312 



THE BARA SING. 



much vexed, I went back and took up my night's quarters 

 at the old wooden hut. From enquiry there appeared 

 to be no chance of finding another bara sing ; but there 

 were numbers of bears, so I resolved to try and compass 

 the destruction of some of those animals in the morning. 

 As I sat cogitating over the fire, a woodcock came flitting 

 about, uttering his peculiar grating croak. There was 

 a plashy rivulet amid the rank vegetation just below us, 

 which was a likely haunt for this long-billed visitor. 



8th October. Though early astir, it was deemed useless 

 to hunt before the sun had sufficiently displayed his power 

 to warm the valley, and by melting the hoar frost rendered 

 the herbage suitable for Bruin's early repast. So I first 

 had breakfast, and then took my way up a narrow well- 

 timbered valley in which the shepherd had, a few days 

 since, viewed sixteen bears. There were plenty of tracks 

 now, but only one bear seen far up on the hill -side. 

 Having crossed much snow, we ascended a steep tortuous 

 gorge which brought us to another long valley, where 

 again signs of bears were abundant. After a considerable 

 pause I descried one far up the hill-side. We watched 

 him till he apparently retired to snooze. "We then had 

 to make a tremendous stiff ascent, terminating in a wall- 

 like rock, up the face of which we had to pull ourselves 

 by the bushes growing on the surface, hand over hand. 

 At last we got over the spot we expected to find Bruin 

 in, but fancying him gone began to talk, when a fierce 

 growl answered us. I desired Phuttoo to throw a stone 

 into the thicket, which done, out bolted Bruin, and 

 growling savagely took up a grassy opening, leading 

 straight to us. He was half covered by the long grass. 

 I took a snap shot, and hit him hard, when, yelling out 

 his extreme dissatisfaction, he made off down hill as fast 

 as he could scuttle, and escaped. 



