56 HUNTING AND FISHING IN FLORIDA. 
hundred pounds. We extemporized a harness with a rope and some 
straps and Bob succeeded in dragging her out to the beach. The 
skull of this bear is now in the National Museum. 
TuEspAy, JAN. 2, 1894: Trip and one of the other dogs jumped 
a bear in a hummock, and I had a snap shot at him as he crossed a 
narrow strip of open ground, and think I wounded him slightly. 
He ran for a mile or more and then stopped in a thick bit of high 
palmetto. The day was hot and it was hard work following on 
foot through the thick scrub, and when I reached the place where 
the bear was fighting the dogs I was completely exhausted, and 
instead of going in at once I waited a moment or two to recover my 
breath. As I stood, gasping and dizzy, the bear started off again, 
and I had a good view of him as he jumped a fallen tree, and should 
have hit him, but my hand was too unsteady, and I believe I made a 
clean miss. In getting over the tree he rested his fore feet and then 
his hind feet on it, as a dog does going over a wall. After a few 
moments’ rest I pushed my way through the scrub to the beach, 
where I found Pat leading Bob. Hastily mounting, I galloped south 
for a couple of miles and heard the dogs ‘‘ baying ” in a thick piece of 
very high palmetto scrub, filled with small, dead oak trees which had 
evidently been killed by fire. The bushes were so high and thick I 
could not see the bear, but the dogs were close to me, and I knew they 
were close to the bear. I cheered on the dogs, hoping the bear 
would show himself, and he dzd. There was a rush and out came Trip 
and Brown, and the next instant I caught a glimpse of a black object 
directly under my horse’s nose. I tried to shoot, but a branch caught 
my arm, and Bob’s sudden start disconcerted me, and the next instant 
the bear had disappeared. I followed as long as I could hear the 
dogs ; but I soon lost them, and after riding about for an hour or 
more I gave it up and rode back to camp, where I found two of the 
dogs. Trip and Brown did not get back until late in the evening. 
Turespay, Aprit 3, 1894: The dogs found the fresh trail of a 
small bear and ‘* jumped” him near a small creek. He ran directly 
south and I never saw or heard the dogs after the first fifteen min- 
utes. Several hours later they all came back except Tige and 
