satisfy the pangs of hunger succeeding the long winter’s fast, 
but also to act as a purgative, and to put Bruin in fine fettle 
for beginning his salmon joys. Nor has he far to go for 
them, for the greens spring up everywhere on the islands 
where first the snow may melt, as well as upon shelving 
beaches and slides, and the miniature avalanches which the 
latter really are. 
By the end of June or early July this search for food be¬ 
comes a simpler matter, since all the streams teem with 
salmon. The island bear being a fish-eater to the exclusion 
of almost everything else, morning and evening brings him 
to the riffles and shallows over which the fish are running, 
and there, with little effort, he catches and eats his fill. 
Bear are, of course, easy to get at such times. 
Warm weather and salmon joined together heat Bruin’s 
blood to such an extent, however, that the feast has its pen¬ 
alties, and the animals, in their distress, rub well themselves 
against trees or any other available objects at hand. As re¬ 
sult they grow mangy and hairless, and are possessed of a 
terrific odor; so that the skins are of little value whatsoever. 
Needless to say, therefore, it behooves the sportsman de¬ 
siring good specimens to bag his bear soon as possible after 
their leaving their holes. 
In the fall, Nature again asserts herself by creating in 
the bear an appetite for berries, which serves to fortify him 
against the long winter sojourn in the lair. 
Our plan of procedure was to leave the boat between three 
and four every morning, returning between nine or ten; and, 
leaving again at about 3 P. M., getting back close onto nine 
in the evening. 
We w^ould spend hours at a stretch simply watching a 
mud flat. Other times we went inland, to watch a promis¬ 
ing slide, or, again, we paddled around, at high tide, or half¬ 
tide ; the method of hunting depending largely on the direc¬ 
tion the wind might blow. 
To quote from our log for a specimen day: 
“Hunted upper end of Chopin Bay, but failed to catch sight 
May 9th of any bear. The slides we saw coming here have a great 
deal of snow on them, and the season appears several weeks 
late. Will, therefore, confine our hunting to the flats and 
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