culated, catching the thought at the same moment. `A
bear in the bee-tree! Run, Mary! Run for the glade!'--and I hurried my
wife and children from the spot. Harry and Frank both wished to remain
with their rifles, and I could hardly get them off. I induced them to
go, at length, by telling them that they must stay near their mother and
the little ones, to guard them in case the animal should come that way.
All this occupied but a few seconds of time, and then Cudjo and I were
left to ourselves.

"It was evident that a bear was up the hollow of the tree, and hence the
flurry among the bees. Cudjo's axe had disturbed him--he was coming
down!

"What was to be done? Could we not close up the hole? No--there was
nothing--we should be too late!

"I seized my rifle, while Cudjo stood by with his axe. I cocked the
piece, and made ready to fire the moment his head should appear. To our
astonishment, instead of a head, a shapeless mass of shaggy, black hair
made its appearance, which we saw was the rump and hind-quarters of the
animal. He was coming down tail-foremost--although not a bit of tail
was to be seen, for he had none.

"We did not stop to examine that. I fired as soon as his hips made
their appearance, and almost at the same instant Cudjo dealt them a
hearty blow with his axe. It was enough to have killed him, as we
thought, but to our surprise the hind-quarters suddenly disappeared. He
had gone up the tree again.

"What next?--would he turn himself in the hollow, and come down
head-foremost? If so, my rifle was empty, and Cudjo might miss his
blow, and let him pass out.

"All at once my eye fell upon the two great deerskin coats, that were
lying on the ground close by. They would be large enough, properly
rolled, to fill the mouth of the cavity. I threw aside my rifle, and
laid hold of them. Cudjo assisted me. In a second or two, we had
gathered them into a hard `clump,' and wedged them into the hole. They
fitted it exactly!

"We saw blood streaming down as we stuffed in the coats. The bear was
wounded. It was not likely, then, that he would trouble us for a while;
and as one watched the coats, the other brought up great stones, which
we piled against them, until we had made all secure.

"We now ran around the tree, looking up the trunk, to assure ourselves
that there was no opening above, through which he might creep out and
come down upon us. No--there was none, except the bee-hole, a