OLD EPHRAIM, THE GRISLY BEAR. 69 



have seen or smelt us, for though we laid in wait 

 for it long and patiently, it did not come back 

 to its place; nor, on our subsequent visits, 

 did we ever find traces of its having done so. 



Bear are fond of wallowing in the water, 

 whether in the sand, on the edge of a rapid 

 plains river, on the muddy margin of a pond, 

 or in the oozy moss of a clear, cold mountain 

 spring. One hot August afternoon, as I was 

 clambering down a steep mountain-side near 

 Pend'Oreille lake, I heard a crash some dis- 

 tance below, which showed that a large beast 

 was afoot. On making my way towards the 

 spot, I found I had disturbed a big bear as it 

 was lolling at ease in its bath ; the discolored 

 water showed where it had scrambled hastily 

 out and galloped off as I approached. The 

 spring welled out at the base of a high granite 

 rock, forming a small pool of shimmering 

 broken crystal. The soaked moss lay in a 

 deep wet cushion round about, and jutted 

 ovel* the edges of the pool like a floating 

 shelf. Graceful, water-loving ferns swayed to 

 and fro. Above, the great conifers spread 

 their murmuring branches, dimming the light, 

 and keeping out the heat ; their brown boles 

 sprang from the ground like buttressed col- 

 umns. On the barren mountain-side beyond 

 the heat was oppressive. It was small wonder 

 that Bruin should have .sought the spot to cool 

 his gross carcass in the fresh spring water. 



The bear is a solitary beast, and although 

 many may assemble together, in what looks 

 like a drove, on some favorite feeding-ground 

 43 B 



