'You are a happy girl to have so good a godmother.'
'Oh yes, and I feel cold sometimes to think how miserable I would be if there were no Crona. I have Chops—Chops comes next after Wallace; and then Mary, and then Bruin, and then Skeleton.'
'You put Bruin before Skeleton?'
'Yes, Bruin before Skeleton; because I've seen more of him, you know—more of Bruin than even Wallace, though Wallace is wiser. But, Mr Blake, I can remember a time when there was no Wallace, and then it was always either Chops or Bruin who came with me when I went to visit Crona. But I was never afraid of ugly men when Bruin was with me.'
'I should think not indeed.'
'And once, I mind, it came on too quickly dark in the forest—that was before Chops had blazed the trees—and I lost myself. The bear and I soon grew tired and lay down to rest. I would have been very cold if Bruin hadn't been so warm, so I soon fell sound asleep.'
'A very pretty pair of babes in the wood you must have looked!'
'It was very early when I awoke, but quite light, and I was so dreadfully afraid now, because Bruin was sitting and roaring loud and angry. Will Wisely the poacher was standing there not far off, and shaking with fear so that he could hardly speak.
'"Oh Will," I cried, "get up into a tree for fear Bruin kills you and eats you."
'It was a very tall, close spruce-tree, and up went Will as quickly as he could. I thought Bruin would not follow; but he did, because Bruin, I'm sure, believed that all the forest belonged to him and me, and that Will Wisely had no business up in one of our trees. So the bear roared more loudly than ever, and went off up the tree, and then Will was forced to slide out over the point of a big branch and lower himself to the ground.