A BLACK BEAR HUNT 183 



intervals on the withers, elicited a loud roar from the terrified 

 beast, which seemed to cause bruin vast amusement. 



A striking bear story of a different character from those above 

 was related one evening at the camp fire by the senior hunter. 

 He told us of one night when he was ' shining ' moose on a quiet 

 mountain tarn bordered with a narrow strip of marsh with a back- 

 ground of dark hemlock forest. ' Shining ' is an illegal practice, 

 and justly so, for the grand animal, dazed and apparently fascinated 

 by the red glare of the hissing resinous torch, approaches the object 

 of his wonder as if under a spell, and easily falls to the rifle. Tom 

 Isaacs kneeled at the stern, dipping his way quietly along with 

 water-ash paddle, while Noel held up the bunch of burning fagots 



' MOOIN,' THE BEAR (URSUS AMERICANUS). 



which spread a lurid gleam across the surface. In an instant 

 a mighty moose bull had emerged from the fringe of woods, and 

 soon came wading into the lake, while the flare of the torch capped 

 the circling wavelets from his limbs with flashing coronets of 

 molten gold. 



In the uncertain light Noel hit him hard. ' Moose got it bad 

 worse sort ' in his own laconic jargon. The poor animal 

 floundered and staggered, finally collapsing on the shallows of a 

 sand-bar. The men following on to secure their prey were astonished 

 to see two large bears issue from the woods and begin to fight over 

 the still living moose. At length they evidently patched up a 

 peace, and began together tearing and crunching away at the 

 quivering flesh. The Indians fired in the uncertain light, but 



