BEAKS. 41 



accommodate themselves to all sorts of food, they are 

 easily kept. They, however, when once accustomed to 

 animal diet, will attack young game ; and one was de 

 tected in the south of Scotland in the act of killing a 

 leveret. 



BEARS. 



AMONG the Carnivora, or flesh-eating animals, Bears 

 take the first place ; for their characters and habits 

 link them in some degree with the preceding order, 

 the Insectivora. Both principally live on fruit, grains, 

 and insects, and only eat flesh from necessity, or some 

 peculiarity of life, such as confinement, or education. 



The Carnivora are divided by naturalists into three 

 tribes, the characters for which are taken from their 

 feet and manner of walking. Bears rank among the 

 Plantigrada, or those which put the whole of their feet 

 firmly upon the ground when they walk. 'They are 

 occasionally cunning and ferocious, but often evince 

 good humour, and a great love of fun. In their wild 

 state they are solitary the greater part of their lives ; 

 they climb trees with great facility, live in caverns, 

 holes, and hollow trees; and in cold countries, retire 

 to some secluded spot during the winter, where they 

 remain concealed, and bring forth their young. Some 

 say they are torpid ; but this cannot be, for the female 

 bears come from their retreats with cubs which have 

 lived upon them; and it is not likely that they can have 

 reared them and remained without food. They are, 

 however, often every lean and wasted, and the absorp- 

 tion of their generally large portion of fat contributes 



