THE BEAR HUNT. "A bear," commenced our Alcibiades, "as colossal in size as unequalled in strength, had become the terror of the inhabitants of the whole country between Bucharest and Cempino, near the Carpatho-Romano - Moldavian mountains. The haunts of the monster were chiefly confined to the interminable forest of Poeinar, which is traversed by the road from Bucharest to Kronstadt, at Transylvania. This dreadful animal had been known to the inhabitants for about eight or ten years, during which time he had destroyed more than four hundred head of oxen, and other domestic animals. It appeared as if the inhabitants were panicstruck, for no one dared to attack him; his last exploit, and which at length awakened the attention of the chief divan of the district, was as follows: "A large quantity of wine, destined for Bucharest, was being slowly transported across the hills, and, according to the usual custom, the drivers halted for repose and refreshment during the heat of the day. The animals were released from their teams and left to graze along the side of the road close to the forest, when suddenly a dreadful roaring was heard; the drivers ran to the spot, and beheld in the midst of the buffaloes a black animal of most formidable dimensions, who had already seized one and thrown it on its back, where he held it, in spite of the fearful struggles of the agonized victim, with one of his claws, like the grasp of an iron vice, and escaped upon his other three legs with his illfated prey. "This apparently half-fabulous intelligence attracted not only the attention of the government, but that of the lovers of the chase in Bucharest and the adjacent country; namely, the Bojars, Kostaki, Kornesko, Manoulaki-Floresko, the bey Zadey-Soutzo, and myself. A grand hunt was speedily projected, and the whole admirably organized by one of the party, Signor Floresko, of the foreign department. "It was planned that the bear, when first traced, was to be driven forward by five or six hundred peasants into a semicircle composed of about a hundred huntsmen. "The appointed day arrived, and these arrangements having been made in the most silent manner possible, the signal was given to commence the chase by a long blast of the hunting-horn, which was quickly followed by the sounds of other most noisy instruments, and the loud shouts of the peasants; it was not long before a shot resounded to my right, near the spot where Signor Kornesko stood, which was succeeded by a dead silence; after the lapse of a few minutes, I heard the rush of some animal through the thickets, the noise of whose steps among the dry leaves was doubled by the stillness of a clear October day. My visitor was a well-fed fox; he presented himself about eighty paces distant; I shot him through the head, and again the former stillness succeeded: but the drivers drawing nearer, the tremendous uproar re-commenced. It was perfectly frightful to hear our Moldavian peasants (scattered over two leagues of ground) utter their piercing cries and still more frightful wailings, while they beat the trees with sticks, clappers, and other discordant noisy instruments. I now heard at about the distance of half a league two shots, which were immediately followed by the most deafening yells, and the word Ours! Ours! (which in the Romano-Moldavian language is sounded as in French) fell distinctly on my ear. 6 "The prince, or bey, Zadey-Soutzo, came up to me, saying, Seigneur Alcibiades, the bear has broken through the cordon formed by the drivers. What have you killed?' "A fine fox, as you see here before you;' the Mameluke who attended him carried the animal away. On "At this moment Signor Kornesko joined us, and we all went together to the spot where the bear had disappeared; there we found Florensko, who was endeavouring to ascertain the track. demanding who had shot at the bear? we were told it was Lazar, the hunter, but that he had merely grazed his back; the other shot was from the musket of a peasant, past whom the bear ran with astonishing rapidity, breaking down the young trees which interrupted his progress. The poor fellow, excessively frightened, fell upon his back, which caused his rifle to explode without his assistance; his deplorable plight was the subject of much merriment to us, and we re-called his scattered senses by a pretty strong dose of brandy. "We now followed the track of the bear, and about a hundred paces further discovered spots of sweat on the leaves and bark of the trees; they were about the height of a middle-sized man. I demanded of Lazar, who had shot at him, whether he ran on his hind legs or all "I now began to attach some credit to the marvellous accounts I had heard of the enormous size and strength of the monster; and my curiosity to see him, together with my desire for his destruction, were most strongly excited. "For a considerable time I wandered about with the rest of the company, who had sent for a pack of hounds that had been left at the nearest village; until, weary of this ineffectual search, I took a wild, unfrequented path, and turned to the left in the thickest part of the forest, where I hoped to be able to find a passage to lead to the provision carriage, which I knew was in this direction, for 1 had become excessively hungry. "After walking a short distance, I entered a valley which might with truth be termed virgin; tremendous oaks had here died through age, and wild herbs and young plants had grown up in the cheering light of the sun out of their decayed trunks, while eternal twilight reigned beneath the wide-spreading branches of those which still bloomed in all the vigour and freshness of youth. Invited by their