own the ladder, he could not follow me. I again
looked up, and perceived that he had finished his meal. After walking
round the decks two or three times, smelling at every thing, he plunged
overboard and disappeared.

Glad to be rid of so unpleasant a visitor, I came up, and cutting off
the meat I required, again exerted my cookery, was again satisfied, and
went to sleep. I never felt so happy as I then did in my insane
condition. All I thought of, all I wished, I could command--my
happiness was concentrated in eating my fellow-creatures, cooked in a
proper manner, instead of the usual method of bolting them down to
satisfy the cravings of imperious hunger. I woke the next morning as
usual, and when I crawled on deck, was again saluted with the angry
growl of the bear, who was busy making a repast upon another body--when
he had finished he plunged into the sea as before.

I now thought it high time to put an end to these depredations on my
larder, which in a few days would have left me destitute. My invention
was called into action, and I hit upon a plan, which I thought would
succeed. I dragged all the bodies to the after part of the quarterdeck,
and blocked it up before the cabin-hatch with swabs and small sails, so
as to form a sort of dam about eight inches high. I then went below and
brought up forty or fifty buckets of train oil, which I poured upon the
deck abaft, so that it was covered with oil to the height of several
inches. On the ensuing morning the bear came as I expected, and
commenced his repast: I had stationed myself aloft, in the mizen-top,
with several buckets of oil, which I poured upon him. His fur was
otherwise well saturated with what he had collected when he lay down on
the deck to devour one of the bodies more at his ease. When I had
poured all my buckets of oil over him but one, I threw the empty buckets
down upon him. This enraged him, and he mounted the rigging to be
revenged. I waited until he had arrived at the futtock shrouds, when I
poured my last bucket upon him, which quite blinded him, and then gained
the deck by sliding down the back stays on the opposite side.

A bear can climb fast, but is very slow in his descent--the consequence
was that I had plenty of time for my arrangements. I ran below, and
lighting a torch of oakum, which I had prepared in readiness, placed it
to his hinder quarters as he descended. The effect was exactly what I
had anticipated; his thick fu