BLACK BEAE. 167 



their characteristic dances. They mimicked the actions 

 of the Bear, and wore masks of Bear-scalps. 



The Black Bear is widely distributed in North America. 

 It inhabits Alaska, the whole of the Dominion of Canada, 

 including Labrador, Newfoundland, and Nova Scotia. 

 It is also found in many of the United States, viz., 

 Maine, Minnesota, Montana, Oregon, Washington, 

 California, Texas, South Carolina, and Florida. 



The best skins come from Canada. Those from Alaska 

 are good, but slightly coarser. The Columbian skins 

 are coarser in the pelt, which is often painted red by 

 the Indians. The Southern are the blackest, but are 

 very greasy, and of poor quality. 



The colour is black, with a rich brown ground from 

 some districts, but from others the under fur is darker. 

 A white spot is often found on the chest, and it is some- 

 times in the shape of a crescent. The tail is short, 

 about 3 inches long ; the ears are short, black, and 

 covered with thick short hair ; the nose is pointed and 

 brown, which is the general colour of the lower half of 

 the face ; the leather is thin, especially in the cubs and 

 yearlings ; in the Southern skins, however, the pelt is 

 thick, coarse, and harsh. Blue examples are rare, three 

 or four appearing at times in the annual sales. Black 

 animals with white hairs (silvery) are more common. 

 Albinos and Brown will be treated in the following 

 article. It is very remarkable that in the island of 

 Anticosti the Black Bear has a white muzzle and white 

 ears tipped with black. There is no hump of fur in 

 this Bear, neither does it associate with the Grizzly. 

 The female Bear has four teats. 



This fur is very valuable, it is fine to the touch, and 

 the hair ranges from 1 to 4 inches in length. The best 

 skins fetch ^612. This quality is generally purchased 



