arm, seized
hold of him, and the bear, also in a great fright, clambered out as fast
as he could, dragging the man up with him, and when clear of his
tail-bearer, made off as fast as possible.

The drollest and most accomplished of all bears, was the celebrated
Martin, of Paris, whose dancing, climbing, curtsying, tumbling,
begging, and many other antics, were the delight of every child in the
metropolis, and of many grown-up children also. It is true, that the
nursemaids endangered the lives of their charges, by holding them over
the side of the pit in which he was kept; but as none _did_ fall, they
continued to amuse themselves and their nurslings at the same risk. One
morning early, he very cleverly withdrew the bolts of his pit door, and
sallied forth on his hind-legs to take a walk. The keepers of the garden
had not risen; but the dogs were on the alert, and surrounded Martin,
jumping and barking, half in play, and half in earnest. This roused the
men, who, rushing out to see what was the matter, beheld the bear in the
midst of the canine troop, his tongue lolling out of his mouth, and an
expression of fun and enjoyment in his countenance, which was
indescribable. Never was the malignant scowl, so often noticed in bears,
from pulling the nictating membrane, or third eyelid half over the
eye, seen in poor Martin's face; yet he became unpopular from the
cupidity of one of the sentinels. This man fancied he saw a five-franc
piece lying in the bear's pit, and determined to go during the night,
when he would be on duty, and secure it. He accordingly provided himself
with a ladder, and when the guard was changed, was found lying lifeless
at the bottom, the coveted piece in his hand, which proved to be nothing
but a large button. No marks of violence were to be seen upon his body,
but the contusions on his head seemed to tell that he had fallen from
the ladder when near the top, and so met his death. Whether he had been
frightened, or seized with giddiness, or whether Martin had shaken the
ladder, no one could say; the animal was sitting quietly by his side
when his fate was first made known. The story fled like wildfire from
one end of Paris to the other, and in a short time, the populace were
fully convinced that Martin had killed him; and this, combined with
other exaggerations, induced them to flock in multitudes to see the
murderous bear. Afterwards, two balls of arsenic, wrapped up in some
sweet substance, were foun