Early History Lewis and Clark 21 



approached, and it being late, they deferred pursuing 

 him till the next morning." 



June 27, 1805. "As the men were hunting on the river, 

 they saw a low ground covered with thick brushwood, 

 where, from the tracks along shore, they thought a bear 

 had probably taken refuge. They therefore landed with- 

 out making a noise and climbed a tree about twenty feet 

 above the ground. Having fixed themselves securely 

 they raised a loud shout and a bear instantly rushed 

 toward them. These animals never climb, and therefore, 

 when he came to the tree and stopped to look at them, 

 Drewyer shot him in the head. He proved to be the larg- 

 est we had yet seen. His nose appeared to be like that of 

 a common ox, his forefeet measured nine inches across, 

 the hind feet were seven inches wide and eleven and three- 

 quarters long, exclusive of the talons. One of these ani- 

 mals came within thirty yards of the camp last night and 

 carried off some buffalo meat which we placed on a pole." 



June 28, 1805. "The white bears have now become 

 exceedingly troublesome, they constantly infest our camp 

 during the night, and though they have not attacked us, 

 as our dog, which patrols all night, gives us notice of their 

 approach, yet we are obliged to sleep with our arms by 

 our sides for fear of accident, and we cannot send one 

 man alone to any distance, particularly if he has to pass 

 through brushwood." 



May 13, 1806, near the Kooskooskee River. "The 

 hunters killed ... a male and female bear, the first of 

 which was large, fat, and of a bay color, the second, mea- 

 gre, grizzly, and of smaller size. They were of the species 

 common to the upper part of the Missouri and might well 



