4:4 THE PESTS OF THE FARM. 



bound for several feet, and then runs off as actively as he can. 

 At length, worn out by frequently repeated exertions to escape, ha 

 is finally shot, while attempting to screen himself by aid of the 

 trunk of a tree, or while employed in resisting the attacks of the 

 dogs. 



Among other modes of killing the black bear the Indians em- 

 ploy a trap composed of logs, which, when the animal attempts to 

 remove the bait, either falls on his body and kills kim outright, or 

 secures him until he is put to death by the proprietor of the snare. 



The black bear, like all the species of this genus, is very tena- 

 cious of life, and seldom falls unless shot through the brain or 

 heart. An experienced hunter never advances on a bear that has 

 fallen, without first stopping to load his rifle, as the beast fre- 

 quently recovers to a considerable degree, and would then be a 

 most dangerous adversary. The skull of the bear appears actually 

 to be almost impenetrable, and a rifle ball, fired at a distance of 

 ninety-six yards, has- been flattened against it, without appearing 

 to do any material injury to the bone. The best place to direct 

 blows against the bear is upon his snout ; when struck elsewhere, 

 his dense, woolly coat, thick hide and robust muscles, render ma- 

 nual violence almost entirely unavailing. 



When the bear is merely wounded, it is very dangerous to at- 

 tempt to kill him with such a weapon as a knife or tomahawk, 01 

 indeed anything which may bring one within his reach. In this 

 way hunters and others have paid very dearly for their rashness, 

 and barely escaped with their lives. 



The black bear, in common with other species of this genus, en- 

 deavors to suffocate an adversary by violently hugging and compress- 

 ing its chest. A man might end such a struggle in a few instants, 

 if one hand be sufficiently at liberty to grasp the throat of the 

 animal with the thumb and fingers, externally, just at the root of 

 the tongue, as a slight degree of compression there will generally 

 suffice to produce a spasm of the glottis, that will soon suffocate it 

 beyond the power of offering resistance or doing injury. 



The black bear differs from other species of the genus by having 

 the nose and forehead nearly on the same line, though the fore- 

 head is slightly prominent. The palms of the hands and soles 01 

 the feet are very short, and the whole body is covered with long, 

 shining, straight black hair, which is by no means harsh to the 

 touch. The sides of the face are marked with fawn color, and a 

 small spot of the same exists in some individuals in front of the 



