A Cattle-killing Bear 



him out. As for swine, they dread bears 

 more than anything else. A drove of 

 half -wild swine will make head against a 

 wolf or panther; but the bear scatters 

 them in a panic. This feat is entire- 

 ly justifiable, for a bear has a peculiar 

 knack in knocking down a hog, and then 

 literally eating him alive, in spite of his 

 fearful squealing. 



Every now and then bears take to kill- 

 ing cattle regularly. Sometimes the crim- 

 inal is a female with cubs ; sometimes an 

 old male in spring, when he is lean, and has 

 the flesh hunger upon him. But on one 

 occasion a very large and cunning bear, 

 some twenty-five miles below my ranch, 

 took to cattle-killing early in the sum- 11 * 

 mer, and continued it through the fall/3; 

 He made his home in a very densely |^j 

 wooded bottom; but he wandered far 

 and wide, and I have myself frequently^' 

 seen his great, half - human footprints 

 3 33 



