THE DIVIDING LINE. 
79 
happen in a far journey, had furnished himself with plasters of strong glue 
spread pretty thick. We laid on these, after making them running hot, 
which, sticking fast, never fell off till the sore was perfectly healed. In the 
mean time it defended the part so well, that the saddle might bear upon it 
without danger of further injury. 
9th. We reckoned ourselves now pretty well out of the latitude of bears, to 
the great grief of most of the company. There was still mast enough left in the 
woods to keep the bears from drawing so near to the inhabitants. They like not 
the neighbourhood of merciless man, till famine compels them to it. They are 
all black in this part of the ^vorld, and so is their dung, but it will make linen 
white, being tolerably good soap, without any preparation but only drying. 
These bears are of a moderate size, whereas within the polar circles they are 
white, and much larger. Those of the southern parts of Muscovy are of a 
russet colour, but among the Samoeids, as well as in Greenland and Nova- 
Zembla, they are as white as the snow they converse with, and by some 
accounts are as large as a moderate ox. The excessive cold of that climate 
sets their appetites so sharp, that they will attack a man without ceremony, 
and even climb up a ship’s side to come at him. They range about and are 
very mischievous all the time the sun is above the horizon, which is something 
more than five months ; but after the sun is set for the rest of the year, they 
retire into holes, or bury themselves under the snow, and sleep away the 
dark season without any sustenance at all. It is pity our beggars and pick- 
pockets could not do the same. 
Our journey this day was above twelve miles, and more than half the way 
terribly hampered with bushes. We tired another horse, which we were 
obliged to leave two miles short of where we encamped, and indeed several 
others were upon the careen almost every step. Now we wanted one of 
those celebrated musicians of antiquity, who, they tell us, among many other 
wonders of their art, could play an air which, by its animating briskness, 
would make a jaded horse caper and curvet much better than any whip, spur, 
or even than swearing. Though I fear our poor beasts were so harassed that 
it would have been beyond the skill of Orpheus himself so much as to make 
them prick up their ears. For proof of the marvellous power of music 
among the ancients, some historians say, that one of those skilful masters 
took upon him to make the great Alexander start up from his seat, and handle 
his javelin, whether he would or not, by the force of a sprightly tune, which 
he knew how to play to him. The king ordered the man to bring his instru- 
ment, and then fixing himself firmly in his chair, and determining not to stir, 
he bade him strike up as soon as he pleased. The musician obeyed, and pre- 
sently roused the hero’s spirits with such warlike notes, that he was constrain- 
ed, in spite of all his resolution, to spring up and fly to his javelin with great 
martial fury. We can the easier credit these profane stories by what we 
find recorded in the oracles of truth, where we are told the wonders David 
performed by sweetly touching his harp. He made nothing of driving the 
evil spirit out of Saul, though a certain rabbi assures us he could not do so 
much by his wife, Michal, when she happened to be in her airs. The great- 
est instance we have of the power of modern music is that which cures 
those who in Italy are bitten by the little spider called the tarantula. The 
whole method of which is performed in the following manner. In Apulia 
it is a common misfortune for people to be bitten by the tarantula, and most 
about Taranto and Gallipoli. This is a gray spider, not very large, with a 
narrow streak of white along the back. It is no wonder there are many of 
these villanous insects, because, by a ridiculous superstition it is accounted 
great inhumanity to kill them. They believe, it seems, that if the spider come 
to a violent death, all those who had been bitten by it will certainly have a 
