BEARS 



BEAR-HUNTING, at least as it is practised during 

 the summer months by a great number of 

 amateur and professional huntsmen in the 

 Greenland and Spitzbergen seas, represents 

 the triumph of keen sight and clever shooting. 

 The ship coasts the ice-fields whilst a man aloft 

 keeps watch. The crow's-nest, indeed, plays a 

 very important part in all Polar expeditions. 



When the look-out man observes a yellowish 

 blot, such is the characteristic appearance of a 

 bear on the ice, he warns the ship. On a clear 

 day it is possible to distinguish a bear at a 

 distance of four miles. 



A sailing vessel can approach a bear quite 

 closely without alarming it in the least. Very 

 often one can get close enough to destroy it 

 before it has even become suspicious of danger. 

 When the situation of the ice renders such an 

 approach impracticable, the vessel is anchored 



to the ice-field, and lard and herrings are burnt 



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