THE BLACK BEAR—COMEDIAN 109 
This place may be dug beneath the base of 
a fallen tree, close to the upturned roots, or 
a rude cave between immense rocks, or a den 
beneath a brush heap. Sometimes he sleeps on 
the bare earth or on the rocks of a cave; but he 
commonly claws into his den a quantity of litter 
or trash, then crawls into this and goes to sleep. 
The time of his retiring for the winter varies 
with the latitude; but usually all bears of the 
same locality retire at about the same date, 
early December being the most common time. 
The grizzly bear is more particular in his 
choice of sleeping quarters and desires better 
protection and concealment than the black bear. 
Bears sometimes come forth in fair weather for 
a few hours and possibly for a few days. I have 
known them to come out briefly in mid-winter. 
With the coming of spring—anywhere be- 
tween the first of March and the middle of 
May—the bears emerge, the males commonly 
two weeks or more earlier than the females. 
Usually they at once journey down the moun- 
tain. They eat little or nothing for the first 
few days. They are likely to break their fast 
with the tender shoots of willow, grass, and 
sprouting roots, or a bite of bark from a pine. 
The cubs are born about mid-winter. Com- 
monly there are three at a birth, but the number 
varies from one to four. At the time of birth 
