386 THE BEAR. 



CHAPTER XVII. 



THE BEAR. 



OF the Bear there are three different kinds ; the 

 brown bear of the Alps, the black bear of North 

 America, which is smaller, and the great Green- 

 land, or white bear.* These, though different in 

 their forms, are no doubt of the same original, and 

 owe their chief variations to food and climate. 

 They have all the same habitudes, being equally 

 carnivorous, treacherous, and cruel. It has been 

 said, indeed, that the black bear of America re- 

 jects animal food ; but of the contrary I am cer- 

 tain, as I have often seen the young ones which 

 are brought over to London, prefer flesh to every 

 kind of vegetable aliment. 



The brown bear is properly an inhabitant of 

 the temperate climates ; the black finds subsis- 

 tence in the northern regions of Europe and 

 America ; while the great white bear takes re- 

 fuge in the most icy climates, and lives where 

 scarce any other animal can find subsistence. 



The brown beart is not only savage, but soli- 

 tary ; he takes refuge in the most unfrequented 

 parts, and the most dangerous precipices of un- 



[ The Bear, Badger, and Racoon, bare six fore-teeth in the upper jaw, 

 alternately hollow on the inside; and six in the under jaw, the two lateral 

 ones being located. The dog-teeth are solitary and conical; the eyes are 

 fiimijln il with a nictitating membrane ; and the tongue is smooth.] 



f Buffon. 



