Walking back where his horse was standing, he was about to elevate himself to his seat, when he heard a pattering upon the leaves, and looking down the path, saw what appeared to be a huge bear cavorting about fifty rods distant.
"Doonder and blitzen! I dinks dat vos you!" he muttered, the instant he saw the creature, "and I gets you now!"
Rifle in hand, he started on a heavy run, determined to give the audacious brute his quietus for his attempts to disturb him.
The bear seemed to take fright at his coming, and danced further away. Several times the Hollander raised his gun, but ere he could make his aim sure, the creature managed to get a tree between him and his foe, who lowered his piece, and, with an exclamation of impatience, hurried forward to get a better position.
This game at bo-peep continued for a long time, and Hans Bungslager was drawn much further away from his friends than he supposed. He was determined to shoot the intruder when he started, and the oftener he was baffled the more determined did he become.
Once he had the aim exactly, and pulled the trigger with such vigor that he came nigh breaking it, but found he had not raised the hammer, and when he lowered his piece to rectify the error, and raised it again, the aim was lost.
"Dat ish bad as never vas!" growled the angered Dutchman, as he panted forward again, rapidly gaining on the creature.
By and by he was sure of a chance; he saw the bear sitting on his haunches near the path, and resting his rifle on the crotch of a dead limb, he took deliberate aim at the body of the brute.
His dumpy finger was pressing the trigger again, when he discovered that he was aiming at a stump, and the bear was tumbling along a hundred feet in advance.
"Doonderation!" gasped Hans Bungslager, almost dropping his gun in amazement, "dat bear must have shpit dat stump up ag'in."