Second Autumn in the Ice. 495 



on two or three times. One of the number at last 

 dashed forward over the ice and fired straight down in 

 front of him, while another knelt down and fired towards 

 the east. Were they trying their guns ? But surely it 

 was a strange time for doing so, and there were so many 

 shots. Meanwhile the dogs tore around over the ice, 

 and gathered in clumps, barking furiously. At length I 

 overtook them, and saw three bears scattered over the 

 ice, a she-bear and two cubs, while the dogs lay over 

 them, worrying them like mad and tearing aw r ay at 

 paws, throat, and tail. Ulenka especially was beside 

 herself. She had gripped one of the cubs by the throat, 

 and worried it like a mad thing, so that it was difficult to 

 get her away. The bears had gone very leisurely away 

 from the do^s, which dared not come to sufficiently close 



o > 



quarters to use their teeth till the old she-bear had been 

 wounded and had fallen down. The bears, indeed, had 

 acted in a very suspicious manner. It seemed just as if 

 the she-bear had some deep design, some evil intent, in 

 her mind, if she could only have lured the dogs near 

 enough to her. Suddenly she halted, let the cubs go on 

 in front, sniffed a little, and then came back to meet the 

 doo-s, who at the same time, as if at a word of com- 



5 ' 



mand, all turned tail, and set off towards the west. It 

 was then that the first shot was fired, and the old bear 

 tottered and fell headlong", when immediately some 

 of the doo-s set to and tackled her. One of the cubs 



o 



then got its quietus, while the other one was fired at and 



