FOREST LIFE. 91 



pear very wild ; yet wondering, they seem to look at us as though 

 they had some lingering recollection of having seen us before . 

 It is often very difficult to catch and yoke them ; but, with all 

 their wildncss, they evidently show signs of pleasure in the rec- 

 ognition. When turned out in this way, however, instances 

 have occurred when they have never again been seen or heard 

 from. In some cases they probably get mired or cast, and die ; 

 in others, they doubtless stray away, and fall a prey to bears 

 and wolves. Bears as well as wolves have been known to at- 

 tack oxen. An individual who owned a very fine " six-ox team" 

 turned them into the woods to browse, in a new region of coun- 

 try. Late in the evening, his attention was arrested by the bel- 

 lowing of one of them. It continued for an hour or two, then 

 ceased altogether. The night was very dark, and, as the ox was 

 supposed to be more than a mile distant, it was thought not ad- 

 visable to venture in search of him until morning. As soon as 

 daylight appeared, he started, in company with another man, to 

 investigate the cause of the uproar. Passing on about a mile, 

 he found one of his best oxen laying prostrate, and, on examina- 

 tion, there was found a hole eaten into the thickest part of his 

 hi ml quarter nearly as large as a hat ; not less than six or eight 

 pounds of flesh were gone. He had bled profusely. The ground 

 was torn up for rods around where the encounter occurred ; the 

 tracks indicated the assailant to be a very large bear, who had 

 probably worried the ox out, and then satiated his ravenous ap- 

 petite, feasting upon him while yet alive. A road was hushed 

 out to the spot whore the poor creature lay. and he was ^ot upon 



a Bled and hauled home by a yoke of his companions, where the 



wound was dressed. It never, however, entirely healed, though 



it was so far improved as to allow of his being fattened, after 



which he w;is slaughtered for food. 



After a few days 1 respite, and as booh as a sufficient quantity 



of snow has fallen, we commence hauling the Logs. Aj there 



