"Fire! quick!" he managed to gasp, as he saw the girl with the gun standing near them.
"I am afraid of hitting you!"
"Never mind if you do—don't wait."
Placing the muzzle directly against the head of the monster, the girl pulled the trigger of her rifle.
The most vital part of the bear was pierced. The ball went crashing through his brain, and with a sort of sigh, his great strength failed him; he rolled heavily over upon his side, and breathed his last.
As quick as a flash, Colonel Crockett disengaged himself and sprung to his feet.
"Oh, you are killed!" wailed the girl, as she sunk upon the edge of one of the overturned chairs, "you can not live with such frightful wounds!"
The hunter was indeed a distressing object to look upon. The blood from the beast covered him almost from head to foot, and, scattered over his face, it made him look as if he had been lacerated by the claws of the brute.
"Me!" exclaimed the delighted Crockett, "I have not been harmed a bit: I've only had a good squeezing, but, I'm gradually getting my breath back again. Howsumever, I've been hugged before, and I've no doubt such a good-looking gal as you have been hugged, too. If I hadn't a blue-eyed little wife, down in Tennessee, I'd be tempted to play the bear to you."
"Oh! how can you jest at such a terrible time?" said the girl, her face blanched with terror.