42 THE HIVE OF THE BEE-HUNTER. 



tongue covered with dust and banging a foot from his 

 mouth; his jaws covered with foam and blood, and bis 

 eyes almost protruding from their sockets, while his 

 ears were so closely pressed to the back of bis bead, 

 that he seemed destitute of those appendages ; the whole, 

 indicative of unbounded rage and terror. These 

 glimpses of the bear were only momentary, his perse- 

 cutors rested but for a breath, and then closed in, re- 

 gardless of their own lives ; for you could discover, min- 

 gled with the sharp bark of defiance, the yell that told 

 of death. 



It was only while the bear was crushing some luckless 

 dog, that they could cover his back, and lacerate it with 

 their teeth. Bob Herring, and one of the hunters, in 

 spite of the danger, crept upon their knees, so near, 

 that it seemed as if another foot advanced would bring 

 them within the circle of the fight. 



Bob Herring was first, within safe shooting distance 

 to save the dogs, and, waving his hand to those behind 

 him, he raised his rifle and sighted; but his favorite dog, 

 impatient for the report, anticipated it by jumping on 

 the bear, which, throwing up his head at the same in- 

 stant, received the ball in his nose; at the crack of the 

 rifle — the well trained doo;s, thiukino; less caution than 

 otherwise necessary, jumped pell-mell on the bear's 

 back, and the hardest fight ever witnessed in Summer 

 Retreat ensued ; the hunter with Bob, placed his gun 

 almost against the bear's side, and the cap snapped — no 



