"Wasn't the lake savage enough for him?" asked the boy ruefully, rubbing his knee that he had just bruised against an outstanding rock.
"No," said Mr. Devering, "he adores the forest primeval. His wife was like you, and she struck at last and he had to move out to a house near mine. I bought this place from him and let it run into extra pasturing ground, but now the bears are bothering me and I won't keep any stock here till they get out."
CHAPTER IV THE WOLF AND THE LAMB
"Are there bears here?" asked Dallas in an awed voice; "real, live bears?"
"Not many usually, this time of year, but there have been bad bush fires over the mountain, and bears, wolves and foxes have been driven down earlier than usual. We always hear wolves howling about us in October, but you see this is only July."
"What did the bears do to you?" asked Dallas eagerly.
"Took six of my sheep."
"Killed them, do you mean?"