cooling shades, I sought repose for a few minutes; I had not long enjoyed it, when I was suddenly startled by a noise resembling that of a whole squadron of cavalry bearing down in full gallop upon me; when, behold, I saw the terrific coal-black monster, flying with the rapidity of lightning, at about two hundred paces distant; there was no possibility of getting a shot at him, but his size, strength, and prodigious swiftness, far exceeded any I had ever seen among the white Arctic bears, or the black Siberian. I pursued him in a westerly direction, guided by the loud barking of the dogs, who were upon his scent. I soon joined a bojar, the chief officer of Signor Florensko; the unfortunate man seemed much animated by the chase, for he said, 'I have a strong presentiment that I shall reach the bear, and I have ordered some of the best shots in the band of huntsmen to follow me.' "We now entered a deep part of the forest, thickly overspread with wild fruit trees; here, among old trunks of trees, and rocky caverns, was, I presumed, the bear's favourite retreat: indeed, we soon discovered traces of him, and the earth was covered in several places with his excrements. In this strange and savage spot I determined to take up my position and await the chance of meeting the enemy. Signor Kostaki continued the pursuit. Tired, and suffering from excessive heat, I lay down, together with my faithful dog, beneath the extensive foliage of an immense wild apple-tree, lighted up my tchoubouk, and commanded Amica, a most powerful wolfdog, thoroughly trained against man or beast, to keep a strict watch. I might have dreamed for about half an hour, enveloped in the elysium of clouds of smoke, when I was suddenly aroused by the violent rushing of approaching animals. I cautiously arose and stepped behind the trunk of a large tree, when I observed about a dozen wild swine, preceded by an immense boar, who acted as leader; these were quickly followed by others, until I distinctly reckoned twentythree. Holding my dog back, I crept like a serpent under the protection of a fallen oak, till I came within eighty paces of them; my object was to bring down the great boar, as I knew from long and dangerous experience in the Mongolei, that on such occasions, unless the chief falls, the continuance of the life of the hunter is doubtful; but, as if influenced by a presentiment of what was likely to happen, he continued moving onward, and as I feared that the whole band would soon be out of the reach of a bullet, I determined, cost what it would, to secure one of them; and as a full-grown one, armed with huge tusks, happened to present himself in the right position, I took a deadly aim and fired, when, after running a few paces, he fell; the others disappeared in an instant, and the former stillness again reigned in the forest. "It appeared the hunters were scattered in different directions, each expecting that the dogs would drive the bear in his own immediate vicinity; for myself, feeling secure that I had ascertained his retreat, I waited in anxious expectation of surprising him. 'My shot in the meantime must have been heard, and I sounded several times on my horn, in order to collect a few of the peasants to carry off the boar I had killed. I was speedily joined by about thirty. Though mortally wounded, he gnashed frightfully with his teeth, until one of the huntsmen dispatched him with a short hunting sword: it was a noble animal, both in size and fatness, and I received the congratulations of the whole party. During this time I observed a peasant from the neighbourhood of Poeinar attentively observing my booty. What dost thou seem to wonder at in the boar, friend?' said I. "It is very singular, signor,' answered the peasant, but I could have sworn that this fellow is no stranger to me. About five or six years ago, one of my finest pigs formed a connexion with a flock of wild swine, and shortly after entirely disappeared in the woods; but, however, we can see if he has my mark -a slit in the left ear.' 'Donner und Wetter,' cried the peasant, in raptures, he is mine!' and without a doubt the mark was visible to us all. It may easily be supposed that my trophy, a noble boar of the free-forests, transformed into a household pig, the property of a Moldavian peasant, became the subject of the united laughter of my companions. · "I know not when the jokes of the hunters would have ceased, if they had not been interrupted by the distant tumultuous noise of the dogs, who seemed approaching, and we concluded, by the sound, they might be still about a league from us. The whole party left me, except Lazar, the same hunter who had first shot the bear. As the cry of the hounds died away, I seated myself by my inglorious game, and again commenced smoking my tchoubouk; but I was almost immediately aroused by the near approach of the dogs in full cry, succeeded by a frightful roar, which seemed to overwhelm every other sound. With my gun on the cock, I flew forward; a momentary silence ensued, which was almost instantly succeeded by a violent crash like a thunder-storm, for I observed the underwood before me bowing and crackling, and on the very same foot-path which I had taken, the long sought for hideous monster stood before me, completely filling the space between the trees with his enormous mass. I was no sooner observed by the ferocious brute than he flew at me with a powerful spring, sending forth a howl so loud and piercing that it nearly stunned me, and literally shook the air. Conscious, however, that there was now no other alternative but death or victory, I allowed my opponent to approach within six paces, took a deadly