xviii INTRODUCTION. 
a canoe, we obferved numbers of deer and bears, 
near the banks, and on the i Hands of the river ; 
the bears were feeding on the fruit of the dwarf 
creeping Chamssrops ; (this fruit is of the form and x 
fize of elites, and is delicious and nourifhing food :) 
we faw eleven bears in the courfe of the day, they 
feemed no way furprifed or affrighted at the fight 
•of us. In the evening, my hunter, who was an 
excellent markfman, laid that he would moot one 
of them, for the fake of the fkin and oil, for we 
had plenty and variety of provisions in our bark. 
We accordingly, on fight of two of them, planned 
our approaches as artfully as poffible, by croffing 
over to the oppofite more, in order to get under 
cover of a fmall illand ; this we caurioufly coafted 
round, to a point, which we apprehended would 
take us within mot of the bears -> but here finding 
ourfelves at too great a diftance from them, and 
difcovering that we muff openly mow ourfelves, we 
had no other alternative to effect our purpofe, but 
making oblique approaches. We gained gradually 
on our prey by this artifice, without their noticing 
us : finding ourfelves near enough, the hunter fired, 
and laid the largeft dead on the fpot where me flood ; 
when prefently the other, not feeming the leaf! 
moved at the report of our piece, approached the 
dead body, fmelled, and pawed it, and appearing 
in agony, fell to weeping and looking upwards, 
then towards us, and cried out like a child. Whilfl 
our boat approached very near, the hunter was 
loading his rifle in order to moot the furvivor, 
which was a young cub, and the flain fuppofed to be 
the dam. The continual cries of this aiilicled child, 
bereft of its parent, affe&ed me very fenfibly ; I 
was moved with companion, and charging myfelf 
as if accelfary to what now appeared to be a cruel 
murder, endeavoured to prevail on the hunter to 
fave 
