“Why, of course,” Alex replied, sleepily.
“Oh, if you're going to sleep,” laughed Don, “you’ll get no more of my wisdom! I'm sleepy myself, so here goes.”
But sleep did not come at once, for there was an interruption. Teddy arose from the blanket he had chosen as his bed and moved toward the entrance. The fire was low, now, and the boys could just see his figure outlined against a mass of red coals. He was growling.
“Come here, you foolish cub!” Alex called to him. “Don’t you go to starting anything here! We want to go to sleep. Understand, you cub!”
Teddy gave a low whine and moved back into the cave. Then the boys closed their eyes. But Don was restless and sat up in a few moments. Alex heard him, but kept his eyes closed. Then Don whispered in the boy’s ear and pulled at his shoulder.
“Alex!” he whispered. “Look out to the door and tell me if I am seeing double, will you? There’s Teddy outside again, but he is three times as large as he was a little while ago. Do you think there’s something in the atmosphere of this cave that induces growth in bears?”
“Aw, go to sleep!” was Alex’s response to the query.
“But that cub has grown to be about nine feet high!” Don went on. “He is as big, now, as one of the grizzlies at the Lincoln Park Zoo! Just wake up and see if you think we can get him on board the boat in the morning! If he continues to grow, he’ll be too big to get on a man of war by daylight! Come, wake up! This thing is getting on my nerves!”
Alex opened his eyes and looked, and the bear he saw was about as large as four Teddies all rolled into one. The great bulk of the animal almost closed the entrance! Alex sat up with a little cry of alarm.
“That isn’t Teddy,” he gasped. “That is a bear that wants to come to bed! I’d give a year off my life to be out of here right now!”