370 TURNING HIM OUT. 



This object was very quickly effected ; for Bruin no sooner 

 felt the pole at his posteriors, to which, through a chink 

 amongst the logs, Elg had applied it with considerable 

 unction, than out he bolted in double-quick time, and, to 

 judge from appearances, in anything but an amiable mood. 

 An instant afterwards being then at only a few paces' 

 distance I fired both barrels, and severely wounded him 

 in the neck and body. On receiving the bullets, he looked 

 much inclined to charge ; but the depth of the snow, and 

 the attack of the dogs, which kept baying immediately 

 about his hind-quarters, probably deterred him ; and it was 

 perhaps well that he did not, for stuck as my Skidor were 

 amongst the logs, retreat was utterly impracticable. 



The scene at this time was a rather striking one. It is 

 pretty faithfully depicted in the accompanying illustration, 

 from the pencil of Captain Thomas Wingate, late of the 

 Queen's Royals, to whom I am also indebted for several 

 other beautiful drawings in this work. 



Dropping the discharged gun into the snow, and catching 

 up Elg's rifle, which was lying in readiness at my feet, 1 

 attempted to fire ; but though the cap duly exploded, the 

 piece would not go off; neither did three or four other 

 caps, placed on the nipple in rapid succession, succeed 

 better. But at length the bear, which in the meanwhile had 

 been gradually retreating, was lost to view amongst the 

 trees. 



To put the guns to rights was a work of time. My 

 own was smothered with snow; and Elg's rifle, on exami- 

 nation, was found never to have been loaded an omission 

 on his part for which it was difficult to account and it 

 was one besides that might have cost us dear ; for after my 



