136 EVERYDAY ADVENTURES 



patriot arms. It was Uncle Jake who made General 

 Putnam get off his horse into the mud and give the 

 countersign. It was Uncle Jake who shot the Hes- 

 sian who used to stand on an earthwork and make 

 insulting gestures every morning toward the Con- 

 tinental camp. It was Uncle Jake again who, when he 

 was captured, broke his way out of the Hulks, and 

 swam ashore one stormy night. To-day the Captain 

 had bethought himself of a rather unusual experi- 

 ence which Uncle Jake once had while hunting bears. 



"It was during a February thaw," he began. 

 "Uncle Jake was coming down Pond Hill, when he 

 stepped into a mushy place back of a patch of 

 bushes, and sank in up to his waist. He felt some- 

 thing soft under his feet and stamped down hard. 

 A second later," continued the Captain impressively, 

 "he wished he hadn't. Something rose right up 

 underneath him, and the next thing poor old Uncle 

 Jake knew, he was astride a big black bear, going 

 down hill like mad — riding bear-back as it were. 

 You see," went on the Captain hurriedly, "Uncle 

 Jake had stepped into a bear-hole and waked up a 

 bear by stamping on his back. He was in a bad fix. 

 He did n't want to stay on and he did n't dare to 

 get off. So what do you suppose he did? " 



"Rode him up a tree," hazarded Henny -Penny. 



"No," said the Captain. "He stuck on until 

 they got to level ground. Then Uncle Jake drew his 

 hunting-knife and stabbed the old bear dead right 

 through his neck, and afterwards made an overcoat 

 out of its skin." 



