The Providence news. (Providence [R.I.]) 1891-1906, 1894-11-03
Wemans Progress Beset With Difficulties Looking For
Clear Highway
adventures With Glaciers Mounans-A Terrible Ice
iace-Labors and Experiences Of Fotngh-The Worst
Year In the Spizbsrgen Region.
<Continued from yesterday
-scrle and t'ircus.

After dinner, which was eaten In O
bsoiling SUM- with temperature OF 40 de-
gross, far too hot for comfort, we had
menag0rio and circus combined under the
great sky of tho arctic summer. A big
polar beay was seen about half a mile
away maaing for a seal which was lying
upon the ice beside his water holo. Moth
Ing ooLrd exceed the sly skill with which
bru.n approached his prey. First he went
70 tho ieeward OF the seal, SO that the
scent should not betray his presence. Then
he picked his way from behind one I$coe
of high Ice to another, always contrlving
70 keep some screen between himself and
The seal. Finally, after much vancouver
Ing and peering oyt from behind his point
ot vantage, Ii became necessary for the
willy brute To take To the open. The Ice
bear Is cunning enough to know that he
has very black nose, while the remainder
of his body Is nearly the color Of snow.
30 he held his fore paws in fr,St OF his
nose, whose color might betray him to his
intended victim, and with his belly on the
surface of the ice showed himself rapidly
but noiselessly along with his powerful
.ear legs. When ho had reached within 40
feet OF the seal, this black and rather stu
pid animal had sense enough TO plunk
into his hole and swim away out OF dan
ger With two or three mighty bounds
the bear was at the water hole, where he
stuck his nose far down into tho water In
vain search for the dinner which he had
hoped To enjoy. When he realized that his
sneal had disappeared, he gave vent To his
rage by loud growls, fierce shakiDgs Of his
head and scratching snow and ice and
throwing them high in tho air with his
terrible paws. After this III of anger he
appeared 10 feel better and concluded to
take bath, ducking half his body into
the seal hole and rolling in the snow and
kicking up his heels In manifest delight.
The temperature appeared TO be much too
high for his comfort for several times att
ar leaving the water hole he stopped TO
battle himself in the pools on the surface
OF the ice.
But the best Of the afternoons enter
.ainment was TO come. BY this time the
bears attention had been attracted 10y tho
noise Of our camp, and. bcarlike, he could
not be content until he had investigated
this strange visitation TO his realm. Some
what cautiously he approached u.s. now
and then sitting on his launches and put
ting bis black nose In the air and moving
tt from ono side TO the other 10 get the
scent. Evidently he could not quito make
it out, for it was a mixture of meat camp
fro odor and tobacco smoke, and SO he
came nearer and nearer At this juncturo
Sailor Boervig. whose fondness for track
Ing leo bear came near costing him his life
on the Parry island few weeks ago,
crawled out along the snow upon his hands
and knees, grunting like a seal and throw
Ing his arms and legs about In imitation
of seals movements. The ice bear can
hear and scent very keenly, but no does
a.e 4.
TO endow him with n secondary film TO
protect his eyes from snow blindness, and
at this-seases tho year, when the sun
shines so much and so brightly, he IL in
sad need of dark spectacles. While we
could SEQ him very plainly as we all sat on
the boats and sledges smoking our after
dinner pipes and enjoying the show, like
front rowcrs at the varieties, he could not
SEQ us at all, though he could hear Boor-
wigs Turing grunts and perhaps get q
glimpse OF the false fippers which that
bold sailor man was industriously display
Ing. Bruin came so near us that without
moving from our seats we could easily
have shot him, but no one was tempted To
do so.
Our sportsrnon have had so many bear
that they have lost zcst in the chase, and
as we had no need for his food, much pre-
ferring the reindeer, of which we still have
considerable supply, and as we could not
take with us his skin, which may put s25
In the pocket of some needy Norwegian
sailor, we told the men not TO shoot unless
necessary TO save the life of Boervig. This
turned out To be tho case, for, completely
deceived by the sailors antics the bear
came within 90 feet Of the human seal, af-
fording Photographer Dodge splendid
m n ifry FE IA ltG H..
beast, and then was about to leap forward
To grasp his prey when Mr.. Franklin's
rifle cracked, and the bear bounded rapid
ly away. Mr.. Franklin did not shoot to
kill, only 10 frighten, and was wholly sue
cessful, for that bear must have made at
least mile n minute in his anxiety TO
escape We had u good laugh at the antics
or Boervig and the mingled caution and
stupidity of the beast. There is an o!d saw
In Norway that an leo bear has 10 mems
wit and IL mems strength, but we doubt
the wit part of the adago. He certainly is
sly enough in his regular vocation Of seal
catching, but only very foolish animal
would permit his curiosity to lead him
right into camp of dozen men armed
with plenty Of winchesters. Curiosity is
the ice bears fatal weakness.
Quoting tho adagc, our men amuse
themselves with discussion as To the
strength OF tho Ice bear. Captain Peder.
sen told story about bear which he saw
Kill walrus weighing $500 pounds with
few blows OF his good right paw and
then drag his pondorous victim out of the
water and upon the ice Bocrvig declared
ne had seen an angry bear break the fore
mast OF wrecked schooner on the east
shore OF Spitzbergen. Other yarns were
spun TO illustrntc the enormous strength
Of this animal, and then the mon again
wished they had pair OF bears trained TO
pull the boats and slcdgcs over the ice and
snow
Wishing For Cold Weather.
We made camp rather carly tonight. two
Of the men showing signs OF Illness, prob
ably the effect OF too much isindctr meat.
in IA hours we had covered FULLY four
miles, or one third tho distance across the
bay. Tomorrow we hope to.do stilr better.
just before camping tonight an ice fog,
Tire first VA have yet sccn came down up-