THE BLACK BEAR. 9 



they have propitiated the whole race of bears by certain 

 speeches and ceremonies, and when the animal is slain 

 they treat it with the utmost respect, speak of it as a 

 relation, offer it a pipe to smoke, and seldom fail to make 

 a speech in exculpation of the act of violence they have 

 committed in slaying it, although the hunter at the same 

 time glories in his prowess. This veneration for the 

 bear seems to have arisen from the ability and pertinacity 

 with which it defends itself; and it is interesting to 

 observe in how similar a manner the same feeling mani- 

 fests itself in tribes speaking diverse languages, and 

 widely separated from each other by geographical posi- 

 tion." 



Scarcity of food sometimes compels it to migrate 

 from one part of the country to another, and even to 

 venture into populated neighbourhoods. I saw one 

 brought in to Niagara, which had been killed within a 

 mile or two of the town, but it was in very poor condition, 

 and had evidently got lost in searching after the food 

 which its own forests no longer afforded. 



The Racoon (Procyon lotor) though much more abun- 

 dant in the United States than in Canada, is not unfre- 

 quent in some parts of the country, as in the districts 

 of Argenteuil and Ottawa. 



Not unlike the badger in general appearance, though 

 with longer legs, it has a sharp, pointed nose, short 



