BULLET AND SHOT 



the wounding of one of them is usually the signal 

 for a free fight between the animals, owing to the 

 wounded one " going for " the un wounded. 



Bears are very fond of sweet things, and they 

 ascend the toddy trees in Mysore to drink the juice 

 of the date palm, which is collected in earthen pots 

 suspended below incisions made in the crowns of 

 the trees. They are devoted to honey, and in 

 Central India to the sweet flowers of the mohwa 

 tree (Bassia latifolia), and they are also very partial 

 to sugar-cane, and to both wild and cultivated fruits. 



The sloth bear is moreover insectivorous in his 

 habits, and in jungles frequented by him stones 

 will be found upturned, and white ants' nests dug 

 up, in his search for larvae and grubs of sorts. He 

 is said to occasionally eat carrion, but this is foreign 

 to his usual habits. 



In parts of Assam, where bears are numerous, 

 natives are often attacked by them without any 

 provocation ; and, as the bear always strikes at 

 the face, they are frequently horribly disfigured 

 by these animals. 



Sterndale says : "There is frequently an element 

 of comicality in most bear hunts, as well as a 

 considerable spice of danger ; for, though some 

 people may pooh-pooh this, I know that a she-bear 

 with cubs is no despicable antagonist. Otherwise 

 the male is more anxious to get away, than ta 

 provoke an attack." 



I can only say that the first bear which I ever 

 saw in the jungle an old male allowed his angry 

 passions to get the better of his prudence. We 



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