MAMMALS OF NORTHERN CANADA 217 



post. He informed us that as soon as the bear perceived 

 him, it at once advanced toward him, and when at a few 

 yards distance, he fired at and killed it. On the 8th of the 

 same month an Eskimo secured a large male on the east side 

 of the Lower Anderson, about 50 miles north of the fort. 

 The first shot struck and broke one of its hind legs, which 

 greatly angered the bear, which fiercely pursued its assailant ; 

 but a second ball fortunately laid it low in rather close prox- 

 imity to his person. Again, on June 30, 1863, a member 

 of our Indian collecting party succeeded in killing a very 

 large male on the shores of Franklin Bay. From a high 

 and narrow shelving ridge near the head of a deep ravine, 

 he observed the bear at some distance below, and in order 

 to attract its attention he began to whistle and throw stones 

 at it, much to master bruin's disgust, and it immediately 

 started to ascend to where the Indian from his chosen vant- 

 age ground stood prepared to receive it. After permitting 

 it to approach within 10 or 12 feet he fired at and mortally 

 wounded it, but to make his work sure he at once rushed 

 out and drove his knife to the hilt in the bear's heart. The 

 skin and complete skeleton of this animal were secured and 

 forwarded the following summer to the Smithsonian Insti- 

 tution at Washington. About three weeks previous to our 

 arrival at Franklin Bay, in the end of June, 1864,. two 

 Eskimo hunters observed a brown bear at some distance, and 

 being, for them, well armed, they went forward to meet it 

 and did their best to annoy it by uttering very loud and 

 shrill cries. They made a stop, however, at a driftwood 

 stand, shortly before constructed by them for the purpose 

 of shooting therefrom at passing ducks, geese, and swans, 

 and there prepared for action. One of them carried a Hud- 

 son's Bay single-barrelled flintlock gun, and the other had a 

 spear formed by firmly attaching a long knife of Eskimo 

 make to the end of a somewhat slender pole about 6 feet in 

 lenigth. When the bear had closely approached them, it was 

 shot and severely wounded, which, of course, made it per- 



