The ASIVAIL, SLOTII - BEAR, or HONEY - BEAR Ursus, or .11elursus, labiatus) is a species in habiting the jungles of all Peninsular India and Ceylon, and is the juggler's bear of that region, where its facial grimaces and generally comical appearance are of great service to the wander ing showman. This quaintness of countenance is due to the toothless condition of the front of the gums, where the incisors are lost in early youth, and to the fact that the lips are very long, and they and the whole snout are soft, extensile, and mobile to a surprising degree. These and other features are so pronounced that this hear has been separated in the genus Mel ursus by most students. It is submissive and teachable in captivity; hut in freedom, when it habitually makes its home in some rocky cave in the jungle,it is brave,and held in much respectby hunters. Its size equals that of the brown bear, yet it climbs about fruit-trees with great ease. Its fur is peculiar, long, shaggy, and unkempt, remotely suggesting that of a sloth, and black in color, except for the whiteness of the muzzle and space about the eyes and a conspicuous V-shaped white mark on the breast. It seems to eat very little flesh, but lives mainly on fruit and insects, especially ants, termites, and the combs of honey-bees, in securing which its ex tensile lips and tongue find their special use; hence the term 'honey-bear.' The AmEareA:a BEARS are confusingly alike. and conservative naturalists are unwilling to admit the reality of so many species as are distin guished in the list below. It is even questioned whether the Spectacled Bear (Ursus ornatus) of the high forests of the central Andes be not merely an isolated variety of the black bear, dis tinguished by its small size and the yellowish, goggle-like rings around its eyes. The latest account of the North American I_Trsithe Synopsis of the Mammals of North America, Chicago, 1901) makes the following list of sub genera and species, following the views of Dr. C. Hart Merriam: Polar Bear, Ursus (Thalassare tus) maritimus; Kadiak Bear, Ursus (Ursus) lliddemlorlp; Dall's Bear, Crams ((Traits) Duni; Grizzly Bear, Urns (Danis) horribilis; Barren ground Bear, (Trans (Minis) leichardsoni; Black Bear, (Traits (Eunrctus) Anlericanns; Louisiana Bear, Ursus (Euarctus) lutcolus; Florida Bear, Ursus (Euarct us) Floridans; Glacier Bear, Ur sus (Bunret us) Emmonsi.
The KAmAK BEAR attains the largest size of all known hears, and is the most bulky of carni vores, specimens not regarded as the heaviest hay ing weighed 1290 pounds; many, however, are comparatively small. This huge species was dis covered to science about 1S95, on Kodiak Island, Alaska, where it is said to be numerous, but hard to get; and it is also believed to rango the forested mountains of the neighboring main land. It seems to subsist mainly on fish, which it scoops from the water with its paws, espe cially at the season when the streams are filled with salmon and other species ascending them to spawn. In color this bear "varies greatly among individuals, being of various shades and com binations of dark and yellowish browns." Dail's, or the Sitka Bear, seems separable from the Kadiak only by fine points of skull-structure. It inhabits the Alaskan coast country, between Copper River and Baranov Island. Both of these 'species' are regarded by some naturalists as local varieties of the Siberian race of brown bears. and by others as local races of the grizzly.
The GRIZZLY BEAR of western North America is perhaps. on the average, the largest, and cer tainly is the most formidable of the family. It is justly regarded by sportsmen as the most dangerous beast in America, and at close quar ters is the equal of any elsewhere in its reckless courage, muscular power, and ability for offense: the name horribilis. however, was a mere trans lation by Ord of his 'grisly' into Latin, and re fers to color, not to character. When the moun tain men speak of it as 'Old Ephraim,' they pay the respect of knowledge to power. Its range, before the encroachments of civilization, was northern Mexico to the Arctic Circle. and from the Pacific Coast eastward into the plains east of the Rockies as far as circumstances favored, probably as far as the great bison herds were wont to travel; but everywhere it preferred forests. It is still to be found throughout the
higher parts of the Rocky Mountains and the Sierra Nevada, increasing in frequency toward the north, and reaching its acme of both size and numbers in Alaska. The size varies greatly, but a length of 9 feet and a weight of 1000 pounds are given as dimensions reached by many speci mens. Their color is equally variable, the typi cal form being described by Elliot as brownish yellow, with a blackish dorsal stripe: inane reddish brown, darkest near tips of hairs, which are brownish yellow or brown: legs gen erally black or blackish brown." Some speci mens ('silvertips') are prevailingly light gray, due to the points of the hairs being white: others ('cinnamons') are warmly reddish, and others nearly coal black. Their habits and methods of life seem as diverse as their appearance and habitat.
These great bears hibernate little, if any. and are abroad by day as well as by night; range the heated plains or jungle valleys, or climb to the snowy peaks with equal ease. Often they go alone, but frequently travel in pairs or gather in small herds. One striking peculiarity, clue, perhaps. to their great weight. is that they never climb trees, even as cubs. Nothing edible comes amiss as food. In former days they seized upon the stupid buffalo. and were able to vanquish even the heavy bulls by the weight and tearing power of their mighty paws, and in these clays range-cattle are fre quently destroyed; while those of the northwest coast region are expert in scooping up fish, and subsist largely on salmon and the like. All are fearless of water. _Although so terrible when enraged. there is no evidence that the grizzly is more quarrelsome than other species; and the tales of an undying feud between it and the black hear or the puma are largely romances. The attitude of these hears toward mankind can not he stated dogmatically, nor foreseen in any particular instance. They may quietly with draw or run away in a panic (as the present writer has known them to do). or stand their ground without aggression if let alone; on the other hand, many a man has lost his life by a totally unexpected and terrifically impetuous at tack. Says -T. H. Porter (Wild Beasts, 1894, p. 371), in a wise summary: "No writer of any note except General Marcy has, as far as the author knows, denied that a grizzly bear soon comes to hay. and that he then devotes his energies to destruction with entire single-mindedness. Those who have met him, alike with those who have acquainted themselves with any completeness with the observations of others. know that this brute's patience under aggression is of the briefest, and his inherent ferocity easily aroused. When it is injured, the animal is exceptionally desperate, and fights from the first as a lion, tiger, and jaguar are apt to do only in their death rally. Colonel Dodge expresses the best opinions upon this point iu saying that 'when wounded, a grizzly bear at tacks with the utmost ferocity, and regardless of the number and nature of his assailants. Then he is. without doubt, the most formidable and dangerous of wild beasts.' 'In some way it has come about.' says Lockwood, 'that . . , Bruin has secured for himself an almost superstitious respect.' I'he way he did so has just been men tioned. Men had reason to fear him, and their veneration followed as a matter of course. It was because he proved 'most formidable and dangerous' that Sehwatka found among the Chil kat Indians the highest clan called brown bears, and for a like reason the native warrior wore his claws as a badge of honor. Ferocity, prowess, and tenacity of life appear most conspicuously in accounts of actual eonfiiet. Enough has been said with respect to the first-named trait, and no one ever called the others in question." The Indians and early hunters captured the animal in pitfalls and very strong traps, or worried it to death by numerous shots. A single bullet fortunately planted in heart or brain may overcome it, but it has been known to survive many heavy balls. It remains one of the prime objects of sportsmen's ambition, and one of the most valuable prizes of the professional hunter, since its pelt, when in good condition, will bring a large price in the market.