aim, and fired with the same lucky barrel that had already laid prostrate the fox and the boar. The ball struck the terrific animal exactly between the eyes; he seemed paralyzed for a moment, in which happy pause my faithful Amico gallantly sprung forward. Bewildered perhaps by the unexpected appearance of the large white dog, and its furious bellowing, he afforded me sufficient time to lodge a second bullet precisely in the same spot, whilst Lazar, who had taken up a safe position behind a large oak, sent him a third, which however did him but little injury, as the bullet was afterward found buried in his fat. "I distinctly saw, by the two streams of blood which issued from his forehead, his hopeless situation; this was also evinced by his breathing. I drew my hunting-knife and sought, aided by my dog, to stun him with the loudest shouting; upon which, perceiving us advance, he roared tremendously, and seemed disposed to escape into the thicket; his tottering walk proved that his strength was fast declining, and, when about thirty paces distant, he fell. "As I could not follow him with perfect safety, I re-loaded my gun, and tried to irritate him, in order that he might turn round and give me an opportunity of sending him another bullet in the most vital part. He lay perfectly still, occasionally wiping the streaming blood from his face with his fore-paws, like a human being: assisted by my dog, we attacked him with great fury, and perceiving no chance of safety, he commenced breaking the branches of the trees which surrounded him, and hurled them at us with immense force; then raised himself up, and apparently, with all his pristine strength, attacked me with the force of desperation; but his last moment was approaching. I allowed him to advance, and when almost touching the barrel of my gun, he received the entire charge-my last deadly shot. The death-struggle was momentary, for he sunk forward, sprinkling my face with his blood, and almost burying me under his enormous mass. The last groan he uttered exceeded in horror all that I had ever heard—a tone so full and deep, so despairing and piercing, that the whole forest resounded, and the echoes of the rocks seemed to repeat it with a shudder! "I was now surrounded by Signor Floresko and hundreds of men, each looking at the huge beast almost with affright. I was overwhelmed with congratulations by all present, at having slain the monster, which had bsen so long the terror of the whole country. "I must confess that I had never before encountered a danger so imminent, so formidable in its aspect; neither did I ever obtain a victory that gave me greater pleasure. "We were obliged to have the young wood cleared away before we could drag "In the meantime, Floresko informed me that he feared his chief officer, Kotaski, would be the victim of this day, for he had been found in a horrible situation. Shortly after, the unfortunate young man was conveyed to us on a bier in a most deplorable condition; his clothes and limbs rent and mangled, his entrails torn out, his spine broken; in short, it was impossible to save him. After lingering a few hours in dreadful agony, he died. "Thus the death of the ferocious animal was avenged, and our victory dearly purchased! "The bear was placed on a wagon, drawn by four horses, to be conveyed to Bucharest, but this plan we were obliged to abandon, as the body emitted such a noisome stench that the whole atmo sphere was poisoned; it was therefore flayed on the spot. The fat was found to weigh 800 pounds, and the flesh and bones 963 pounds. From between the ears to the extremity of the back, he measured nineteen feet; and, according to a calculation based on Gall's system, must have been between 170 and 180 years of age. He was entirely black, and his teeth much worn, and was no doubt a Siberian bear, which at different times had been hunted to this wood, where he had found a secure asylum; in his left leg and back were two broken arrows. I presented the skin to my friend, Namack Pasha, a general in the service of the Ottoman empire. His skull I have retained for myself, and also part of his fat, which I have preserved in my ice-house at Bucharest. "The female, with two young ones, which have already arrived at the size of large oxen, have been seen about Poeinar and the neighbouring forests; she is said to be very little inferior to her consort, either in magnitude or ferocity. You may therefore, gentlemen," concluded Seigneur Alcibiades, laughing, "obtain laurels similar to those with which I am crowned; and, by performing such an exploit, you would eclipse old Hercules and his boar, because that animal can scarcely see two feet beyond his head, is very awkward at turning, and never climbs a tree; whereas no mortal foot can escape the pursuit of an enraged bear."-Tutti Frutti, by a German Prince. STANZAS. (For the Parterre). When fell Disease, with serpent fold, April 29, 1828. MISCELLANIES. FISHING NOT A CRUEL SPORT. "Fishes (you know a whale is not a fish) have no natural affection. How can you expect it in spawn? Fry, half an inch long, issue from the gravel without parental eyes to look after them, so they are fortunately incapable of filial ingratitude. You do not reduce a whole family to starvation by clapping an odd old fish into Nor can you break the heart your creel. of an odd old fish by wheedling before who owe their existence to him, and to his eyes all the younkers out of a pool the old lady you captivated and seduced in early spring, by the lure of a marchbrown, the most killing of Quakers."Blackwood's Magazine. OTTO OF ROSES. In a work published some time since, by Monsieur de Marlés, entitled "Histoire