34 A DESCRIPTION OF 
multitude, who are highly pleased to see the awkward 
movements of this rugged creature, which it seems to suit 
to the sound of an instrument, or to the voice of its 
leader. The discipline Bears undergo in teaching them to 
dance is so severe that they never forget it ; and an 
amusing story is told of a gentleman who was pursued by 
a Bear, and who, when in despair, he turned and raised 
his stick against his assailant, was astonished to see the 
Bear rear itself on its hind legs, and begin to dance. It 
had escaped from captivity, and had been taught to dance 
when a stick was held up by its keeper. But to give the 
Bear this kind of education, it must be taken when young, 
and accustomed early to restraint and discipline, as an old 
Bearwill not suffer constraint without discovering the most 
furious resentment: neither the voice nor the menaces of 
his keeper have any effect upon him ; he equally growls 
at the hand that is held out to feed, as at that which is 
raised to correct him. The female Bears bring forth two 
or three young, and are very careful of their offspring. 
The fat of the Bear is reckoned very useful in rheumatic 
complaints, and for anointing the hair ; his fur affords 
comfort to the inhabitants of cold countries, and ornaments 
to those of milder climates. It was anciently supposed, 
that the young Bear, when first brought forth, was 
merely an unformed mass, till its mother licked it into 
shape; and hence the expression "he wants licking into 
shape" was frequently employed by the old dramatists, 
when speaking of an awkward, clownish man. 
