Bear Traits 



of that morning. There was no bear under 

 the bushes, and whatever blood she had left 

 on her trail had long since been washed away. 

 We quartered over the surrounding woods, 

 foot by foot, for five or six hours. Then I 

 sent the men home, and continued it till after- 

 noon. After I had got something to eat and 

 some dry clothes, I found it impossible to stay 

 in camp, and decided to watch the bait again 

 that evening. 



Just before sunset I struck into the dry 

 brook-bed below the watch point, and fol- 

 lowed it carefully down to the bend. Look- 

 ing around it, I again saw two grizzlies with 

 their heads down at the goat's carcass evi- 

 dently the same two bears that had escaped 

 the night before. Setting my teeth, I deter- 

 mined to take no more chances with a .45-90 

 at a bear's body, but to rest my rifle over the 

 brush, and make a steady shot for the head. 

 The brush pile was about ten feet away. 

 Dropping on hands and knees I crawled to 

 it, and then cautiously rose up. They could 

 not have seen me, but some whirl of air had 

 evidently given them my scent, for they were 

 both moving across the meadow toward the 

 place where they had left it before. One was 



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