BG fC K 2 BEAR, 
the fnow, and fuffer fome to drop at the mouth, to conceal their re- 
treat. 
The naturalift’s poet, with great truth and beauty, defcribes the 
retreat of this animal in the frozen climate of the north : 
There through the piny foreft half abforpt, 
Rough tenant of thofe ‘fhades, the fhapelefs Bear, 
With dangling ice all horrid, ftalks forlorn ; 
Slow pac’d, and fourer as the ftorms increafe, 
He makes his bed beneath th’ inclement drift, 
And with ftern patience, {corning weak complaint, 
Hardens his heart againf affailing want. 
‘Thofe of the fouthern parts dwell in the hollows of antient trees. 
The hunter difcovers them by ftriking with an ax the tree he fufpects 
they are lodged in, then fuddenly conceals himfelf. The Bear is 
immediately rouzed, looks out of the hollow to learn the caufe of 
the alarm ; feeing none, finks again into repofe*. The hunter then 
forces him out, by flinging in fired.reeds; and fhoots him while he 
defcends the body ef the tree, which, notwithftanding his aukward 
appearance, he does with great agility; nor is he lefs nimble in 
afcending the tops of the higheft trees in fearch of berries and 
fruits. 
The long time which thefe animals fubfift without food is amaz- 
ing. They will continue in their retreat for fix weeks without the left 
provifion, remaining either afleep or totally inactive. It is pretend- 
ed that they live by fucking their paws; but that is a vulgar error. 
The faét is, they retire immediately after autumn, when they have 
fattened themfelves to an exceflive degree by the abundance of 
the fruits which they find at that feafon. This enables ani- 
mals, which perfpire very little in a ftate of reft, to endure an abfti- 
nence of uncommon Jength. But when this internal fupport is ex- 
haufted, and they begin to feel the call of hunger, on the approach of 
the fevere feafon, they quit their dens in fearch of food. Multitudes — 
* Du Prats, ii, 61. 
3 then 
$9 
