some rather rough
ejaculations were heard. I might say that Ike "cussed a few," and that
would be no more than the truth. The old trapper seemed to be ashamed
of being so taken in, particularly as he had somewhat exultingly
announced that the "bar was treed."

"He must have got off before we surrounded," said one.

"Are you sure he came into the timber?" asked another--"that fool,
Lanty, was so scared, he could hardly tell where the animal went."

"Be me soul! gintlemen, I saw him go in wid my own eyes, Oil swear--"

"Cussed queer!" spitefully remarked Redwood.

"Damn the bar!" ejaculated Ike, "whur kid the varmint a gone?"

Where was A--? All eyes were turned to look for the hunter-naturalist,
as if he could clear up the mystery. He was nowhere to be seen. He had
not been seen for some time!

At that moment, the clear sharp ring of a rifle echoed in our ears.
There was a moment's silence, and the next moment a loud "thump" was
heard, as of a heavy body falling from a great height to the ground.
The noise startled even our tired horses, and some of them broke their
ties and scampered off.

"This way, gentlemen!" said a quiet voice, "here's the bear!"

The voice was A--'s; and we all, without thinking of the horses, hurried
up to the spot. Sure enough, there lay the great brute, a red stream
oozing out of a bullet-hole in his ribs.

A-- pointed to a tree--a huge oak that spread out above our heads.

"There he was, in yonder fork," said he. "We might have saved ourselves
a good deal of trouble had we been more thoughtful. I suspected he was
not in the log when the smoke failed to move him. The brute was too
sagacious to hide there. It is not the first time I have known the
hunter foiled by such a trick."

The eyes of Redwood were turned admiringly on the speaker, and even old
Ike could not help acknowledging his superior hunter-craft.

"Mister," he muttered, "I guess you'd make a darned fust-rate
mountain-man. He's a gone Injun when you look through sights."

All of us were examining the huge carcass of the bear--one of the
largest size.

"Your sure it's no grizzly?" inquired the doctor.

"No, doctor," replied the naturalist, "the grizzly never climbs a tree."

CHAPTER TWENTY ONE.

THE BLACK BEAR OF AMERICA.

After some time spent in recovering the horses, we lifted the bear into
Jake's waggon, and proceeded on our journey. It was near evening,
however, and we soon after halted and