A CHROMATIC BEAR HUNT 



were all too high and tore the sod as the fellow 

 went lumbering down the hill. Next a sud- 

 den breaking down of the hind quarters, 

 and twenty yards farther a loosening of all 

 holds and a crash into the bed of a trickling 

 gully. 



As I gloated barbarically over the mag- 

 nificent carcass, up from the woods across the 

 bay came the sound of four quick, faint shots, 

 "Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!" as if Fred and 

 Joe were answering my recent fusillade. 



It took me an hour to finish the skinning, 

 and as I reached the launch I heard wild 

 shouting across the mud flats. On the fringe 

 of the timber I saw the two boys. 



"Somebody's hurt," exclaimed the engineer, 

 but those yells carried a different note to me. 



"They've got a bear!" I yelled, gleefully. 

 "Fred has got one at last." And ten minutes 

 later, while still a half mile distant, he began 

 to tell me about it. I answered with my story, 

 neither of us distinguishing more than the din 

 of his own voice. 



"I got " came Fred's rejoicing, while the 

 sun glinted on Joe's white teeth " big grizzly, 

 color match bungalow EXACTLY!" 



I ran towards them, joining in a muddy war 

 71 



