406 BEAR-SHOOTING IN TRANSYLVANIA. 
at on the 23rd; this time, however, we did not stand on the 
hillside, but on the main road above. 
I had hardly been a quarter of an hour at my post when I 
heard a bear moving slowly by in front of me, not more 
than twenty yards off. I put up my gun and followed him; 
but though Master “‘ Petz” kept before me like a shadow, 
the foliage was so thick that there was not a hand’s breadth 
of open space, and it would have been impossible to make a 
certain shot. 
For some minutes I lost sight of him, and only heard his 
heavy tread in front of my neighbour; but he soon came back 
again, and now passed before me rather faster; but again it 
was impossible to shoot. However, when he had vanished for 
the second time, I consoled myself with the idea that he would 
end by bolting across the path near my post, though unfor- 
tunately my expectations were not realized. 
Towards the close of the beat a large black bear broke back 
through the beaters, and a small two-year-old crossed the 
path close to Baron §., the second gun on my left, who rolled 
it over with a well-aimed ball through its head. 
We next drove an adjoining cover, where a medium-sized 
bear crossed the little footpath near Baron A. B. It received 
a ball probably in the intestines, and responded to the shot 
with loud growls; but as it was raining rather hard the 
traces of blood, which, after all, were but slight, could not be 
followed long, so we determined to drive the copse-wood which 
was connected with this beat. 
The wounded bear was not encountered, but an uninjured 
and somewhat larger one crossed the path close to my neigh- 
bour Count M., and even halted at the edge of the opposite 
cover; but it was unluckily so directly in a line with the next 
gun that it could not be fired at. We had therefore met 
with four bears on this one day. 
On the 80th the rain fell in torrents, the mist hung low 
