nd that he must be
severely wounded to have staggered as he had done. For this reason he
might seek a hiding-place in the forest, or perchance take to a tree.
Cheered by this hope, the pursuers pushed onward.

The conjecture proved to be a just one; for before they had gone half a
mile farther, a continuous barking sounded on their ears, which they
knew to be that of the dogs. They knew, moreover, by this sign, that
the bear had done one of three things--either taken to a tree, retreated
into a cave, or come to a stand in the open ground, and was keeping the
dogs at bay. Of the three conjectures, they desired that the first
should prove the correct one; and from the manner in which the dogs were
giving tongue, they had reason to hope that it would.

In effect, so it did; for, on getting a little closer, the two dogs were
seen bounding about the roots of an enormous tree, at intervals
springing up against its trunk, and barking at some object that had
taken refuge in the branches above.

Of course, this object could only be the bear; and under this belief,
the pursuers approached the tree--each holding his gun cocked and ready
to fire.

When they had got quite up to the tree, and stood under it, no bear was
to be seen! A large black mass was visible among the topmost branches;
but this was not the body of a bear: it was something altogether
different. The tree was one of gigantic size--the very largest they had
seen in the whole forest; it was a pine, of the species _sylvestris_,
with huge spreading limbs, and branches thickly covered with fascicles
of long leaves. In many places the foliage was dark and dense enough to
have afforded concealment to an animal of considerable size; but not one
so bulky as a bear; and had there been nothing else but the leaves and
branches to conceal him, a bear could not have found shelter in that
tree without being visible from below. And yet a bear was actually in
it--the very same bear they were in pursuit of--though not a bit of his
body--not even the tip of his snout, was visible to the eyes of the
hunters!

He was certainly there: for the dogs, who were not trusting to their
eyes, but to that in which they placed far more confidence--their
scent,--by their movements and behaviour, showed their positive belief
that Bruin was in the tree.

Perhaps you will fancy that the pine was a hollow one, and that the bear
had crept inside. Nothing of the kind: the tree was perfectl