86 PEPACTON : A SUMMER VOYAGE. 



with a club, if you only knew where to strike. He 

 had seen how quickly the largest hog would wilt be- 

 neath a slight blow across the " small of the back." 

 So, armed with an immense handspike, he took up a 

 position by a large rock that the bear must pass. 

 On she came, panting and nearly exhausted, and at 

 the right moment down came the club with great 

 force upon the small of her back. " If a fly had 

 Alighted upon her," said Mr. Knapp, "I think she 

 would have paid just as much attention to it as she 

 did to me." 



Early in the afternoon I encountered another boy, 

 Henry Ingersoll, who was so surprised by my sudden 

 and unwonted appearance that he did not know east 

 from west. " Which way is west ? " I inquired, to 

 see if my own head was straight on the subject. 



" That way," he said, indicating east within a few 

 degrees. 



"You are wrong," I replied. "Where does the 

 gun rise ? " 



" There," he said, pointing almost in the direction 

 he had pointed before. 



" But does not the sun rise in the east here as well 

 &s elsewhere ? " I rejoined. 



u Well, they call that west, anyhow." 



But Henry's needle was subjected to a disturbing 

 influence just then. His house was near the river, 

 a-nd he was its sole guardian and keeper for the time 

 his father had gone up to the next neighbor's (it war 

 Sunday), and his sister had gone with the school 