Generale des Inde Ancienne et moderne," etc.; we find the following account of the discovery of this very fragrant extract. "It is said to have been in Lahore that chance led to the discovery of the essence of rose. The Begum or favourite Sultana of the Emperor Shah-Iehaun, seeking to strengthen his passion by attaching him to herself by delightful sensations, conceived the idea of bathing in a pool of rose-water, and had the reservoir of her garden filled with it. The rays of the sun acting upon this water, the essence which it contained concentrated itself in little particles of oil which floated on the surface of the basin. At first it was thought that this matter was produced by fermentation, and that it was a sign of corruption or fetidity; but as they tried to gather it in order to clean the basin, they perceived that it exhaled a delicious smell. This it was that gave the idea of extracting in future the essence of roses, by a process corresponding with that which nature had employed.' GINGER YILL. A short time since, a Baillie of Glasgow invited some of his electioneering friends to dinner, during which the champagne circulated freely, and was much relished by the honest bodies; when one of them, more fond of it than the rest, bawled out to the servant who waited, "I say Jock, gie us some more o' that ginger yill, will ye!"B. Q. T. CONSEQUENCE OF POPULARITY. "My door," says Mrs. Siddons, "was soon beset by various persons quite unknown to me, whose curiosity was on the alert to see the new actress, some of whom actually forced their way into my drawing-room, in spite of remonstrance or opposition. This was as inconvenient as it was offensive; for, as I usually acted three times a week, and had, besides, to attend the rehearsals, I had but little time to spend unnecessarily. One morning, though I had previously given orders not to be interrupted, my servant entered the room in a great hurry, saying, 'Ma'am I am very sorry to tell you that there are some ladies below, who say they must see you, and it is impossible for me to prevent it. I have told them over and over again that you are particularly engaged, but all in vain; and now, ma'am, you may actually hear them on the stairs.' I felt extremely indignant at such unparalleled impertinence; and before the servant had done speaking to me, a tall, elegant, invalidlooking person presented herself (whom, I am afraid, I did not receive very graciously); and after her, four more, in slow succession. A very awkward silence took place; when presently the first lady began to accost me, with a most inveterate Scotch twang, and in a dialect which was scarcely intelligible to me in those days. She was a person of very high rank her curiosity, however, had been too powerful for her good breeding. You must think it strange,' said she, 'to see a person entirely unknown to you intrude in this manner upon your privacy; but, you must know, I am in a very delicate state of health, and my physician won't let me go to the theatre to see you, so I am to look at you here.' She accordingly sat down to look, and I to be looked at, for a few painful moments, when she arose and apologised; but I was in no humour to overlook such insolence, and so let her depart in silence. Campbell's life of Siddons. OTWAY'S VENICE PRESERVED. "It is pretty well known," says Campbell in his life of Mrs. Siddons, "that Otway founded his tragedy on St. Real's history of the Venetian conspiracy in 1618. Nearly the whole of the dramatis personæ are real persons. Belvidera, however, is fictitious. The real Renault was no villain, and the real Pierre was privately strangled on board his own ship, by order of the Venetian senate. The prose and true Jaffier was not melted in his faith to the conspiracy by a woman's tears, but was struck with compunction during a city jubilee, when he contrasted its gaiety with the horrors and massacres that would result from the plot. Otway's Jaffier is eventually more pathetic and dramatic, but St. Real's history is wonderfully impressive. Voltaire compares its author to Sallust, and not unworthily." FASHION is a deformed little monster, with a chameleon skin, bestriding the shoulders of public opinion. Though weak in itself, like most other despots, it has gradually usurped a degree of power that is irresistible, and prevails in vari ous forms over the whole habitable earth. It is the greatest tyrant in the world. A LITERARY SHOEMAKER. "Hans Sachs, the old poet of Nuremberg," says Mrs. Jameson, " did as much for the Reformation, by his songs and satires, as Luther and the doctors by their preaching: besides being one of the worshipful company of meistersingers, he found time to make shoes, and even to enrich himself by his trade; he informs us himself, that he had composed and written with his own hand, "four thousand two hundred mastership songs; two hundred and eight comedies, tragedies, and farces; one thousand seven hundred fables, tales, and miscellaneous poems; and seventy-three devotional, military, and love songs." It is said he excelled in humour, but it was such as might have been expected from the times-it was vigorous and coarse. "Hans," says the critic, "tells his tale like a convivial burgher, fond of his can, and still fonder of his drollery." If this be the case, his house has received a very appropriate designation: it is now an ale-house, from which as I looked up, the mixed odours of beer and tobacco, and the sound of voices singing in chorus streamed through the latticed windows. "Drollery and the can," were as rife in the dwelling of the immortal shoemaker, as they would have been in his own days, and in his own jovial presence. |