. ENORMOUS SIZE. 313 



had been bound up) conveyed home ; my second, to fill up 

 a gap in the Dref, of at least four hundred feet in length, 

 caused by the fright the recent catastrophe had occasioned. 

 A halt was now ordered, it being believed that a bear was 

 still within the Cordon. 



" As there was every reason to suppose that the bear 

 which had escaped from us was badly wounded, I now went 

 in immediate pursuit of him. After breaking through the 

 line, and proceeding some little distance, the beast had, it 

 appeared, doubled back upon the pathway I was pursuing, so 

 that I had not proceeded far when we fortunately met face to 

 face. A deep growl was the first intimation I had of his 

 presence. So soon as I caught sight of the bear I dashed at 

 him. At our best pace we attacked each other : on my 

 part, with no other fear than that if I missed him, he might, 

 whilst I was reloading, either attack me, or escape altogether 

 out of my sight; for I saw from the first, that owing to 

 the wound in his thigh, I could run the faster of the two. 

 At length, however, and when about twenty feet off, I 

 got a good shot at the beast, when I put a bullet right 

 through his heart. This was at so great distance from the 

 Skall, that only those men nearest to the spot, heard the 

 report of my gun. 



" Another large bear, though of a more pacific disposition, 

 was, as I had supposed, still within the Cordon. But this 

 beast was not killed until the circle was contracted to the 

 utmost, and even then I could with difficulty drive him to 

 within reach of the guns. 



" The first bear was unusually large the largest, indeed, 

 that I ever saw. Six men, with a stout pole inserted length- 

 wise between his shackled legs, and four others with poles 



