ne more
event, which served to convince my companions of the perfect correctness
of my statements. One night, as I was retiring to rest, I heard
footsteps approaching our hut, and, looking out, I saw an immense white
bear, sniffing up the air as if he smelt something he fancied for
supper. Rousing my companions, who had already turned in, I seized my
gun, with the intention of knocking him on the head, when, as he turned
his face, I recognised an expression I had met before. On his nearer
approach I saw that he had but one eye, and I felt convinced that he was
the identical bear I had knocked over close to the Pole and left for
dead, with a steak out of his rump. He made towards me, grinding his
teeth and flashing his one eye terrifically, with thoughts of vengeance;
but I retreated backwards, and had just time to slam the door in his
face, jamming in one of his paws, before he could grasp me in his deadly
embrace. Thus he was caught in a trap, but his struggles to free
himself were so tremendous that I thought he would have carried away the
whole hut with him, but my friends coming to my aid, we made fast a
strong rope round the lower joint of his paw and secured it to a stout
piece of timber which formed part of the foundation of the structure.
We then opened the door a little, when he, of course, put in the other
paw, which we secured in the same way, and thus had him fast. At first
he was very furious and growled tremendously, but by giving him a piece
of roasted meat to suck at the end of a ramrod, we tamed him by degrees,
and he must have seen that we had no evil intentions towards him. By
slacking the ropes we were in a short time able to shut the door,
keeping him outside. We then went to sleep, and he only now and then
disturbed us by an angry growl as he felt the ropes cutting his wrists.

"By a judicious system of starvation, and by gently administering food,
we so tamed him that we were able to examine him for a further
verification of my suspicions. Had my companions before entertained any
doubts as to the truth of my story, all such vanished when they
discovered that, though the wound had perfectly closed where I had cut
out the steak, the cicatrice was there, and skin perfectly denuded of
hair. By our pursuing the system I have described for some time, Bruin
became so tame that he would follow us about like a dog, while he
exhibited his affection by every possible means. I shall never forget
th