Apparently no other large animal has such intense curiosity as the
grizzly. An object in the distance, a scent, a sound, or a trail, may
arouse this, and for a time overcome his intense and wary vigilance.
In satisfying this curiosity he will do unexpected and apparently bold
things. But the instant the mystery is solved he is himself again, and
may run for dear life from some situation into which his curiosity has
unwittingly drawn him. An unusual noise behind Johnny's shed would
bring him out with a rush, to determine what it was. If not at once
satisfied as to the cause, he would put his fore paws on the top of
the shed and peer over in the most eager and inquiring manner
imaginable. Like a scout, he spied mysterious and dim objects afar. If
a man, a dog, or a horse, appeared in the distance, he quickly
discovered the object, and at once stood erect, with fore paws drawn
up, until he had a good look at it. The instant he made out what it
was, he lost interest in it. At all times he was vigilant to know what
was going on about him.
He was like a boy in his fondness for water. Usually, when unchained
and given the freedom of the place, he would spend much of the time in
the brook, rolling, playing, and wading. He and I had a few
foot-races, and usually, in order to give me a better chance, we ran
down hill. In a two-hundred-yard dash he usually paused three or four
times and waited for me to catch up, and I was not a slow biped,
either.
The grizzly, though apparently awkward and lumbering, is really one of
the most agile of beasts. I constantly marveled at Johnny's lightness
of touch, or the deftness of movement of his fore paws. With but one
claw touching it, he could slide a coin back and forth on the floor
more rapidly and lightly than I could. He would slide an eggshell
swiftly along without breaking it. Yet by using but one paw, he could,
without apparent effort, overturn rocks that were heavier than
himself.