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contrary, they take to flight at the firft fight of one, 

 and a dog will drive them a great way before him ; 

 if therefore they are every where fuch as they are in 

 Canada, one might eafily anfwer the queftion of 

 M. Defpreaux, that the bear dreads the traveller, 

 and not the traveller the bear. The bear is in rut 

 in the month of July ; he then grows fo lean, and 

 his flefh of fo fickly and difagreeable a reliih, that 

 even the Indians, who have not the mo ft delicate fto- 

 machs, and who often eat fuch things as would 

 make an European fhudder, will hardly touch it. 

 Who could imagine that an animal of this nature, 

 and of fo unlovely an appearance, mould grow 

 leaner in one month by the belle pajjion^ than after 

 an abftinence of fix ! It is not fo furprifing he 

 mould be at this feafon fo fierce, and in fo ill an 

 humour, that it mould be dangerous to meet him. 

 This is the effect of jealoufy. 



This feafon once over, he recovers his former 

 embompoint, and to which nothing more contributes, 

 than the fruits he finds every where in the woods, 

 and of which he is extreme greedy. Fie is parti- 

 cularly fond of grapes, and as all the forefts are full 

 of vines which rife to the tops of the highefl trees, 

 he makes no difficulty of climbing up in queft of 

 them. But mould an hunter difcover him, his 

 toothfomnefs would coft him dear. After having 

 thus fed a good while on fruits, his flefh becomes 

 exceedingly delicious, and continues fo till the 

 fpring. It is, however, conftantly attended with 

 one very great fault, that of being too oily, fo thac 

 except great moderation is ufed in eating it, it cer- 

 tainly occafions a dyfentery. It is, moreover, very 

 nourifliing, and a bear's cub is at leaft nothing in- 

 ferior to lamb* 



I for. 



