THE BLACK BEAR. 239 



was SO astonished at the suddeness of the whole 

 proceeding, that I was among the laggards. Not 

 so, however, tl>e hrave little man. He was at least 

 sixty yards ahead of every one, his plucky little 

 pony charging at full speed the nearest bear. 

 The animal on seeing the approach of these novel 

 visitors, and not knowing what to make of it, sat up 

 on its hind legs, roaring and looking round with 

 a fierce and stupefied air. The little man rushed 

 on and had put his spear in rest for the charge 

 before the bear thought of taking flight. At last, 

 however, he made up his mind and turned tail with 

 that awkward shambling gait which is peculiar to 

 his race. The little man was very soon after him, 

 however, and succeeded in giving him several good 

 smart prods behind. 



This was too much for the patience of Master 

 Bruin, who turned round sharply and seized the 

 pony with its claws. The pony stopped short 

 and backed, throwing its rider clean over its head. 

 In his passage through the air, the little man 

 described a summerset which, in spite of the danger 

 in which he was, was comical enough to provoke 

 general hilarity. 



Happily for our hero, the pony was somewhat 

 larger than he was, and consequently attracted all 

 the notice of the bear. Thanks to this circum- 

 stance, the little gentleman got up, and running to 

 a large oak which happened to be near, momited it 



