296 THE BEAR FAiMlLY 



point Ivan fired his last cartridge, but missed. The 

 bear continued for several steps, while the two hunt- 

 ers stood with empty rifles watching. Suddenly, quick 

 as a flash, it swung round upon its hind legs and gave 

 one spring after Blake, who, not understanding his 

 Aleut's shouts not to run, started across the marsh 

 with the bear in close pursuit. At every step the bear 

 was gaining and Ivan, appreciating that unless the 

 bear's attention was attracted my friend would soon 

 be pulled down, began waving his arms and shouting 

 at the top of his voice, in order to attract the bear's 

 attention from Blake. The latter saw that his hunter 

 was standing firm, and taking in the situation, suddenly 

 stopped. The bear charged to within a few feet of the 

 two hunters ; but when he saw their determined stand, 

 stopped and, swinging his head from side to side, 

 watched them for some seconds, apparently undecided 

 whether to charge home or leave them. Then he 

 turned and looking back over his shoulder, made slowly 

 for the woods." 



If Holt Collier had been present at this point to fol- 

 low the bear and say : " Gwan, you fool bear! Gwan 

 up a tree ! " etc., there is no telling what the big 

 brown's attitude would have been ; but from a studv of 

 all the accounts of the other bears killed by Mr. Kidder 

 and his friend, it is quite evident that the Alaskan 

 brown bear performs in the field more like the little 

 black bear than 7irsiis horribilis. Mr. Kidder used a 

 dog in hunting the Alaskan bears, but found one dog 

 hardly sufficient to hold the larger bears when they 

 moved off unwounded. A pack would no doubt work 

 as well on these bears as on the smaller ones found in 



