Rogers then waited until it was within twenty yards, and brained it with
his third bullet.
In fact bears differ individually in courage and ferocity precisely as
men do, or as the Spanish bulls, of which it is said that not more than
one in twenty is fit to stand the combat of the arena. One grisly can
scarcely be bullied into resistance; the next may fight to the end,
against any odds, without flinching, or even attack unprovoked. Hence
men of limited experience in this sport, generalizing from the actions
of the two or three bears each has happened to see or kill, often
reach diametrically opposite conclusions as to the fighting temper and
capacity of the quarry. Even old hunters--who indeed, as a class, are
very narrow-minded and opinionated--often generalize just as rashly as
beginners. One will portray all bears as very dangerous; another will
speak and act as if he deemed them of no more consequence than so many
rabbits. I knew one old hunter who had killed a score without ever
seeing one show fight.
Pages:
105
106
107
108
109
110
111
112
113
114
115
116
117
118
119
120
121
122
123
124
125
126
127
128
129