g into the well, but he seized the iron chain as it struck him
across the face. Down went Jack, and round went the windlass, and after
a rapid descent of forty feet our hero found himself under water, and no
longer troubled with the bees, who, whether they had lost scent of their
prey from his rapid descent, or being notoriously clever insects,
acknowledged the truth of the adage, "leave well alone," had certainly
left Jack with no other companion than Truth. Jack rose from his
immersion, and seized the rope to which the chain of the bucket was made
fast--it had all of it been unwound from the windlass, and therefore it
enabled Jack to keep his head above water. After a few seconds Jack
felt something against his legs, it was the bucket, about two feet under
the water; Jack put his feet into it and found himself pretty
comfortable, for the water, after the sting of the bees and the heat he
had been put into by the race with the bull, was quite cool and
refreshing.

"At all events," thought Jack, "if it had not been for the bull, I
should have been watched by the dog, and then thrashed by the farmer;
but then again, if it had not been for the bull, I should not have
tumbled among the bees; and if it had not been for the bees, I should
not have tumbled into the well; and if it had not been for the chain, I
should have been drowned. Such has been the chain of events, all
because I wanted to eat an apple."

"However, I have got rid of the farmer, and the dog, and the bull, and
the bees--all's well that ends well but how the devil am I to get out of
the well?--All creation appears to have conspired against the rights of
man. As my father said, this is an iron age, and here I am swinging to
an iron chain."

We have given the whole of Jack's soliloquy, as it will prove that Jack
was no fool, although he was a bit of a philosopher; and a man who could
reason so well upon cause and effect, at the bottom of a well up to his
neck in water, showed a good deal of presence of mind. But if Jack's
mind had been a little twisted by his father's philosophy, it had still
sufficient strength and elasticity to recover itself in due time. Had
Jack been a common personage, we should never have selected him for our
hero.

CHAPTER SEVEN.

IN WHICH JACK MAKES SOME VERY SAGE REFLECTIONS, AND COMES TO A VERY
UNWISE DECISION.

After all, it must be acknowledged that although there are cases of
distress in which a well may become