BEARS. 13 



but the brutes saw him moving, and headed straight up to 

 me. One was slightly larger than the other, and I took it 

 first, but although the bullet hit there was no effect 

 apparent beyond the usual woolling of its comrade, which 

 returned the compliment very spiritedly, and a rough-and- 

 tumble fight ensued. This was followed by a shot from 

 Poulton, who was some distance off, and a right and left 

 from me, which led to further furious onslaughts between 

 the brutes, during which I distributed my leaden favours 

 with great impartiality into the middle of the struggling 

 mass, now within thirty yards. At last the big bear 

 discerned the common enemy, and galloping up to within 

 a few yards, rose on her hind legs and advanced with out- 

 stretched arms to embrace me, at a moment when a 

 cartridge case in my pin-fire rifle became jammed in the 

 loader's hands, but I had just time to insert one cartridge 

 and fire at the horse-shoe, the muzzle almost touching her 

 chest, a fleeting hope passing through my mind that she 

 would not knock it aside with her paws. Over she rolled 

 not quite dead, but, as I afterwards found, shot through 

 the lungs. To strike the heart aim should be taken under 

 the horse -shoe mark when the bear is in this position. 

 During this scrimmage the natives had shouted out 

 "the bears have killed the sahib" (meaning me), and 

 Poulton and Manley now arrived breathless, and we 

 polished off the second bear without difficulty, it being 

 badly wounded and hardly able to walk. 



The villagers were in great delight. A triumphal 

 procession was formed ; the bears were tied on a cart 

 and taken to camp, headed by a band of horns and 

 tom-toms, and surrounded by a large crowd singing and 

 dancing. They did not arrive till nearly midnight, having 

 been exhibited at all villages near the homeward route. 



