pass, as he knew there were big ones about. We waited but no others came out. Near daylight one brother and I got down from our trees and started for home. We had to almost feel our way out of the woods, it was dark and any moment we might meet a bear. A very little while after we reached the house we heard the guns go off in the woods. We did not dare go back; as the others might mistake us for the bears. We could not do anything then but wait for morn- ing to dawn.

Soon as we left the woods the big bears came out of the thicket where we heard them. I suppose when they heard us leaving they thought the way was clear for them to have supper, or rather break- fast. A very large one came out first and began to eat the carcase. The neighbor fired, and over rolled the bear. My brother tried to fire but his gun missed, or he lost the cap. He rushed for the gun I had set and when lifting it up, forgot to untie, or cut, the line fastened to the trigger; when the muzzle was close to his face the string tight- ened on the trigger and bang went the gun, with a roar like a small cannon. It almost stunned him, it was so close and so heavily loaded. He had a narrow escape. We should be very careful with guns; there are many fatal accidents with them. In a moment of excitement we forget warnings and take risks.

In the meantime the bear had got partly on its feet and was drag- ging itself into the thicket. The neighbour had reloaded his gun and was following it when another bear faced him and stood up to attack him. That was a critical situation in the dim light, but the neighbour was a brave man. He levelled his gun and put the charge into the bear’s throat and it fell dead at his feet. There were bears all around them; one ran up a tree. We could see its claw marks on the bark up twenty feet from the ground. The darkness prevented them from see- ing it at the time it went up or they could easily have shot it. They followed the wounded one but could not find it in the dark; it was probably well they did not, for it might have torn them to pieces. At day-break they came out with the bear they had shot. A party went in pursuit of the wounded one and followed its trail two or three miles; there were blood marks all the way, but it eluded its pursuers and was never found. That was the wildest bear hunt I ever had. The wonder

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