174 DIVISION I. VERTEBRAL ANIMALS. — CLASS I. MAMMALIA. 



Colonido, was rrniiig up t!ic cnmin, lie came across a grizzly lipar. Upon 

 approarliiug- uilliin a frw yards, lie tired, wiieii tlie hear fell. ^,'^lt being well 

 aeijuainted willi the nature of hears, young Vanee advanced for the purpose 

 of despatching him ; Ijut the bear, (|uletly awaiting his approach, arose on his 

 liiiid legs, and struck the gun from his hands at the moment lie was aljout to 

 tire. The bear inniicdiately gave another blow, and tore open the Hesii above 

 Vance's right eye, cutting two severe gashes, and tearing the tlesli from the 

 bone. One nail of tlie bear at the same time caught the nasal bone at its 

 root, and tore a portion of it away, and passing along, tore out the left eye. 

 The bear then commenced hugging, at the same time chewing and lacerating 

 iiim in a fearful manner. lie dislocated his wrist, broke his forearm, and 

 tore the flesh from Ijoth hands. He also bit his left knee severely, and cut 

 a frightfid gash across the Heshy portion of the limb above, bit througk the 

 fleshy [)art below the knee, and tore both limbs fi'oni the knee down to the 

 ankle, and lay down on the young man. After both remaining ipiict for 

 some time, the bear moved ofl', and Vance ventured to get up and make his 

 escape." 



]n the following incident the bear met with a diftcrcnt sort of foe, and a 

 difl'ercnt fate : — 



" .Some years since, when the western ]iart of New York was in a state of 

 nature, and wolves and bears w'ere not afraid of being seen, some enterpris- 

 ing pilgrim had ercctcil and put in operation a saw-mill, on the banks of the 

 (icnescc. One day, as be was sitting on the log, eating his bread and cheese, 

 a large, black liear came i'rom the woods towards the mill. The man, leaving 

 his hmcheon on the log, made a spring, and seated himself on a beam above; 

 when tlic licar, mounting the log, sat down with his I'ump to\vards the saw, 

 which was in operati(in, and connnenccd satisfying his appetite on the man's 

 dinner. After a little while the saw progressed enough to interfere with the 

 hair on Inuin's Ijack, and lie hitched along a little, and kept on eating. 

 Again tlie saw came up, and scratched a little flesh. The bear then whirled 

 about, and, throwing his paws around the saw, held on, till he was mangled 

 ihi-ough and through, when he rolled off, fell through into the Hood, and bled 

 to death." 



In a state of domestication the bear shows a considerable degree of intelli- 

 gence and reasoning power. In Wermeland, ]\Ir. Lloyd tells us, large 

 luunbers of pr;i.sants kee[) Ijears, which walk aijout as f uniliarly and harmlessly 

 as the house dog. ''I heard of one," he says, "that was so tame, that his 

 master, a peasant, used occasionally to cause him to stand at the back of his 

 sledge wiien on a journey ; l)Ut the fellow kept so good a Ijalance, that it was 

 next to impossible to u[isct him. AMien tlie vchi(;le went on one side, Bruin 

 threw his weight tlie other way, and cicc uvrsu. One day, however, the 



