The Yale expositor. (Yale, St. Clair County, Mich.) 1894-current, 1910-01-07

anything a hog Will. The bear roots
about among the leaves in quest of
nuts, enters orchards to eat the ap-
pies which have fallen on the ground
and if they are not there shakes the
tree until the fruit comes tumbling
about his ears, wherein he has the ad-
vantage of the hog and resembles the
human again.
More than one black bear has come
to an untimely end because of his pro-
pensity for entering corn fields and
eating the sweet corn from the stalks,
a favorite occupation of the raccoon.
Like the raccoon, too, the black bear
is an expert fisherman.
He will lie at full length on a log
over some quiet pool and drop a. bit
of wood or offal on the water. He
watches the bait with his small
bright eyes until some unsuspecting
trout or club comes up to investigate
then quick sweep of one of those
mighty paws lands the fish Topping
on the bank and Bruin makes a dainty
meal off his prize.
When the cold frosts Of fall arrive
the black bear begins to think OF
snug home during the winter months.
He looks about until he finds the
place that suits him. 1t may be in
hollow log, and if the hollow is al
ready the home of family of coons
Bruin has no scruples about turning
them out.
1t may be that the bear finds a
blowdown where the passing years
have deposited limbs and leaves until
there is covering impervious to
snow and rain, and he crawls under
meath and burrows into the scurf to
sleep for the winter If he can find a
cave or a deep cleft in the rocks
Bruin is as well satisfied and he will
sleep fully as comfortably until warm
weather comes again. The bear has
no larder to resort to during the win
ter and he wants none, for he sleeps
soundly while his waste tissues are
replaced by the great rolls of fat
which cover his ribs as a result of a
summers foraging on the fat of the
| land.
The bear retires for his winter
| sleep just as soon as the ground be-
| gins to freeze. which is usually about
| the last of November. This will of
course not apply to all cases, for
many bears are found roaming about
until long after the first of December,
but ordinarily they den up early.
The Maine black bear has been a
much maligned animal. Long obser-
walton by old hunters shows that the
favorite food of the bear is vegetables,
nuts, berries, roots, etc. Many COM
| plants have been made by farmers
in the northern and eastern parts of
the state of bears that have done
damage to their sheep flocks, but old
hunters say the bear is not naturally
a killer of sheep. Once he gets the
taste of fresh mutton though the bear
, is likely to crave it.
A favorite food of the black bear is
all insects, such as ants and grubs.
To get these the bear will pull to
pieces every rotten stump he comes
across. Evidences of the bears grub
bling are found in every part of the
Maine woods. When the bear finds
a stump about which the ants and
grubs are running he lays himself
down beside it,. Then poking his
snout into the warm rotten wood he
lets the insects run all over his
snout and ticks them off with his long
tongue. When the available supply
has been exhausted Bruin pulls the
stump apart until he has finished the
last of the insects.