A GKIZZLY'S SLY JOKE. Ill 



old mother sitting down quietly waiting 

 for him! 



After recovering his breath as best he 

 could in his hot and contracted quarters, 

 he elbowed and corkscrewed himself back 

 to the place by which he first entered. But 

 lo! the bear was there, sitting down, half 

 smiling, and waiting to receive him 

 warmly. This, the old Indian said, was 

 repeated time after time, till he had no 

 longer strength left to struggle further, 

 and turned on his face to die, when she 

 put her head in, touched the top of his head 

 gently with her nose and then drew back, 

 took her cub with her and shuffled on. 



I went to the spot with the Indian a day 

 or two afterward, and am convinced that 

 his story was exactly as narrated. And 

 when you understand that the bear could 

 easily have entered the hollow log and 

 killed him at any time, you will see that 

 she had at least a faint sense of fun in 

 that "cat and mouse" amusement with the 

 frightened Indian. 



