268 SHORT STALKS 



something wliicli miglit be bear's fur, and, after keeping it 

 in view some time, it moved, and, soon after, the bear 

 showed himself once more in the open. He was now not 

 more than two hundred yards from us, on a ridge similar 

 to the one where we ourselves lay, and lictween us there 

 was another and rather lower ridge, divided from us and 

 from him by deep and narrow rocky gullies. While we 

 were considering our next step, he drew towards us and 

 descended into the second ravine and out of our sight. 

 We immediately drew to the edge of the first ravine whence 

 we could command the intervening ridge, which we ex- 

 pected him to cross. Once we heard him crashing through 

 Ijushes, and then for minutes which seemed ages we neither 

 heard nor saw anything, till I began to fear that he had 

 crossed, some way above or below, and out of our sight ; for 

 we could not command more than about a hundred and fifty 

 yards up or down the slope. I was afraid to move on, lest 

 he should come over upon us, while we were struggling 

 among the scrub and rocks of the ravine immediately 

 below us. Anxiously we deljated the question and decided 

 to give him only two minutes more before we went to seek 

 liim ; l)ut before that time had expired we saw the gray 

 top of his head, as he moved straight towards us Avitli that 

 swaying motion peculiar to the animal — his head close to 

 the ground, and now and again sucking up great moutli- 

 fuls of berries on either side of him. He was not more 

 than sixty yards off ; I got my bead upon him and kept it 

 there as lono- as he moved forward towards us. At lenotli, 

 some l)unch of fruit more tempting than the rest caused 

 him to turn broadside, with his head down the hill, 

 and I let him have it behind the shoulder. It was a 



