Old Ephraim, the Grisly Bear 55 



I have seen the skins of two cubs, one black 

 and one brown, which were shot when follow- 

 ing the same dam. When these brown bears 

 have coarser hair than usual their skins are 

 with difficulty to be distinguished from those 

 of certain varieties of the grisly. Moreover, 

 all bears vary greatly in size ; and I have seen 

 the bodies of very large black or brown bears 

 with short fore-claws which were fully as 

 heavy as, or perhaps heavier than, some small 

 but full-grown grislies with long fore-claws. 

 These very large bears with short claws are 

 very reluctant to climb a tree; and are almost 

 as clumsy about it as is a young grisly. Among 

 the grislies the fur varies much in color and 

 texture even among bears of the same locality; 

 it is of course richest in the deep forest, while 

 the bears of the dry plains and mountains are 

 of a lighter, more washed-o.ut hue. 



A full grown grisly will usually weigh from 

 five to seven hundred pounds; but exception- 

 al individuals undoubtedly reach more than 

 twelve hundredweight. The California bears 

 are said to be much the largest. This I think 

 is so, but I can not say it with certainty at 

 any rate I have examined several skins of full- 

 grown California bears which were no larger 

 than those of many I have seen from the north- 



