246 CLASS MAMMALIA. 



naturalists on the French expedition ever saw any Bears in 

 Egypt. 



Poncet says that one of his Mules was wounded in Nubia 

 by a Bear. But Bruce thinks that he has confounded 

 the Arabic word Dubbah, which signifies a hyaena, with 

 Dubb, which means a Bear. The last-mentioned traveller 

 assures us positively that there are no Bears in any part of 

 Africa. Dapper says that there are Bears in Congo ; but 

 he is a compiler whose authority is not strengthened by the 

 testimony of any traveller. It seems tolerably certain that 

 no one has ever seen a Bear in the south of Africa. 



There should be Bears in South America, if we are to 

 attach any credit to the first describers of that country. 

 Acosta and Garcilasso place them in Peru. But as more 

 recent naturalists have seen none there, it is probable that 

 the animal taken by those writers for the Bear was no other 

 than the large Ant-eater. 



The next division of the Plantigrades that come under no- 

 tice, belong to the genus Racoon (Procyon.^) They have 

 three pointed, distinct, anterior cheek-teeth, and three pos- 

 terior, which are flattened ; the whole forming a continued 

 series quite different from that of the Ursus, in which the 

 first three are insignificant, and may be almost called deci- 

 duous. They differ also from the Bears in having a long 

 tail, and all the teats are ventral, while in the genus Ursus 

 there are two pectoral and four ventral teats. In running, 

 the Racoons do not bring the sole into complete contact 

 with the ground, but they do so when standing. 



The first species, of which we shall now speak, is the 

 Common Racoon {Ursus Lotor, L.) 



One of those phenomena which are most worthy of the 

 attention of the naturalist, and most calculated to lead us 

 to appreciate the infinite power of the Creator, consists in 



