"Perfectly. If she gets a little unruly, you need only buckle the broad collar here--do you see?--a little tighter."
"I see."
"Don't neglect to tell everybody who has anything to do with the animal," warned the Sarmatian.
"Especially the little one," said Brinno. "It would be a pity to have a hair of her head harmed."
"If only people do nothing to injure her, this clever countrywoman won't bite them."
Steps echoed from the camp: Adalo was being escorted back.
"Zizais, where are you? We must go!" called the Sarmatian, turning toward the bushes to search for the boy, who came limping slowly out of the thicket.
The woollen blanket was now removed from the envoy's head; with a gloomy face he swung himself upon his horse, his two companions did the same, and all three soon vanished in the darkness of the forest.
The clank of weapons sounded at the gate; the Thracian spearmen were coming to relieve the Batavians. At the same moment the bear-leader and the cripple emerged from the thicket at the left; the former gave the animal to Rignomer, who tried to drag it with him by the leather collar toward the camp. But the bear resisted, growling and bracing herself on her hind paws, as she looked beseechingly with her intelligent eyes at her master.
"Come, come, Bruna," urged the latter--"they are good people (he stooped and whispered in her ear) won't you go yet? Didn't you understand?"