206 TRUE BEAR STORIES. 



of a slugger himself, and he quickly re- 

 covered and returned the blow with such 

 good will that had the grizzly's head been 

 in the way it would have ached for a week 

 afterward. 



Then the fur began to fly. 



It was impossible to follow the move- 

 ments of the combatants in detail, as they 

 sparred, clinched and rolled about, but in 

 a general way Six-Toed Pete seemed to be 

 trying to make his superior weight tell by 

 rushing at the grizzly and knocking him 

 over, while the latter avoided the direct 

 impact of the cinnamon's great bulk by 

 quick turns and a display of agility that 

 was scarcely credible in so unwieldy look- 

 ing an animal. Once the cinnamon seized 

 the grizzly by the throat and for a moment 

 hushed the latter's fierce growls by chok- 

 ing off his wind, but the grizzly sat down, 

 threw his arm over Pete's neck, placed his 

 other forepaw upon Pete's nose, sunk his 

 claws in deep, and instantly broke the hold, 

 As they parted, the grizzly made a "icious 



