76 



NORTH AMERICA 



travelers are of opinion, that they have seen as many as 8 or 10,000 in the same herd, but this la 

 merely a conjecture. At night it is impossible for persons to sleep near them who are unaccustom- 

 ed to their noise, which, from the incessant lowing and roaring of the bulls is said very much to 

 resemble distant thunder. Although frequent battles take place'between the bulls, as among domes- 

 tic cattle, the habits of the bison are peaceful and inoffensive, seldom or never offering to attack 

 man or other animals, unless outraged in the first instance." 



The Musk Ox (Bos Moschatus) inhabits the barren lands of North America, lying to the 



northward of 60^. He is 

 found west of the Rocky 

 Mountains, and on the islands 

 as far north as Melville Island. 

 He also frequents the northern 

 shore of Hudson's Bay. The 

 country inhabited by the musk 

 ox is mostly rocky and desti- 

 tute of wood, except on the 

 banks of large rivers, which 

 are generally more or less 

 thickly clothed with wood. 

 His food is similar to that of 

 the caribou ; grass at one sea- 

 son, and lichen at the other. 

 When the animal is fat, its 

 flesh is well tasted, and resem- 

 bles that of the caribou, ex- 

 Musk Or. cept that at times it is high- 



ly flavored with musk. The 



VTool resembles that of the bison, and would no doubt be highly useful if it could be procured 

 in sufficient quantity. The musk ox is much hunted by the Es-quimaux and Indian tribes. 

 The JVhite or Polar Bear ( Ursus Maritimus) is found in all the northern parts of America, 



Europe, and Asia ; and it is found in Amer- 

 ica as far south as Labrador and Hudson's 

 Bay. His principal residence is on fields 

 of ice, with which he frequently floats a 

 great distance from the land. These crea- 

 tures feed principally on animal substances, 

 and, as they^ swim and dive well, they hunt 

 seals and other marine animals with great 

 success. They feed hkewise on land ani- 

 mals, birds, and eggs, nor do they disdain 

 to prey on carrion, or, in the absence of 

 these, to seek the shore in quest of berries 

 and roots. They scent their prey from a 

 great distance. Captain Lyon affirms, that 

 they not only swim with rapidity, but are 

 capable of making long springs in the water. 

 Their pace on land has been described as 

 "a kind of shuffle,, as quick as the sharp 

 gallop of a horse." They are not known 

 to travel far inland. The white bear has prodigious strength, and he often attacks the sailors 

 who visit the Arctic seas. 



The Broivn Bear ( Ursiis Arctos) , which inhabits the barren lands stretching on the north and 

 east of Slave Lake to the Arctic Ocean, feeds on fish, berries, and small quadrupeds, and is 

 smaller and less fierce than the preceding. 



'I'ho Black Bear (Ursus Americanus) is spread over nearly the whole of North America, 

 and occurs in the thinly settled regions of the United States. Its fur is long, black, and shining ; 

 t feeds on roots, berries, insects, birds, fish, and small quadrupeds, and is fond of maize and 

 aoney, and being an expert climber, often ascends trees to plunder the hoards of the wild bee 



male Bear. 



