Cherokee mythology says that black bears were once men who became weary of man's ways and decided to transform themselves, walk on all fours and live a simpler life. Brother Bear made a pact with the Cherokee that allowed men to hunt them when it was necessary for man's survival.

The black bear was important to the culture of Native Americans, a people inextricably close to the earth. They knew the bear as a special animal -- wise, elusive and not a threat to man. Those attributes still describe the black bear today. Many people don't even know we have black bears in South Carolina, within a few miles of Greenville and even Myrtle Beach. In a world with ever-shrinking wilderness, the bear is more than a wild icon. Bears are a prime indicator of the wildness and quality of an open landscape. Our ability to co-exist with bears says much about how we value wild places and the very Earth upon which we live.

Just as Native Americans occasionally hunted Brother Bear, so do we, for as long as European descendants have lived here. Often to protect crops, often for food, but most recently for sport, bear hunting is clearly a part of the cultural heritage of mountain folk.

I occasionally hunt game, but I'm not a bear hunter. Living in a remote area, I've had plenty of close encounters with bears, but I've never had the urge to kill one. Just seeing one of these majestic and elusive creatures is enough. For a marksman, shooting a bear would be somewhat akin to shooting a small refrigerator -- not much sport.

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Nonetheless, I have supported the limited bear season in South Carolina, and vigorously defended it to my non-hunting friends. Bear season is only one week of still hunt -- man against bear, and one week of dog hunt -- man and dog against bear. The sound of a good chase has rung through these hills for generations, connecting us to times gone by and perpetuating a love of the mountains and wild places.

Despite the loss of nearly half the available public mountain hunting land in the past 10 years and more loss projected, bear hunting has nearly doubled in that same period, with over 1,200 hunters participating in the dog hunt alone. For those who live near these public lands, the effect of quadrupling the number of hunters per acre during the week of dog hunting is an understandable concern. Most folks who actually live here don't bear hunt and "tolerate" is the word often used to describe the bear hunting "invasion" in the last week of October.

It's no surprise, then, that many of my neighbors and I strongly oppose the current legislation (H4448) that would extend the season for hunting bears with dogs, and add an incredible six weeks to chase (but not shoot) bears with dogs at night. (A practice that can end badly for young cubs, often separated from their mothers and at the mercy of a pack of hounds.) H4448 is a one-sided bill, favoring only bear hunters, at the expense of the rest of us. I suspect it's not too good for Brother Bear, either.

It's perfectly understandable that the Bear Hunters' Association would want more hunt days. We share the same love of the outdoors and association members generally hunt in an ethical manner. The current legislation, however, will apply to all hunters, not just ethical hunters or hunters who belong to the association. H4448 is a bad bill that will create an arcane, cumbersome and largely unenforceable patchwork of bear hunting regulations. Its result will certainly be burdensome to the non-hunting public living near public lands.

I urge the Senate to only approve a bill that: 1) ensures the bears' survival in viable numbers; 2) provides ethical hunters a reasonable opportunity to hunt; 3) is enforceable -- in clear, unambiguous language that will promote a fair, ethical chase, and safe conduct; and 4) is not burdensome or unsafe for the non-hunting public majority. The current legislation does none of this and should be scrapped or completely rewritten.

It's only right that we try to honor the ancient pact the Cherokee made with Brother Bear. I believe that legislation can be drafted that does that, and ensures that we will always have bears in our woods, and that those who choose to hunt them have a reasonable opportunity to do so in an ethical manner that is respectful of the non-hunting public.

Learn more about this issue at http://www.scbear.org/, make up your own mind, and contact your legislators to voice your opinion.