yearling, with an unnaturally large
head and dangerous looking tusks, that curved above his savage snout
like small horns. There was promise of magnificent power in his immense
shoulders, while flanks and hams were disproportionately light. He came
out to the open leisurely munching his acorns, or amusing himself by
ploughing deep furrows with his nose, and not until within ten yards
did he appear to note the presence of a stranger. Suddenly he raised
his head and became rigid as though frozen to stone; he was taking an
observation. For a few seconds he remained immovable, then his bristles
became erect and with a deep guttural, grunting noise, he commenced
hitching himself along in my direction, sidewise. My hair raised and in
an instant I was on my feet with the cocked rifle to my shoulder--
meaning to shoot before his charge and then make good time up the tree.
But there was no need. As I sprang to my feet he sprang for the hazel
bushes and went tearing through them with the speed of a deer, keeping
up a succession of snorts and grunts that could be heard long after he
had passed out of sight. I am not subject to buck fever and was
disgusted to find myself so badly "rattled" that I could scarcely
handle the rifle. At first I was provoked at myself for not getting a
good ready and shooting him in the head, as he came out of the bushes;
but it was better to let him live. He was not carnivorous, or a beast
of prey, and ugly as he was, certainly looked better alive than he
would as a porcine corpse. No doubt he relished his acorns as well as
though he had been less ugly, and he was a savage power in the forest.
Bears love pork; and the fact that the hog was picking up a comfortable
living in that wilderness, is presumptive evidence that he was a match
for the largest bear, or he would have been eaten long before.

Another little incident, in which Bruin played a leading part, rises
vividly to memory. It was hardly an adventure; only the meeting of man
and bear, and they parted on good terms, with no hardness on either side.

The meeting occurred, as usually was the case with large game, on dry,
oak lands, where the undergrowth was hazel, sasafras and wild
grapevine. As before, I had paused for a rest, when I began to catch
glimpses of a very black animal working its way among the hazel bushes,
under the scattering oaks, and toward me. With no definite intention of
shooting, but just to see how easy it might be to kill h