Black Bear 
sumed the same attitude toward man in this country that the 
brown bear has in Europe, the last of his race would have 
been shot in the days of our grandfathers. 
Except in early spring, black bears live principally upon 
vegetable food; blueberries are their favourite diet, though fruit 
of any kind seems to suit them well enough. 
They also dig for roots and bugs, and catch grasshoppers 
and crickets in the grass. 
When there is plenty of such food to be had, they will, it 
is said, pass the newly killed carcass of a deer or a_ sheep 
without noticing it. , 
This, however, probably depends a good deal on the indi- 
vidual, some of them being always fond of meat. Like all bears, 
they are passionately fond of honey and very clever at finding 
bee-trees. When a bear has discovered a bee-tree he courage- 
ously attacks it with teeth and claws, endeavouring to enlarge 
the opening sufficiently to enable him to reach the honey. But 
the stings of the enraged insects about his nose and mouth 
cause him to stop frequently. If the bear is at work at the 
foot of the tree, he can roll on the ground in order to get rid 
of his tormentors when the pain becomes too severe, but if 
he is high up on the trunk he can only rub them off against 
the bark and hold his ground, knowing it will not be 
long after the honeycomb is broken into before the bees will 
leave him in peace, each hastening to fill its honey-bags before 
it is too late. Black bears hibernate throughout the winter, 
stowing themselves away in hollow trees and caves among the 
rocks. In the extreme north of this range they follow the ex- 
ample of the polar bear, curling up in a cave or hollow where 
the drifting snow will bury them and keep them warm until 
spring. When they come out at the end of the winter the 
skin on the feet cracks and peels off, leaving them soft and 
tender. 
They now have rather a hard time of it for a few weeks; 
for food is scarce and difficult to get even for an animal in the 
best condition; and to be handicapped with sore feet and 
weakened by a four-months’ fast at the same time is hard luck. 
They now roam the woods in the hope of finding some 
animal or bird uncovered by the melting of the snow, and sniff 
for newly awakened snakes and bugs around mossy old stumps 
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