THE BLACK BEAR OF MUSKOKA 123 



bore single-barrel that I brought with me for 

 goose-shooting, charge 8 drachms powder and 

 thirty buckshot one at a distance of fifty- 

 five yards. In bear-shooting even more than 

 in other large-game-shooting, the sportsman 

 should always wait for a broadside shot, and 

 aim 6 in. or 8 in. behind the shoulder, 

 and rather better than half-way up. Ordinary 

 prudence," he adds, " ought to prevent a man 

 from going too close to a crippled or dying bear, 

 or, indeed, to any other powerful animal." 



The fur of bears is at its prime in the spring, 

 and this is the best time to trap them, as they 

 are so hungry that they will devour almost 

 anything eatable. The "deadfall" is perhaps 

 the most common method used for securing 

 bruin, and I visited one of these traps last year 

 near Deer Lake. It consisted of a camp-like 

 shelter over the entrance of which a heavily- 

 weighed log was adjusted, so that when the 

 bear touched the bait it would come down on 

 the small of his back. A couple of good choppers 

 will set and construct half a dozen deadfalls in 

 the course of a day. They are baited with 

 mutton, beef, pork, fish, partridge anything, in 

 fact, so long as it is pretty high and smells. 



