more striking instance 

 of presence of mind and nerve." Dodge: Plains of 

 the Great West. 



The Brown Bear ( Ursus arctos], although 

 at the present day greatly restricted in range 

 as compared with what he was formerly, 

 nevertheless still inhabits a considerable area, 

 and one may say that he is to be met with here 

 and there throughout the whole of the main- 

 land of the Old World north of the Atlas and 



-* 



the Himalayas. In civilized countries he has 

 been driven to the mountains. 



He is a large plump animal, which may 

 attain the length of 7 feet and a weight 

 of 550 Ibs. It will be understood that a 

 species distributed over so wide a geographical 

 range as this is must present a number of 

 local varieties more or less different from one 

 another. Hunters and species-makers have 

 accordingly not spared themselves the trouble 

 of distinguishing a considerable number of 

 species, regarding which all that can be said 

 in a general way is that the size of the animals 

 is the less the further south their home lies. 

 The bears of the Pyrenees, the Atlas, and 

 Syria cannot rival in size those of Norway, 

 Russia, and Kamchatka. 



I will not give here a minute description of 

 our common bear, which is known to everyone, 

 and which has been depicted by Specht (Plate 

 XIII.) in a manner that cannot be surpassed. 

 The family shown in the plate referred to has 

 established itself in a wild region amongst 

 rocks at the foot of a large fir-tree. The 

 mother observes with watchful eye the sports 

 of her young ones. The plump little cubs 

 are wrestling with each other; the one is 

 rolling on the ground while the other is wad- 

 dling up to him on his hind-legs, just as old 



bears do when they are making ready for an 

 attack. 



The brown she-bear brings forth two or 

 three young ones during the severest winter's 

 cold, usually towards the end of January. 

 The little bears are very amiable creatures, 

 and in the highest degree comical. Clowns 

 in every respect, clumsy and yet supple, 

 always ready for fun and frolic, good-humoured 

 with every one, docile to a certain point, they 

 yet always exhibit a certain egoistic independ- 

 ence, which later in life becomes changed into 

 sulkiness. The attachment of the mother 

 towards them is without bounds. For several 

 weeks she never leaves them for an instant, 

 remaining without any food in the dark retreat 

 which she had chosen out as the place of her 

 delivery. She teaches them to walk, to climb, 

 and to swim, and defends them with fury even 

 at the risk of her life. But though she over- 

 whelms them with caresses, keeps them warm, 

 licks them, and submits to all their teasing, 

 yet she does not fail to punish them when 

 she thinks that necessary. A good blow with 

 the foot, a box on the ear, and even a slight 

 bite are among the ordinary means of educa- 

 tion which she does not spare. It is even 

 asserted that bears two or three years old are 

 employed to educate their younger brothers 

 and sisters. Such teachers are called by the 

 Russians " Pastun." 



I cannot agree with some recent authors 

 in denying to the bear wiliness, attachment, 

 affectionateness, and intelligence. The young 

 bear is, on the contrary, wily, intelligent, 

 shrewd, and devoted to his comrades. But 

 why should he be attached to man, who keeps 

 him in confinement and treats him to blows 

 as soon as he shows a disposition to live after 

 his own fashion? Shrewdness and a power 

 of observation belong to the bear in good 

 measure. In the course of a voyage which 

 we ourselves made to the North we happened 

 to have on board a bear six months old which 

 had shortly before been caught in Russia. 

 He yielded only to violence, and would not 



