l to a convenient spot, where he digs a pit for its
reception. The Indians regard him with the utmost terror. His extreme
tenacity of life renders him still more dangerous; for he can endure
repeated wounds which would be instantaneously mortal to other beasts,
and, in that state, can rapidly pursue his enemy; so that the hunter
who fails to shoot him through the brain is placed in a most perilous
situation.

One evening, the men in the hindmost of one of Lewis and Clark's canoes
perceived one of these bears lying in the open ground, about three
hundred paces from the river; and six of them, who were all good
hunters, went to attack him. Concealing themselves by a small eminence,
they were able to approach within forty paces unperceived; four of the
hunters now fired, and each lodged a ball in his body, two of which
passed directly through the lungs. The bear sprang up, and ran
furiously, with open mouth, upon them; two of the hunters, who had
reserved their fire, gave him two additional wounds, and one, breaking
his shoulder-blade, somewhat retarded his motions. Before they could
again load their guns, he came so close on them, that they were obliged
to run towards the river, and before they had gained it, the bear had
almost overtaken them. Two men jumped into the canoe; the other four
separated, and, concealing themselves among the willows, fired as fast
as they could load their pieces. Several times the bear was struck, but
each shot seemed only to direct his fury towards the hunters; at last
he pursued them so closely that they threw aside their guns and
pouches, and jumped from a perpendicular bank, twenty feet high, into
the river. The bear sprang after them, and was very near the hindmost
man, when one of the hunters on the shore shot him through the head,
and finally killed him. When they dragged him on shore, they found that
eight balls had passed through his body in different directions.

Richardson relates the following story of a grisly bear. A party of
voyagers, who had been employed all day in tracking a canoe up the
Saskatchewan, had seated themselves, in the twilight, by a fire, and
were busy in preparing their supper, when a large grisly bear sprang
over their canoe that was behind them, and, seizing one of the party by
the shoulder, carried him off. The rest fled in terror, with the
exception of a man named Bourasso, who, grasping his gun, followed the
bear as it was retreating leisurely with its pre