and has hauled up some of the krang on the ice, to serve
him for dinner; but we'll try what we can do to spoil his sport."

In accordance with this resolution, he went to the captain and asked
leave to take a boat to try and bring back Bruin, dead or alive.

"You may bring him back dead, but alive you'll never get him into that
boat, depend on it," answered Captain Rendall, laughing. "However, take
care he is not too much for you; for those bears are cunning fellows,
remember; and I should advise you to take a couple of muskets, and some
tough lances."

"Never fear, sir," answered the mate, preparing to lower a boat. "I
don't think a boat's crew need, any day, be afraid of a single bear."

Volunteers being asked for, Terence and I, old David and Stokes, and
three others, jumped into the boat, and pulled off towards where the
bear was seated quietly licking his paws after his meal. The mate had a
great idea of noosing him; and for this purpose he and David were each
armed with a coil of rope, with a bight to throw over his head, like a
lasso, while Terence and I were to take charge of the guns. The mate
first made us put him on the ice some few hundred yards on one side of
the bear, and then we pulled round to the same distance on the other.
Each had a lance besides his lasso, and the mate had a pistol in his
belt.

In case of extreme necessity, Terence and I were to fire, and then to
land and come to their rescue. As soon as the two had landed, they
began to move away from the edge, hoping thereby to cut Bruin off should
he attempt to escape. He had, however, no inclination to leave his
dinner; though, perhaps, had he not already eaten to repletion, he would
not have sat so quiet while we approached.

We meantime pulled close up to the krang, among all the ducks and gulls.
This Bruin did not mind, but sat still, looking quietly on. Of course
I could then easily have shot him; but that was not the mate's object.
All he did was to growl and show his teeth, as if he longed to have us
all within his paws. This made us bolder and less cautious, so we got
close up to him.

"We are still too far for me to heave the bight over his shoulders,"
cried Terence. "Just see if you can't get hold of his dinner with the
boat-hook, and that will bring him nearer."

I luckily held my gun in my left hand, while with my right, as I sprang
on the ice, I attempted to catch hold of the whale's flesh with the
boat-hook. This