THE GEIZZLY BEAR. 



BY W. S. RAINSFORD, D.D. 



%jfij$ { UCH works on natural history as I have been able to 

 consult, give most inaccurate and misleading ac- 

 counts of the Grizzly Bear; and having captured, 

 hunted, and yarned with a great variety of Western 

 Nimrods who had hunted, or professed to have hunted, 

 persistently, this monarch of all American game animals, I 

 am convinced of the absolute inaccuracy of such lore as 

 they usually supply to the public. I have hope, however, 

 that though this article is of necessity written in haste, 

 it may prove useful to some who are anxious for themselves 

 to make the Grizzly's acquaintance. 



I believe Lewis and Clarke, in their history of their 

 adventurous journey across this continent, in 1802-04, were 

 the first to give to the public an account of the Grizzly Bear. 

 They met him on the upper waters of the Missouri River, 

 and his size, ferocity, and tenacity of life made a great 

 impression on the minds of the explorers. 



There can, I think, be no doubt that the Grizzly is one 

 distinct species in itself, and the habit, among hunters in 

 the West, of speaking as though there were three or four 

 different species of gray Bears, is a mistaken one. Local 

 authorities, in the regions where the Grizzly is found, will 

 tell you that the true Grizzly is rare, while the Silver-tip 

 or the Roach-back are common. But while the Grizzly 

 exhibits great variety of color, there is nothing in the struct- 

 ure or the habits of these different-colored Bears to consti- 

 tute a separate species. 



It can be proved, beyond all manner of reasonable doubt, 

 that all species of Bears found between the Big Horn and 

 the Coast Range Mountains, east and west, and Alaska 



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