I 



Bear Traits 



bear's head and neck tower when he stands 

 erect, and how proportionately low his heart 

 and lungs sink down. Watch one in Central 

 Park some time and see. I feel sure the first 

 bear did not live long after the shot, and even 

 as it was, with a good dog we should undoubt- 

 edly have recovered her. But good bear dogs 

 are scarce, and dog or no dog, either of those 

 bears could have eaten me up, had it so 

 chosen. Moreover, I was sufficiently acquaint- 

 ed with my own power, to know that I could 

 not count regularly on doing better shooting 

 than I had done in my first shot at the first 

 bear. 



I had used the .45-90 Winchester for five 

 years, and was fully sensible of its accuracy, 

 flatness, and other good features. But I de- 

 cided to discard it for bait hunting. Every 

 one who has depended on its solid hardened 

 bullet has seen game go good distances even 

 when fatally hit, and the subject of its merits 

 and demerits, as compared with a hollow point 

 or soft lead bullet, has been so thoroughly 

 thrashed out of late that it is superfluous now 

 to go through it. 



Suffice to say, that I decided in future to 



use a special gun for bait shooting, of which 



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