close to the log-house; it had a long low shingled roof, and was carefully
fastened up, so that no bear could find entrance. Well, the farmer's son
and the hunter had watched for two nights, and no bear came; on the third
they were both tired, and lay down to sleep upon the floor of the kitchen,
when the farmer's son was awakened by a sound as of some one tearing and
stripping the shingles from the pen. He looked out; it was moonlight, and
there he saw the dark shadow of some tall figure on the ground, and spied
the great black bear standing on its hinder legs, and pulling the shingles
off as fast as it could lay its big black paws upon them. The hogs were in
a great fright, screaming and grunting with terror. The young man stepped
back into the house, roused up the hunter, who took aim from the doorway,
and shot the bear dead. The head of the huge beast was nailed up as a
trophy, and the meat was dried or salted for winter use, and great were the
rejoicings of the settlers who had suffered so much from Bruin's thefts of
corn and pork."

"I am glad the hunter killed him, nurse, for he might have eaten up some
of the little children, when they were playing about in the fields."

"Sometimes," continued Mrs. Frazer, "the bears used to visit the
sugar-bush, when the settlers were making maple sugar, and overturn the
sap-troughs, and drink the sweet liquid. I dare say they would have been
glad of a taste of the sugar too, if they could have got at it. The bear is
not so often met with now as it used to be many years ago. The fur of the
bear used to be worn as muffs and tippets, but, is now little used for that
purpose, being thought to be too coarse and heavy, but it is still made
into caps for soldiers, and worn as sleigh-robes."

This was all Mrs. Frazer chose to recollect about bears, for she was
unwilling to dwell long on any gloomy subject, which she knew was not good