The Cecil Whig. [volume] (Elkton, Md.) 1841-current, 1854-11-04
THE GRIZZLY BEAR, AND AN
ADVENTURE WITH ONE.

possess the SWlltflcSS Ol loul vi tllhcT tnt iph
or tiger of the Old World, he would be an
aSSailant as dangerous as either: fol he is
endowed with the strength of the former, and
quite equals the latter in fcrocity. Fortunately
the horse outruns him: were it not so, many
a human victim would be his. for he can easily
overtake man on foot. As it is, hundreds
of Northumberland stories attest the Prov
Css of this fierce creature. There Is not a
..mounain man. in America who cannot re-
late string of pcrilous adventures about the
"grizzly bars" and the instances are far from
being few in which human life has been sac
riiiced in conflicts with this savage beast
The grizzly bear is an animal of large di-
mansions; specimens have been killed and
measured quite equal to the largest size of the
polar bear, though there is much variety in
the sizes of different individuals. About five
hundred pounds might be taken as the aver
age weight. In shape, the grizzly bear is
much more compact than either the black or
polar species: his cars arc larger, his arms
Stoutcr and his aspect tcrcer, His teeth are
pil 'lIa' "''iSi' 'i'' VIZ
most dread is the armat,lre of his paws. The
paws themselves are large, as frequently to
leave in the mud a track of twelve inches in
length by eight in breadth: and from the cx-
trcmitics of these formidable fists protrudc
horn-like claws full six inches long! of
course am speaking Of individuals of the
largest kind. These claws az crcscent-shap-
cd, and would be still longer, but in all cases
animal digs up the ground in search of mar
mots, burrowing squirrels and various cscu-
lent roots: and this habit accounts for the
bluntcd condition of his claws. They are
sharp enough, notwithstanding, to peel the
hide from a horse or buffalo, or to drag the
scalp from a huntcr-a feat which has been
performed by grizzly bears on more than one
occasion.
The color of this animal is most generally
brownish with white hairs intcrmixed. Civ
ing that graysh or grizzly appearance
whence the trivial name, grizzly. But al
though this is the most common color of the
species, there arc many varities Some are
almost white, Others yclowsh red, and still
others nearly black. The season, too, has
much to do with the color; and the pclagc is
finer and longer than that of the Ufsus A,ncr-
ican,,s. The eyes are small in proportion to
the size of the animal, but dark and piercing.
The geographical range of the grizzly bear
is extensive. 1t is well known that the great
chain of the Rocky Mountains commences on
the shores of the Arctic Ocean, and runs
southwardy through the North American
continent. In these mountains the grizzly
bear is found, from their northern extremity,
at least as far as that point where the Rio
Grande makes its great bend toward the Gulf
of Mexico. In the United States and NADIA
this animal has never been seen in wild
state. This is not strange. The grizzly bear
has no affinity with the forest. Previous to
the settling of these territories, they were all
forcst.covcred. The Grizzly is never found
under heavy timber, like his congencr the
black bear and, unlike the latter, he IS not
trcc-clmbcr. The black bear hugs" him.
self up tree, and usually destroys his vic
tim by compression. The grizzly does not
possess this power, so as to enable him to
ascend trunk; and for such purpose
Ills huge dull claws are worse than useless.
His favorte hauns are the thickets of Cory
l,s rubus .4mcianchief*, under the shade of
which he makes his lair, and upon the bcr-
rics of which he partially subSsts. lie lives
much by the banks Of streams, hunting among
the willows, or wandcrs alang the steep and
rugged bluffs, where scrubby pine and dwarf
cedar, (Junipe,us prostraiu,) with its roofing
branches, forms an almost impcnctrablc UNI
dcrwood. In Short the grizzly bear of Amer
lea is to be met with in situations very similar
to those which are the favorite haunts of the
African lion, which, after ALL is not so much
the king of the forest as of the mountain and
the open plain.
The grizzly bear is omnivorous. Fish, flesh
and fowl arc eaten by him apparently with
equal relish. lie devours frogs, lizards. and
other reptiles. lie is fond of the larvae of in
sects; these are often found in large quanti-
ties adhering to the under sides of dccaycd
logs. 10 get at them, the grizzly bear will
roll over logs of such size and weight as would
try the strength ola yoke of oxen.
lie is too slow of foot to overtake either
buffalo, elk, or deer, though he sometimes
comes upon these creatures unawarcs; and
he viii drag the largest buffalo to the carth
if he can only get his claws upon it. Not
unfreqently he robs the panther of his rcpast
and will drive whole pack of wolves from
the carbon they have just succeeded in kill
ing Several attempts have been made to
raise the young grizzlies; but these have all
been abortive, the animals proving anything
but agreeable pets. As soon as grown to a
considerable size, their natural ferocity dis
plays itself, and their dangerous qualities us
sually lead to the necessity of their destruc-
ton.
For long time the great polar bear has
been the most celebrated animal of his kind:
and most of the bear adventures have related
to him. Many wondrous tale of his prowcss
&. Lot, H., taJ.l !, 4