Carni VO K A . -M AMJI A.LI A. Carnivora. 
xl 
and, after uttering a loud grunt or snort, made a leap 
into the bushes and gained the upper bank, disappear- 
ing as quickly as possible. Several Wolves were 
waiting near by for their turn, and they, too, slunk 
away, with their tails between their legs. The Grizzly 
generally inhabits the swampy, well-covered portions 
of the districts, keeping a good deal among the trees 
and bushes, and in these retreats it has its bed or 
lair. It rambles abroad at night as well as by day. 
The young and the females hybernate, but the males 
come forth in quest of food. A den or winter retreat 
was found to measure ten feet in length, by five 
feet high and six feet broad. Mr. Audubon’s son 
relates that this animal, if not forced by hunger, 
will always readily give way to Man — this, of 
course, always supposing him not cornered ; for what 
beast or living creature will not fight when thus 
placed ? 
BLACK BEAR (Ursus americanm, Fallas ). — The 
most familiar species in America. It had a range of 
great extent when the country was first settled. 
Its flesh is so highly esteemed that even now the 
creature is hunted with great eagerness; and, in the 
season, many of our city markets are provided with 
Bear's-meat. Its fur and fat are well known articles 
of value in commerce. The color, and excellent qual- 
ity of the fur, render it a desirable article for use in 
the colder portions of the country. The fat of the 
Bear has long borne a reputation for promoting the 
growth of the hair; the hard, white fat that is found 
in the interior of the body being used for this purpose. 
Whether it possesses any valuable properties or not, 
it is certainly extensively furnished as an article of 
commerce. The more innocent swine of the Western 
States have a reputation for supplying a portion of 
this demand. The Black Bear is called in some 
quarters the Musquaw, a term probably derived from 
the Aborigines. Hunters tell us that Bears have a 
habit of treading in the same path repeatedly, so that 
they make a beaten road. This the trappers readily 
find out, which gives them an easy method of follow- 
ing up their game. During the month of June, Bears 
are very thin, when their flesh is not esteemed. 'I’hen, 
too, they are engaged in finding their mates, and are 
particularly savage at such times. 'I’he Indians of 
N'orth America have a custom of trying to propitiate 
the spirit of the captured and dead Bear. 'I’hey have 
a certain respect for the intellectual and physical 
jiowers of the animal ; they, therefore, deck the head 
of the carcass with trinkets of various sorts, and lay 
it, with much ceremony, on a new blanket. 'I'obacco 
smoke is then blown into the nostrils by the brave who 
has slain the creature. A speech is now made by this 
brave, wherein he e.xtols the courage and other attri- 
butes of the defeated animal, says a few words of 
comfort and praise for its living relatives, expresses 
extreme penitence for the past act, yet hopes that 
all may be, on the whole, regarded as satisfactory. 
This singular custom, though one quite in keeping 
with the haljits of our Aborigines, is not unlike one 
known to the Scandinavians. A Norwegian speaks 
with great circumspection of a Bear ; he will not use 
the word that designates that creature, but alludes to 
him as “the old man with the fur cloak,” or as the 
“ disturber.” 
The habit of hybernating, or sleeping away several 
months in a retired spot or cavern, is a most remark- 
able one. It is said that the Bear will not do this 
unless it is sufficiently fat to exist comfortably with- 
out leaving the den until spring. In this cave it gets 
its living as well as may be outside, exposed to the 
rigors of winter. It is so entirely oppressed by 
sleep when hybernating, that the hunter finds it 
necessary to punch his game before he can take a sat- 
isfactory aim. The Black Bear is quite prolific, hav- 
ing from one to four at a birth — going seven months 
with young. When born the cubs are very small, not 
exceeding eight inches in length. They remain with 
the mother until six months of age. The Black Bear 
was abundant throughout the State of New York, but 
is now confined to the mountainous districts. Bear- 
meat was once so common in New York, that the 
term Bea/r-Marlc,et was given to one of the markets 
of the city, where it was chiefly sold. In those times 
the price of-the pelt ranged from four to twelve dollars, 
and the oil was one dollar a pound. The food of the 
Black Bear consists of fruit, insects and small quad- 
rupeds. According to some authors it prefers vege- 
table food. Audubon, however, considers it as fond 
of fish diet, and, contrary to the opinion of others, 
he says that he is positive that it will always 
select flesh to fruit. In Maine, the lumber-men set 
traps, with guns attached, and capture the animal in 
that manner. A funnel-shaped enclosure is con- 
structed by driving stakes into the ground, in two 
converging lines, with both ends open. The narrow 
one is just sufficient to admit the muzzle of a gun ; 
the other is broad enough to admit the creature’s head 
and shoulders. The gun is so arranged that it will 
be discharged the instant the Bear seizes the bait 
which is attached. The Black Bear is somewhat 
migratory, moving southwards, in severe winters, in 
considerable numbers, though singly. They couple 
in September and October, and almost immediately 
the females retire to the den. The males, and females 
that are not gravid, roam abroad in winter, and do 
not always hybernate, especially if they are not fat. 
When not fortunate enough to fall in with a dead 
trunk to ensconce itself, the Bear scratches away the 
leaves and earth to make a suitable bed, and then 
lies down to receive the first fall of snow for a cover- 
ing. Its breath makes a small hole in the snow, 
which allows a sufficient quantity of air to pass in for 
breathing. The quantity of hoar-frost which gathers 
around the opening serves to betray it to the hunter. 
The specific characters of the Black Bear are : Size 
small, feet moderate, fore-claws not twice as long as 
the hinder, color uniform throughout, either black or 
brownish, the hairs darkest towards the tips. It is 
found from the northern portions of the continent to 
Mexico. In California it is replaced by the Grizzly. 
THE CINNAMON BEAR ( Ursus cinnamoneus, 
Bachman ). — This is regarded as a variety of the pre- 
ceding. The hair is rather longer and softer than 
that of the Black Bear. 'I’he color is a dark chestnut 
or cinnamon, with purplish reflections. 
