

!,;■_. V ERTEBRATA. 



The man -w 1 1 • > was rescued had his ami fractured, and was otherwise severely bitten, but finally 

 recovered. I have Been Bourasso, and can add thai tli«' account which he gives is Cully credited 

 by the traders resident in thai pari of the country, who arc best qualified to judge of its truth 

 from their knowledge of the parties. 



•• 1 bave been told thai there is a man now living in the neighborhood of Edmonton House, 

 who was attacked l>v a grizzh bear, which sprang ou1 of a thicket, and with one stroke of its 

 paw completely Bcalped him, laying bare the skull, and bringing the akin of the forehead down 

 over the eyes. Assistance coming up, the bear made off without doing him further injury; but 

 the Bcalp no1 being replaced, the poor man has lost his sight, although he thinks his eyes are 

 uninjured, 



•■ \|r. Drummond, in his excursions over the Rocky Mountains, Lad frequent opportunities of 

 rving the manners of the grizzly bears, and it often happened that in turning the point of a 

 rock or sharp angle of a valley he came suddenly upon one or more of them. On such occasions 

 they reared on their hind-legs, and made a loud noise like a person breathing quick, but much 

 hardier. Be kepi bis ground, without attempting to molest them ; and they on their part, after 

 attentively regarding him for some time, generally wheeled round and galloped off; though, 

 from their known disposition, there is little doubt but be would have been torn in pieces had he 

 lost his presence ^f mind and attempted to fly. When he discovered them from a distance, he 

 generally frightened them a\\a\ by beating on a large tin-box in which he carried bis specimens 

 of plant-. He never saw more than four together, and two of these he supposes to have been 

 cub-; he more often mel them singly, or in pairs. lie was only once attacked, and then by a 

 female for the purpose of allowing her cubs to escape. His gun on this occasion missed fire, but 

 he kept her at bay with the stock of it until some gentlemen of the Hudson's Bay Company, 

 with whom he was traveling at the time, came up and drove her off. 



" In the latter end of June, IS-.MJ, he observed a male caressing a female, and soon afterward 

 lhe\ both came toward him, but whether accidentally or for the purpose of attacking him, be was 

 uncertain. He ascended a tree, and as the female drew near, fired at and mortally wounded her. 

 She uttered a few loud screams, which threw the male into a furious rage, and he reared up 

 againsl the trunk of the tree in which Mr. I hummond was seated, but never attempted to ascend 

 it. The female in the mean while, retiring to a short distance, lay down, and as the male was 

 proceeding to join her, Mr. Drummond shot him also. From the size of their teeth and claws, 

 he judged them to be about four years old.'' 



The following account of the manner of bunting the grizzly bear in California is alike curious 

 and interesting. It must be understood that a bear has been previously baited, and a party of 

 some half dozen friends jn\ ited to the sport : 



"Every thing being prepared, men, horses, saddles, and lassoes, they all start at sunset or 

 ■nisk. and keep carefully to windward of the bait, which must be placed on a piece of ground 

 clear from rocks, trees, or bushes, and within about eight hundred yards of one of these, for 

 the purpose of hiding themselves, that the bear may not see them when he is approaching the 

 bait. A horse that has been catching bears three or four times will keep a strict watch for 



• approach of the bear at the bait, and will invariably let the rider know — not by any noisy 

 motion, hut by deep suppressed Bighs, and pricking up his ears. 



'Whenever one or more of the horses do this, the men who have been lying by on foot, 

 mount as quietly as possible, and when all are reaily with their lassoes in their hands, read) to 

 swing, they pul spurs to their horses, which at that moment is very little needed, that noble 

 animal appearing to all intents and purposes to be as anxious as his rider to capture the savage 

 animaL The horse, being swifter than the bear, if the plan has been well laid, is sure to 

 overtake him before he can gel to any bush. The foremost rider throws his lasso, and seldom 

 fails of catching the bear, either by the neck or around the body or one of its legs. Should lie 

 miss, there are several more close at his beds t<> throw their lassoes. As soon as the bear finds 

 himself fast, he rears and growls, taking hold of the lasso with his two fore-paws. At this cri-is. 

 the lass,, muBl always be kept tight; ifn.it, the bear will extricate himself immediately. 



N • comes in play the sagacity of the noblest of animals. The horse, from the very moment 



