ty either of the brown bear of
Europe or the black bear of America; but his greater ferocity, so often
and fatally experienced by travellers, drew the attention of naturalists
upon him, when it was discovered that he was altogether distinct from
either of the two. His name is usually coupled with that of the Rocky
Mountains of America--for it is chiefly in the defiles and valleys of
this stupendous chain that he makes his home. He wanders, however, far
eastward over the prairies, and also to the Californian Mountains on the
west; and in a latitudinal direction from the borders of Texas on the
south, northward as far, it is supposed, as the shores of the Arctic
Sea. At all events, a bear somewhat like him, if not identically the
same, has been seen on the banks of the great Mackenzie River, near its
mouth. Perhaps it may be the brown bear of the Barren Grounds, already
noticed; and which last is, in many respects--in size and colour
especially--very similar to the grizzly.

The grizzly bear is certainly the most ferocious of his tribe--even
exceeding, in this unamiable quality, his white cousin of the icy north;
and many a melancholy tale of trapper and Indian hunter attests his
dangerous prowess. He is both carnivorous and frugivorous--will dig for
roots and eat fruits when within his reach; but not being a
tree-climber, he has to content himself with such berries as grow upon
the humbler bushes. Indeed, it is a fortunate circumstance that the
fierce animal is unable to ascend a tree. Many a traveller and hunter
have found a neighbouring tree the readiest means of saving their lives,
when pursued by this ferocious assailant. Another circumstance is also
in favour of those pursued by the grizzly bear. In the region where he
dwells, but few persons ever go afoot; and although the bear can
overtake a pedestrian, his speed is no match for that of the friendly
horse.

It is almost hopeless to think of killing a grizzly bear by a single
bullet. There the deadly rifle is no longer deadly--unless when the
shot is given in a mortal part; and to take sure aim from the saddle,
with a horse dancing in affright, is a feat which even the most skilful
marksman cannot always accomplish. As many as a dozen bullets have been
fired into the body of a grizzly bear, without killing him outright.

The strength of this animal equals his ferocity. He pulls the huge
buffalo, a thousand pounds in weight, to the ground; and then dra