BEAR STORIES 87 



This, as well as the only ladle allowed, was made 

 out of the mountain ash, the bear's favorite 

 tree. For some reason that I could not find out 

 no one sat at what we would call the head or foot 

 of the table. The two oldest men sat opposite 

 each other at one end, and after that, towards 

 the foot, each guest according to his age or rank 

 as a hunter. Every one being seated the first 

 course was served. A large bowl of hot bear's 

 grease took the place of soup. In this was the 

 wooden ladle. The bowl was set before the chief ; 

 after helping himself and sipping from the la- 

 dle what quantity he chose, the bowl and ladle 

 was passed on to the next man in rank, and so on 

 to the end of the table. If there was a mighty 

 hunter I should rather say eater able to dis- 

 tinguish himself by drinking three or four ladles- 

 f ul of the fat, it was always greeted with a round 

 of applause. The first course through, the bowl 

 was laid on the middle of the table and the ladle 

 taken away. The second course was the bear's 

 neck and head roasted on the spit, and the spit 

 left in it, as it served to pass it around to each 

 guest. It was stuck in front of the chief, who 

 made a sort of address to it. He boasted of the 

 bear's strength and abilities as a tree climber, 

 and of its powers of endurance as a faster re- 

 ferring to its hibernations and paid it all the 

 other compliments he could think of. The end of 



