attained to that degree that he has become acquainted with the Lady of the Wood.-Once from necessity," he says, "I had occasion to show my art of witchcraft. I had, by means of my good partridge-dog, (Caresse,) brought to a stand and shot three deer, of which two lay on the spot, and the third at a short distance. Three peasants, with hatchets to fell trees thereabout, came in a friendly manner and saluted me. They knew me well; but when they began to consider whether it was not their land on which the deer lay, I was necessitated to let them understand that I was acquainted with the Lady of the Wood. I had my horses at a hut a short way off, whence I was obliged to fetch them, in order to carry away the deer as fast as possible. In the mean time, I requested one of the peasants to remain, after I had with much ceremony, in the sight of all, plucked a tuft of hair from the largest deer and laid it on the gun-case, gone three times round each deer, and laid a cross on them of wooden pegs, which were split in three places at one end. I then directed him who staid behind to seat himself on the deer until I returned, that no harm should happen to him; which advice he took and followed, and I carried off my deer without opposition."

I mention these anecdotes to show, that the Swedish peasantry, like our own, are far from being exempt from idle and superstitious notions.

My guide's brother, whose Christian name was Lars, during the early part of the preceding summer, met with a rather singular adventure; the scene of it lay at only some eight or nine miles to the north-east of Tönnet.

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One morning, at a very early hour, he and another peasant proceeded to a Svedgefall," in the vicinity of a "Sätterwall," where they had quartered during the preceding night, for the purpose of shooting hares; as, in such situations, for the sake of feeding upon the young grass, these animals are commonly to be found in the spring of the year.

At this pasturage several horses were grazing, one of which a large bear had that instant attacked and desperately wounded. With one of his terrible paws the ferocious brute kept his hold of the poor horse, whilst with the other he was endeavouring to retard his farther progress, (for being a rather large and powerful animal he succeeded for some little distance in dragging his enemy along with him,) by grasping at the surrounding trees. On seeing the peasants, however, making towards him,-for there was little cover in the immediate vicinity of the spot,-the bear quitted his hold of the horse, and retreated into the adjoining forest, and there also the latter took refuge.

But the bear was not to be so disappointed of his prey; for, by the time the peasants had pene

trated a short distance into the brake,—which they did rather under the idea of rendering the horse the assistance of which he stood so much in need, than of again seeing the bear,-the latter had renewed his attacks upon the poor animal, who now, from being already disabled from wounds and loss of blood, was soon brought to the ground.

The beast's career, however, was speedily at an end, though this was not until the horse had received so much injury that he died shortly afterwards, for the peasants coming up to the spot in double quick time, presently succeeded with their guns in destroying him.

This bear was supposed to be the same that had committed several similar depredations a short time previously; and his skin, which was a moderately large one, subsequently came into my own possession.

Circumstances something similar to the above not unfrequently happen in the Scandinavian forests; and I have heard it asserted that the bear, when thus carried along by the horse, and when in his attempts to retard the progress of the poor animal, by grasping with one of his paws at the surrounding trees and bushes, not uncommonly tears them up by the roots. Should the bear succeed, however, in catching hold of a tree that is firmly embedded in the soil, it is then all over with his victim; for, owing to his enormous

muscular strength, the career of the horse is at once stopped, and he is quickly brought to the ground.

It seems rather extraordinary that so clumsy and ill-shaped a looking brute as a bear should be able to run down a horse; but such, whether owing to the fears of the animal, or to the advantages of ground, is beyond doubt of every-day occurrence. Until he has brought his victim down, it is said, the bear seldom makes use of his teeth, but strikes his prey on the back and sides with his terrible paws, as if with a sledge-hammer. Sometimes, I take it, the horse, by flinging out behind, makes his escape; for it is not an uncommon circumstance for a bear to be killed, wanting an eye or a fang, which the peasants suppose, and with some reason, has been caused by the heels of horses.

Now and then a horse is to be found in Scandinavia that is not afraid of a bear, and I have heard of more than one instance where that useful animal has defended himself successfully against the attacks of those ferocious brutes. On these occasions, it is said, the bear keeps wheeling round the horse with the endeavour to take him at disadvantage; whilst the latter parries the assaults of his assailant as well with his fore-feet as with his heels. The scene of action is therefore usually confined to a small space, and from the manner in which the ground is trodden down, and

turned up, about the spot, there is reason to suppose these apparently unequal contests have at times been of hours' continuance. I heard of one horse, in particular, that had in several instances greatly distinguished himself in these combats with Bruin.

The wounds that the bear inflicts upon cattle, when he attacks them, are sometimes dreadful to look upon; indeed, I myself saw a living horse that had been within the clutches of one of those ferocious brutes some few days previously, but from which he had been rescued, owing to an accidental circumstance; in the back and neck of the poor steed, were holes of such a size, that, without exaggeration, I could almost have buried my hand in them; this horse died a few days subsequently.

The sufferings of animals, when attacked by a bear, or other wild beast, must often be horrible. I have heard of nearly the whole of the hindquarters of a cow or a horse having been actually devoured, and yet the poor creatures had been found alive.

To proceed. Though my guide and myself beat a considerable tract of ground during the day, we only fell in with a very few capercali; but I was fortunate enough to bag three of those birds in spite of Per's predictions to the contrary.

There was much snow in the trees at that time;