THE LARGE BEARS. 



209 



and then getting up on his hind-legs tries to 

 suftbcate him in his embrace. Only in case 

 of the direst necessity does he use his teeth. 

 A blow with his paw suffices to lay a man 

 at his feet. The people of Siberia, notwith- 



standing his enormous strength, attack him in 



th 



the 



the 



e same way as the Indians lIo the jaouar. 

 1 hey wrap a sheepskin round their left arm 

 and stab the bear with a dagger or cleave 

 his head with a heavy blade at the instant 



tij, 100 — riie Miln m ui < uL J mu Pilm Bl\i ( t ; i 



II II \ j) i-^i 10 



when he stands up. But it requires a strong 

 fellow to carry on that kind of hunt. 



The Black Bear, or Black Baribal ( L 'isiis 

 auicricamis), fig. 105, which attains the length 

 ot about 6^ feet at the most, is a harmless 

 creature compared with his brown cousin. A 

 sort ot good-humour and fondness for gym- 

 nastic exercises on trees appear to be the 

 essential traits in his character. The olossv 

 black bristly hairs of his loose llir are so long 

 that they cover even his toes and tail and 

 give him a terrible appearance, which is not 

 borne out by his behaviour. All young bears 

 have on their breast a more or less light- 

 coloured patch shaped like a half-moon : in 

 the young of the black bear the patch is white 

 or yellow and resembles a neck-shield. In 

 the southern bears this patch persists through 



lite, while in our species it mostly disappears 

 with age. 



The black bear preters the woods, and 

 climbs trom pleasure and not merely from 

 necessity. It otten hides m hollow trees. 

 Almost a strict \'egetarian, it ne\'ertheless 

 attacks animals when hungry, and is not 

 embarrassed in the presence ot herds and 

 llocks, but always tlees trom man. When 

 attacked it deteiids itselt bra\'cl)', and since 

 it possesses great stubbornness and extra- 

 ordinary strength, it becomes dangerous when 

 wounded. It is hunted tor the sake ot its 

 fur and ilesh. In the opinion of the Indians 

 it is the most intelligent animal in creation 

 after the bea\er. It is more easily tamed 

 than our common bear, and it amuses soldiers, 

 nurse-maids, and children to an extraordinary 



27 



