"Not too fast," said Martin, "not too fast. There's no hurry; he won't
come down unless our noise frightens him. Let us go quietly; there's
plenty of time. Belcher has got his eye on him, and will stay by him
till we come." We travelled quietly, and as silently as we could for
near half a mile, and as we rounded a low but steep point of a hill,
there sat bruin, some twelve rods from us, in the forks of a great
birch tree, forty feet from the ground, looking down in calm dignity
upon the dogs that were baying and leaping up against the tree beneath
him. Did anybody ever notice what a meek, innocent look a bear has
when in repose? How hypocritically he leers upon everything about him,
as if butter would not melt in his mouth? Well, such was the look of
that bear, as he peered out first on one side, then on the other of
the great limbs between which he was sitting, secure, as he supposed,
from danger. But he was never more mistaken in his life. In watching
the dogs he had failed to discover us. We agreed that three should
fire upon him at once, reserving the fourth charge for whatever
contingency might happen. Smith, the Doctor, and Spalding sighted him
carefully, each with his rifle resting against the side of a tree, and
blazed away, their guns sounding almost together. It was pitiful the
scream of agony that bear sent up. It was almost human in its anguish.
It went ringing through the woods, dying away at last almost in a
human groan. After struggling and clasping his arms for a moment
around the great branch of the tree, his hold relaxed, he reeled from
side to side, and then fell heavily to the ground, with three balls
within an inch of each other, right through his vitals. He was larger
than a medium sized animal of his species, and in excellent case.

The next thing in order was to transport him to our boats. This was
done by tying his feet together, then running a long pole, cut for the
purpose, between them, and lifting each end upon the shoulder of a