THE BLACK BEAR. 



59 



back to us very much in need of water and overcome with the heat. 

 On the marsh I met Qiiarterman and we went north again to a thick, 

 high scrub where we hoped we might find the bear baved. All the 

 hounds had come back to us except Trip and Brown, and we did 

 not know where they were or what direction they had taken. When 

 Trip becomes tired he makes little noise. 



Just as we had about made up our minds that we had lost the bear 

 I heard Trip bark not two hundred yards from us, in some thick, 

 high scrub. We went in on foot, leaving the horses on the edge of 

 the marsh. We separated, keeping about fifty yards apart, although 

 we, of course, could not see one another. Trip was obstinately 

 silent and we could not locate the exact place where he was, but we 

 were sure the bear was there somewhere, for if he had started off 

 Trip would have made noise enough. After going a short distance 

 through a most discouraging tangle of roots and bushes I heard 

 Quarterman shout and then a series of howls from Trip, that seemed 

 to move rapidly south, and it did not need Quarterman's yell of 

 " He's off to the south " to make me hurry back through the scrub 

 to where I had left my horse, mount him, and gallop as hard as I 

 could to the old trail. There I found Gale and Pat and several of 

 the dogs. Gale, who was riding Quarterman's horse, shouted to me 

 that the bear had just crossed the trail going south, followed by 

 Trip all alone. There was just a chance that I might head 

 him off on a trail leading to the beach, about half a mile further 

 south, so away I rode as fast as I could i^ake "Old Bob" go 

 over the rough trail. I feared I would be "too late, but I made it 

 just in time, for, as I turned into the cleared path at a gallop, I heard 

 Trip's voice close to me, and out of the scrub came the bear not 

 thirty yards distant, but behind me, so that I had to turn half around 

 in the saddle to fire. It was a snap shot, but I dropped him in his 

 tracks with a bullet through the shoulder. He was up again, 

 however, in an instant. Trip hanging to him bravely. To dismount 

 and fire two more shots from the Winchester 45 - did not take long, 

 and the bear lay dead, with Trip biting and tugging at his flanks. 

 This bear was an old male ; I weighed him carefully, and he tipped 



