Russell owned a copy of William T. Hornaday’s popular book The American Natural History (1903), which sought to raise public awareness concerning the endangered species of wildlife in the America West. Russell himself needed no prompting on this issue; from the beginning he had spoken out against the wanton slaughter of the buffalo, the grizzly bear, the mountain sheep, the pronghorn, and the wolf. At one point he told his protégé, Joe DeYong, that the animals’ ranges were shrinking so rapidly that there would be “no wild country in the world unless something happens.” This is among a set of models of animals that were part of an important collection of Russell’s work that was owned by the Mint Saloon in Great Falls. These models were never altered by being cast in bronze, and are thus in excellent and original condition. They all offer insight into Russell’s approach to modeling. In an illustrated letter written to his protégé, Joe DeYong, in 1913, Russell wrote: “In my smaller things I use beeswax. The wax must be warmed before handling [and] if your figure is well wired . . . it will last if not too roughly handled. The wire in the legs of the animal should be tacked to the wooden base.” In the case of models like this grizzly bear, Russell created a separate base of cast plaster, punching holes through it for the wires before the plaster had a chance to dry thoroughly. Other holes poked in the plaster could be used for small tufts of shredded hemp rope, which the artist would later paint to simulate clumps of prairie grass or sage. As with all his wax models of this type, Russell created the general shape of the animal first, then stuck wires in it to stiffen it and attach it to the base. He explained that it was easier for him to fashion the natural musculature and fluid movement of the animal that way.