THE GUN AT HOME AND ABROAD 
At last, after a run of eight miles on irregular lines towards Lassimoen, 
we found ourselves gaining on the bear, but with our dog rapidly tiring. 
It was now 1.30, and rain was falling in torrents, but, happy thought! 
within a mile of us lived our friend farmer Anton, whose dog had distin- 
guished himself at a bear-hunt two years ago. We must borrow it, if 
possible, so with this view Kristian crossed the river while I sat down to 
lunch, impatiently awaiting his return. In about an hour he came back 
accompanied by Anton and a clever -looking black dog; upon which we 
resumed the chase. This took us back towards the rough hills, at the foot 
of which we found that the hunted beast, unable to face the ascent, had 
kept along just inside the timber. We could see where he had fallen, and 
again where he had lain down, both places being marked with much blood. 
At last, after going six or seven miles further, we came to a thick clump of 
raspberry bushes, which the bear, after a short rest, had evidently only 
just left. The dogs were now for the first time madly keen to get at him, so 
at the risk of spoiling them they were loosed to bay the bear, and off they 
went at a tearing pace, with us scrambling after them as fast as we could. 
This part of the chase was witnessed by one of the Lynsetmo farmers, 
who told us that, while working down by the river, he had seen something 
of the chase, the dogs closing in upon the bear, who, rushing at them with 
a roar, nearly caught the black dog. And now, dead beat as we were, after 
our long run of twenty miles or thereabouts, it was quite a relief to us to 
see both dogs coming back in our direction safe and sound, but evidently 
extremely frightened. Their coats were bristling, and it was some time 
before they could be induced to resume the chase. We continued on to our 
boundary, however, and then crossed a big tributary of the Namsen, get- 
ting a heavy -wetting in so doing; but this mattered little, as we were 
already soaked to the skin. Darkness now came on and there was nothing 
for it but to abandon the hunt for the night. 
Oh! that weary walk homewards: I shall never forget it. Through nine 
long miles of sodden swamp we plodded our way, halting again and 
again from sheer exhaustion. The last two miles in the dark amid pouring 
rain were a very purgatory to both Kristian and myself, who had but one 
bright thought between us — that, dead or alive, the bear must presently 
fall into our hands. 
Next morning at five we had our coffee and were off again, this time 
driving in a carriole up the southern bank of the river to a spot almost 
opposite that where we had abandoned the chase on the previous evening. 
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