326 A SHOT IN TIME. 



as his legs would carry him towards a great oak growing 

 at a few yards off: up its rugged trunk he scrambled with 

 an agility of which no one would have supposed him 

 capable. It was lucky for him : the bear, abandoning the 

 pony, was already upon his heels. The little man mounted 

 to the highest branch that would support him, and clung 

 to it with his left hand, while, with his right, he used his 

 lance to drive back the bear as he sought to clamber after 

 him. To complete the singularity of the scene, the pony 

 raged like a demon at the foot of the tree, neighing, and 

 striking the ground with his feet, as if he understood his 

 master's danger, and would fain have lent him some assist- 

 ance. 



All this had taken place in the course of a few seconds. 

 The foremost of the troop, seeing their companion shel- 

 tered in the tree, had no longer troubled themselves about 

 him, but had started in pursuit of the other bears. As 

 for those who, like myself, formed the rear-guard, they 

 laughed so heartily at the adventure that, but for the in- 

 tervention of Captain Shark, he might have been seized 

 and strangled. The latter recovered sufficient composure 

 to take aim at the bear, and put a bullet in his skull, 

 which terminated the combat. 



We had, then, four bears in sight, all steering in the 

 direction of the mountain. As the little hunter was out 

 of all danger, we left him to extricate himself from his 

 embarrassment as best he could, and pursued the animals, 

 in the hope of overtaking them before they had quitted 

 the plain. Turning to look after our fat friend, however, 

 I saw that he had descended from his tree, and was 



