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JER. ii. 24.

"A wild ass used to the wilderness, that snuffeth up the wind at her pleasure; in her occasion who can turn her away?"

xiv. 6.

"The wild asses did stand in the high places, they snuffed up the wind like dragons; their eyes did fail, because there was no grass.

[DEUT. xxii. 10; JOSH. xv. 18; ISAIAH Xxxii. 14.]

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When travelling in Persia, Mr. Morier writes:-" On the desert......in the gray of the morning, we gave chase to two wild asses, which had so much the speed of our horses, that when they had got at some distance, they stood still and looked behind at us, snorting with their

noses in the air, as if in contempt of our endeavours to catch them. The Persians sometimes succeed in killing them, but not without great dexterity and knowledge of their haunts. To effect this, they place relays of horsemen and dogs upon the track which they are known to pursue, and then hunt them toward the relays, when the fresh dogs and horses are started upon the half-exhausted animal. This animal is common to the whole of Persia, although its proper soil is Arabia. It is of a light mouse-colour, with a dark streak over its shoulders and down its back. The head is large, but it is much more light and lively than the common ass in its gait. It is of a most obstinate nature, and seems to be extremely refractory under any restraint. The wildness and love of liberty which characterize this animal are beautifully described by the prophet Jeremiah :'A wild ass used to the wilderness, that snuffeth up the wind at her pleasure,' (ch. ii. 24,) and again in ch. xiv. 6, when their image is allied to all the horrors of a parched desert."-MORIER's Second Journey through Persia, &c., pp. 200-202.

"The skins and hoofs of the wild ass are sold by the Arabs to the pedlars of Damascus, and to the people of Hauran. The hoofs furnish materials for rings, which are worn by the peasants on their thumbs, or fastened under the arm-pits, as charms against rheumatism."BURCKHARDT'S Notes on the Bedouins, &c., vol. i. p.

221.

"The best asses are those of Arabian blood. Their coat is smooth and clean; they carry the head elevated, and have fine and well-formed legs, which they throw out gracefully. They are used only for the saddle, and are imported in vast numbers into Persia, where they fetch a high price, are richly caparisoned, taught an easy ambling pace, and used only by the nobles."CHARDIN.

WHITE ASS.

White asses come from Arabia; their scarcity makes them valuable, and gives them consequence. Mr. Morier says, that in Ispahan in Persia, "The Mollahs, or men of the law, are generally to be seen riding about on mules; and they also account it a dignity, and suited to their character, to ride on white asses, which is a striking illustration of what we read in Judges v. 10." -MORIER'S Second Journey through Persia, p. 136.

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BEAR.

1 SAM. xvii. 34.

Thy servant kept his father's sheep, and there came a lion and a bear, and took a lamb out of the flock."

2 KINGS ii. 23, 24.

"And (Elisha) went up...unto Bethel; and as he was going up by the way, there came forth little children out of the city, and mocked him...and he turned back, and looked on them, and cursed them in the name of the Lord. And there came forth two she bears out of the wood, and tare forty and two children of them."

ISAIAH xi. 7.

"And the cow and the bear shall feed; their young ones shall lie down together."

HOSEA xiii. 8.

"I will meet them as a bear that is bereaved of her whelps."

[2 SAM. xvii. 8. PROV. XVII. 12.]

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The bear mentioned in Scripture is the brown bear, so called to distinguish it from the white Polar bear, which is a far more savage animal. The brown bear lives upon berries, young birds, and eggs; seldom attacking animals, unless forced to do so by hunger. It spends most of its time in its hole in the earth, or in the hollow of old trees, and throughout the winter remains quite torpid, living upon its own fat by absorption. The bear is a most useful animal. Of its skin the people of Kamtschatka make caps, gloves, dogcollars, and night-coverings, and shoe-soles which vent their slipping when on the ice. Of its intestines, well scraped and cleaned, window panes are constructed as clear as Muscovy glass, and also masks for the women, which protect their faces from the beams of the sun, which in those countries often blacken the skin, from being reflected from the snow. Sickles are formed from the shoulder-blades, warm dresses from the black bearskins; the fat of the animal melts into excellent oil, and the flesh is reckoned a feast. The exceeding love of the mother for her young ones is well known, and the most affecting stories are related of her sorrow and mournful cries when any evil befals them. This maternal tenderness in the bear is often alluded to in the Bible.

Bears are so fond of honey that they will climb trees in search of bees' nests. They are often caught in Russia by a heavy block of wood, being suspended by a rope before the bees' nest, so that the bear must remove the obstacle before he can reach the longed-for honey. He tries to push it away, but it returns and strikes him; the next push, accompanied by a heavy growl, is

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