The captain took careful aim now, and fired, making the bear jerk its head; but the bullet had made little impression, for the brute came on till Skene made a dash at its nose, when the animal swung round just as the captain was re-loading.
“Fire, both of you—now!” cried the captain excitedly; but only the doctor drew trigger, hitting their quarry somewhere about the hip. Steve did not fire; he could not have told why, but knelt on one knee with his piece ready, and conscious of the fact that one of the big Norsemen was at his right shoulder with the great lance held presented over his head.
Skene kept on harassing the bear and taking off its attention; but a bullet now struck it in so sharp a way that it ignored the dog, and came rushing toward its enemies open-mouthed, blood and foam making its white teeth look horrible, and in spite of another shot came close up, rose on its hind legs, towering above the kneeling men, with its paws separated to strike, when almost together both barrels of Steve’s piece were fired right into the animal’s chest, and as it uttered a savage roar the lances of the two Norsemen were driven into it and rapidly withdrawn.
The effect was instantaneous: the monster threw itself over and lay upon its back, tearing at the air for a few moments, and then subsided slowly on to one side—dead, Skene leaping upon the carcass to give vent to a triumphant burst of barking, while the captain shook hands with the doctor, and then clapped Steve on the shoulder.
“Well done! Bravo!” he cried. “Splendid shots, just at the right moment; couldn’t have been better.”
“Couldn’t it?” said Steve, speaking feebly, for he felt rather ashamed of the praise, and at the same time a kind of regret for having played so prominent a part in the death of the animal.
He must have shown this in his face, for the captain said:
“It’s quite right, my lad. These bears are dangerous, destructive beasts, and would have given us no mercy. Besides, we must get a cargo to take back.”
A hail brought up the sailors, who were sent back in the boat for the other two Norsemen, while Johannes and Jakobsen, after carefully cleaning the blades of their lances, laid them against a rock, took off their jackets, rolled up their sleeves, and then, taking out their knives, began to skin the great bear.
At this time Andrew came up limping.