CHAPTER XXVIII
AFTER A BLACK BEAR
"Shep! Giant! Quick!"
"What's the matter, Snap?"
"A bear! Down the stream! Come on with the guns!" went on Snap excitedly. He had returned hot-footed to where he had left his chums and the firearms.
"Are you sure?" queried the doctor's son as he dropped his camera and grabbed up his shotgun.
"Dead certain—-but I don't know how long he will stay there. Oh, if I had only had my gun with me!" groaned Snap. "I could have brought him down as easy as pie!"
"Aren't you going to take your camera?" asked Giant as he drew in his line and took both his photo outfit and his firearm.
"Yes, I forgot," said the doctor's son, and picked up his camera again. "Don't shoot till we get a snapshot," he said to Snap, who, gun in hand, was already off.
"All right; but we don't want to lose the bear," answered the other young hunter.
"Of course not!"
With Snap in the lead, the three boys sneaked swiftly but silently down the mountain brook until they came to the spot from which Snap had discovered the bear. Here they halted, and the others looked enquiringly at their leader.
"I saw him right over yonder," whispered Snap. "Go slow, now, or you'll scare him."
With bated breath the three young hunters advanced down the tiny stream. They gained the shelter of some dense brushwood and gazed around eagerly. Not a sign of a bear was to be seen anywhere.
"Maybe you were dreaming, Snap," murmured Giant.
"No, I wasn't—-I saw him just as plain as day."
"Then he must have seen you running back to the pool, and he must have took out, too."
"Perhaps; but I was very careful to keep out of sight."
They advanced a little farther, and now saw ahead of them a slight hollow, where there was another waterfall, sheltered on either side by sharp rocks.
"There he is!" whispered the doctor's son excitedly, and pointed down to the pool at the foot of the falls. The black bear was there, getting a drink.
"We can't take a picture from here," said Giant disappointedly. "What shall we do—-fire?"
"Oh, we ought to have a picture of him," pleaded Shep. "It would be just the thing for our collection."
"Let me suggest something," said Snap. "I haven't any camera, so I'll stay here. You two can make a half circle and come up below and kind of head the bear off. If he starts to run before you get ready I'll fire at him."
So it was agreed, and Shep and Giant hurried off without delay, making a wide detour through the woods and over the rocks. They could not help making a little noise, but this was, as they rightfully reasoned, drowned out by the falling of the waters.
In the meantime Snap kept careful watch of the bear. The animal took his time drinking, raising his head several times to look around him. But he did not turn his gaze upward, and consequently did not discover the young hunter, who stood with weapon aimed, ready to fire at a moment's warning.
Fully five minutes passed, and then the bear stretched himself and commenced to sniff the air. Then, of a sudden, he arose on his hind legs to get a better look at his surroundings.
"This is the time they ought to get their pictures," thought Snap.
An instant later he saw something fluttering in the bushes below the pool. Shep and Giant were there and had their cameras in action. The bear continued to stand upright, but presently he dropped on all fours and began to lumber away from the brook at a good rate of speed.
To have waited longer would have been foolish, and taking careful aim, Snap fired his shotgun twice. Scarcely had the two reports rung out than Giant also fired, followed, a few seconds later, by the doctor's son.
The aims of all three of the young hunters were true, and the bear received such a peppering of buckshot that he was seriously if not mortally wounded. He dropped down, dragged himself up again, and roared with rage and pain.
"Give him another!" yelled Snap as he started to reload.
Giant was the first to run into the opening, and as the bear saw the youth he snarled viciously and showed his teeth. He tried to rush at the boy, but Giant discharged the second barrel of his shotgun and the charge took the bear in the head. Then the doctor's son fired again, and hit the animal in the side. This was too much for bruin, and with a rocking motion he staggered forward a few steps and then pitched on his head, dead.
"We've got him! We've got him!" yelled the small youth, dancing around wildly and flinging his cap into the air. "Isn't this the dandy luck?"
"Did you get the pictures?" questioned Snap, leaping down the rocks to where the game lay.
"We sure did," answered the doctor's son. "And I've got one of you aiming your gun right at the bear. I tilted the camera up a little to get it."
"What a fine bear!" cried Giant.
"We never got a better," answered Snap. "Oh, this is certainly prime luck!"
"We'll have to take some more pictures—-of our game," said Shep, and without delay they took several plates and films—-the two cameras being of each kind. All the boys were in the pictures, and of these photographs they were justly proud.
"Now, the question is, what are we going to do with the bear?" said Snap. "We can't drag such a load to our camp."
"We'll have to skin the animal and take what meat we want," answered the doctor's son. "It's too bad to leave so much behind, but it can't be helped. It won't keep in this weather, anyway."
"If only Jed Sanborn was here—-he might take some of it home."
"I'll tell you what we can do," said Giant. "Try to drag the carcass—-or a big part of it—-up to the lion's pit. It will help to feed that beast until the circus folks come."
"That's an idea," said Shep. "And if we keep the lion well fed he won't try so hard to get away. Menagerie animals are always lazy when well fed—-one of the keepers told me that. They only get restless when they are hungry."
It took the boys some time to skin the dead bear and cut away such meat as they thought they could tote along. The rest of the meat they hung in a tree, thinking they might possibly come back for it later. Then they started once more for camp.
"I hope the Spink crowd hasn't been bothering Whopper and Tommy since we have been away," said Snap. "If they have——-"
"Don't borrow trouble," interrupted the doctor's son. "Wait till it comes."
With their heavy loads, they made slow progress through the woods, and they were glad when they reached the lion pit and could dispose of some of the bear meat. The lion greeted them with a roar, but that was all. He had not yet eaten the second wildcat; nevertheless, they threw to him a chunk of the bear meat, the fresh blood of which was very much to his satisfaction.
It was late when they reached camp, thoroughly tired out. Whopper and Tommy were glad to see them, and immediately bustled about to get them a good supper. Those left behind listened with interest to the tale the others had to tell. When Shep told about the tracks around the lonely cabin, tracks that had caused Jed Sanborn to ask if they had seen a dog, Tommy looked greatly interested.
"Say!" he cried. "Do you suppose——-" And then he stopped short.
"Do we suppose what?" queried Shep.
"Oh, I suppose it couldn't be, but I was just thinking. Maybe that isn't a crazy man at all."
"Well, what do you think it can be?" asked Giant.
"Maybe it's Abe, the runaway chimpanzee."