Well, we can't blame them much at that! The problem of keeping the wolf from the door, here at Longmire, is augmented by an equally perplexing condition of keeping the bears from the door. As this is being written it is just a few days past Thanksgiving and in spite of our heavy fall of snow a week or so ago many members of the Bruin clan continue to make the rounds of homes and hotel. And woe be it to anyone who is careless enough to leave something edible where a bear can get a whiff of it. And to a bear anything is edible.

Were it not for the fact that the bears generally postpone their period of hibernation until sometime early in December we might suspect that they await an opportunity of helping dispose of Thanksgiving dinners properly. And therein lies a hint for those of us who despise the aftermath of the Thanksgiving feast - the various assortments of hashes, salads, etc. Just place the elements of such plagues upon the back porch and allow the inevitable to take place.

It appears as if we are to have an early and long old fashioned winter. So it is likely that Bruin will soon be conspicuous by his absence - curled up somewhere within some hollow cedar. And thus he spends the cold winter months, emerging again along about mid-March. Last winter however, due to our late season one big black bear was active almost until Christmas Day.

Marlow Glenn, the Park Accountant at Administrative Headquarters tells us this. Marlow is an ardent follower of Isaak Walton and during the fishing season much of his spare time is spent along some enticing stream trying to convince Messers Fish and friends that the proverbial early bird hasn't a monopoly on this business of getting the worm. Marlow has a good "line" but unfortunately - for the fish - it is attached to a rod. But the fish are smart and even though Marlow is a mathamatician and can consequently count up to numbers that range well into nine figures or so he hasn't had an opportunity to use all these numbers where fish are concerned. But to make this story short he says that just before the fishing season closed he was tempting the trout in the Nisqualy and though he didn't get a nibble he saw several bear, one or two deer and numerous other animals. If hunting wasn't forbidden in the Park we would advise him to throw away his fishing license and get one for hunting.