THE POLAR BEAR. 109 



Mutual affection between the dam and cubs. 



&c. and sometimes eat various kinds of berries, 

 which happen to fall in their way. During sum- 

 mer, they reside chiefly on the ice-islands; and 

 frequently pass from one to another. Mr. Bewick 

 asserts, that they are capable of swimming to the 

 distance of six or seven leagues ; but Buffon says, 

 they never swim more than a league at a time; 

 that in Norway they are followed in small boats, 

 and are soon fatigued; that also they sometimes 

 dive, but this is only for a few seconds; and lest 

 they should be drowned, they suffer themselves 

 to be killed on the surface of the water. When 

 the inasses of ice are detached by strong winds 

 or currents, the bears allow themselves to be car- 

 ried along with them ; and as they cannot regain 

 the land, nor abandon the ice on which they are 

 embarked, they often perish in the open sea. 



The Polar bear brings forth two young at a 

 time, and the affection subsisting between these 

 and the parent is so ardent, that they will sooner 

 die than desert each other in distress. The fol- 

 lowing anecdote will afford sufficient proof of 

 the veracity of this assertion. t( While the Car- 

 case frigate, which went out some years ago to 

 make discoveries towards the North Pole, was 

 locked in the ice, early one morning, the man at 

 the mast-head gave notice that three bears were 

 making their way over the Frozen Ocean, and 

 were approaching very fast towards the ship. 

 They had, no doubt, been invited by the scent 

 of some blubber of a sea-horse that the crew had 



