citement, stared as Dick
was staring. The mighty cat seemed suddenly to crumple up. His
frame shrank, his head was drawn in, he sank lower to the earth,
as if he would burrow into it, but he uttered no sound whatever.
He was to both the boys a symbol of fear.

"What a change! What does it mean?" whispered Albert.

"It must mean," replied Dick, "that he, too, has a master and
that master is coming."

The cougar suddenly bunched himself up and there was a flash of
tawny fur as he shot through the air. A second leap and the
trees closed over his frightened figure. Albert believed that he
would not stop running for an hour.

Into the opening, mighty and fearless, shambled a monstrous
beast. He had a square head, a long, immense body, and the claws
of his great feet were hooked, many inches in length, and as
sharp and hard as if made of steel. The figure of the beast
stood for power and unbounded strength, and his movements
indicated overwhelming confidence. There was nothing for him to
fear. He had never seen any living creature that could do him
harm. It was a gigantic grizzly bear.

Albert, despite himself, as he looked at the terrible brute, felt
fear. It was there, unconfined, and a single blow of its paw
could sweep the strongest man out of existence.

"I'm glad I'm in this cabin and that this cabin is strong," he
whispered tremulously.

"So am I," said Dick, and his own whisper was a little shaky.
"It's one thing to see a grizzly in a cage, and another to see
him out here in the dark in these wild mountains. And that
fellow must weigh at least a thousand pounds."

King Bruin shambled boldly across the opening to the Annex. Why
should he be careful? There might be other animals among the
bushes and trees watching him, but they were weak, timid things,
and they would run from his shadow. In the wan moonlight, which
distorted and exaggerated, his huge bulk seemed to the two boys
to grow to twice its size. When he reached the tree he reared up
against it, growled in a manner that made the blood of the boys
run cold, and began to tear with teeth and claws of hooked
steel. The bark and splinters flew, and, for a moment, Dick was
fearful lest he should force the door to their treasure. But it
was only for a moment; not even a grizzly could break or tear his
way through such a thickness of oak.

"Nothing can displace him," whispered Albert. "He's the real
king."

"He's not the king," replied