Bear Hunting on the Alaska Peninsula 



slowly and are most cautious, for frequently when 

 a bear is wounded, if he thinks that he is being pur- 

 sued, he will swing around on his own trail and 

 spring out from the side upon the hunters. 



The next day I started with my two natives to 

 visit a meadow well up the bay. 



As we had but a day or two left before the 

 schooner would come to take us away, we headed 

 in the only direction in which the wind was favor- 

 able. We left camp about three o'clock in the 

 afternoon, following the shore with the wind quar- 

 tering in our faces. We had gone but a mile from 

 camp when I caught an indistinct outline of a bear 

 feeding on the grass at the edge of the timber, 

 about 125 yards away. I quickly fired, missing 

 through sheer carelessness. 



At the report the bear jumped sideways, unable 

 to locate the sound, and my next bullet struck just 

 above his tail and ranged forward into the lungs. 

 Fedor now fired, missing, while I ran up with 

 Nikolai, firing another shot as I ran, which 

 knocked the bear over. Stereke savagely attacked 

 the bear, biting and shaking him, and seeing that 

 he was breathing his last, I refrained from firing 

 again, as the skin was excellent. 



This bear had had an encounter with a porcu- 

 pine. One of his paws was filled with quills, and 



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