“Go on first,” whispered Esau, and, drawing a long breath, I started, going as silently and quickly as I could into the darkness of the shelter beyond, and turned to look at Esau.
From where I knelt I could see the fire clearly, and as he came across, I was thinking how animal-like he looked, when I fancied I saw a movement, and before I could be sure, there was a flash, a loud report, and a twig dropped from over my head upon one of my hands.
“Bear! bear!” shouted a voice, and the men sprang to their feet. But by this time Esau was alongside of me, and rising up we hurried along in a stooping position, leaving the eager voices more and more behind, the men being evidently hunting for the bear one of them believed that he had shot.
“Was he firing at me?” said Esau.
“Yes; he saw you, I suppose.”
“But he might have hit me,” cried Esau, indignantly. “Chaps like that have no business to be trusted with guns.”
“Hist!”
“Come on, lads,” we heard plainly. “I’m sure I hit him.”
“Don’t be a fool,” cried another voice. “Wait till daylight. Do you want to be clawed?”
“Shall I roar?” whispered Esau.