Highlands of Asturias 297 
cattle) comes crashing through the brushwood, breaking down all obstacles, 
and giving ample notice by the noise of his advance. If wounded he will 
attack the aggressor; but otherwise bears only become dangerous when 
they have young or are hurt in some way. The picturesque nature of 
these mountain-forests lends a further fascination to the chase of the 
bear in Asturias. From twenty to thirty bears are killed here every year. 
The following quaint paragraphs we extract from Spanish 
newspapers :— 
FicHT wirh A Bear.—lIn the mountains of the Province of Lerida 
(Catalonia) a bear last week attacked and overpowered a muleteer, intend- 
ing to devour him. A shepherd who happened to be in the neighbour- 
hood, though at some little distance, witnessed the occurrence. Hastening 
with his utmost speed to the spot, he threw himself between the bear 
and its victim; and after a prolonged and strenuous combat (lucha larga 
y esforzada), the shepherd succeeded with his lance (garrocha) in killing 
the savage beast (jiera). 
In his gratitude, the muleteer desired to present the shepherd with 
the best horse of his cavalcade, but this the latter declined.— November 
24, 1907. 
Incursion oF a BEar.—lIn the outskirts of the village of Pardmo 
in the Province of Oviedo (Asturias) there has within the last few 
days made its presence felt an immense bear which continued to 
execute terrible destruction among the cattle belonging to the villagers. 
Fortunately the parish-priest, who is an expert shot, succeeded in killing 
the depredator. It weighed 140 kilograms (= 300 Ibs.)—April 25, 
1908. [Two others are recorded to weigh 400 and 440 lbs.] 
CHASE OF A SHE-BEAR.—SaANTANDER, February 1909. From Molledo 
an assemblage of the local peasantry, mustered for the purpose, and 
bearing every kind of weapon, sallied forth, to give battle to a bear which 
for some weeks had been working havoc among their flocks and herds. 
After traversing the mountains in all directions without result, they were 
already returning, dead-beat and disappointed, towards their village, when 
they suddenly descried the bear standing in the entrance to a cave. On 
observing the presence of hunters, the animal disappeared within. A 
shepherd named Melchor Martinez at once followed, penetrating the in- 
terior of the cavern which extends far into the mountain-side. Presently 
on indistinctly perceiving (divisando) the beast, Melchor gave it a shot— 
flying out himself with hair all standing on end (enerespados) at the 
roaring of the wild beast (fiera). Melchor, nevertheless, at once entered 
the den again and fired a second shot—jumping out immediately there- 
after. After a short interval, the roars of the fera within having ceased, 
the hunters in a body entered the cavern and found an enormous she-bear 
lying dead, together with four young, alive, which they carried away. 
(Bravo, Melchor Martinez!) 
