22 THRILLING ADVENTURES. 



Solomon, by a desperate effort, got Bruin under him, holding 

 his head down, and sitting plump astride of the beast. The 

 latter, however, soon began to "bear" up ; and all at once, 

 took to his heels like an infuriated bull, Solomon all the while 

 astride, and compelling the bear to follow his nose with as 

 slight a deviation of his jaws from a straight line as possible. 

 On they drove at a furious rate the rider and the ridden 

 the former endeavoring to make a bridle out of the bear's ears 

 and the bear striving as hard to make a bit out of the man's 

 arm. Solomon began to fear, at the rate he was going, that 

 his steed was fast taking him into a whole nest of bears, and 

 probably soliloquised 



" Better to bear the ills we have, 

 Than fly to others that we know not of. 



While in this predicament, Mr. Reed's son happened to 

 overtake them on their journey, and settled all uncertainties 

 by immediately knocking the bear in the head with his axe. 

 Mr. Solomon Reed got some scratches in the scuffle, and 

 Bruin s fat carcass to boot, which, by the way, he imme- 

 diately salted for family use. 



