166 
A VOYAGE TO SPITZBEBGEN. 
pick, feeling certain that we shall have some use for 
them. Far out on the great ice field our surly 
customer is seen lumbering towards us ; while a boat 
is being got ready to cut off his retreat should he 
take to the water, we step down upon the ice; on its. 
surface, large pools of fresh water about a foot in depth 
spread themselves in all directions. Our hunting, 
ground rises gradually from the water’s edge—a vast 
plain diversified with hummocks of snow-covered ice.. 
At first we busy ourselves in selecting a course to avoid 
the pools ; our boots are well adapted for wading r 
but we desire to gain upon Master Brownie with as 
little noise as possible. We are forced, however, to- 
wade, and worse still, to go right through a deep snow¬ 
drift in search of the bear, of whose whereabouts we 
have not the slightest clue. Suddenly, he conies into- 
view of our party, and presents an appearance as un¬ 
like the white-coated beasts we see in the Zoo as it is 
possible to imagine. On the contrary, we see a gaunt,, 
pale, yellow, hungry-looking brute, swaying his sharp- 
cut muzzle from side to side in restless indecision.. 
Whether it is the momentary fear of danger, or the 
usual habit of the Arctic bear we could not then 
say, but we wished he would adopt a more steady 
and dignified bearing for a few minutes to enablo 
us to take a more certain and deliberate aim. We 
