As we approached the animals moved off from us. Then
he came near enough to one of them, and threw his lasso and caught him.
After making the animal fast, he went carefully after the others and
succeeded in lassoing them.

"Well done," I said to him. Then we lay on the snow, with our masks to
protect our faces, and went to sleep. After a short nap we continued our
way, and finally reached Jakob's tent just in time for supper, and were
warmly welcomed by the family.

CHAPTER XXIII

JAKOB TALKS TO ME ABOUT BEARS.--THE BEAR'S NIGHT.--WATCHING A BEAR
SEEKING FOR WINTER QUARTERS.--THEY ARE VERY SUSPICIOUS.--I TELL A
BEAR STORY IN MY TURN.

Since I had heard of the Bear's Night, I wanted to know more about these
animals and their habits. After our supper, I said to Jakob, "Talk about
bears to me--tell me about them." "All right," he replied. "I will tell
you all I know about them."

"At the end of the summer and before the first fall of snow," he began,
"the bears are very fat, for they have had plenty of berries and roots
to eat. They are so fat that they can stand the long fast during the
Bear's Night; but when they go out in the spring from their snow cover,
they are very lean. We dread the bear more in the spring than during any
part of the summer, for he is voraciously hungry all the time and goes
after cattle, horses, sheep, or reindeer."

"I do not wonder at their being hungry, for the poor bear has to make up
for his long fast," I said.

Jakob continued: "The bear chooses a place in which he can lie
comfortably, such as under boulders or fallen trees, where he can be
protected from the snow. He becomes suspicious after he has chosen the
place for his Winter's Night, and for days he walks round and round to
see that there is no danger and to make sure that no enemy can see him.
He wants to feel perfectly safe before he goes into winter quarters. By
walking round wherever the wind blows, he is sure to scent danger, and
if he does he moves away and goes to seek some other place. The bear is
very wary; it is almost impossible in summer to pursue him without dogs,
for he is so quick of foot and always on the alert, that when a hunter
sees one he has to be more wary than the bear to approach within
shooting distance of him. When badly wounded he attacks his enemy
suddenly."

After Jakob had done speaking, I said to him, in my turn: "Let me tell
you a bear story. One autumn day when I had crosse