"And leaning too far over while he sniffed, he just fell in; that's what you mean, don't you?" demanded Lub.
"Looks that way," assented the other; "but what under the sun are we going to do about it, I'd like to know? He don't mean to crawl up again like he came down. See how he acts; I bet you he got scorched, because there's still some red coals in the fireplace, you notice."
The four boys were huddled in a bunch. It seemed like a case of "in union there is strength" with them just then. And the bear stood where he had been at the time of first discovery. He had his snout thrust out, and was "sniffing" at a great rate. Perhaps it was the human odor that interested him, though Lub got an idea in his head it may have been the food that was so close by.
"Phil, do you think he'll attack us?" Lub asked.
"I hardly think so," replied the other, steadily, after closely examining the appearance of the intruder; "that is, if we keep from making him more furious than he is now."
"Guess he's some surprised to find himself shut in with four husky boys?" suggested Ethan.
"And say, he looks kind of small to me," observed X-Ray.
"I was just going to tell you that," Phil went on to say; "I believe it's only a two-thirds grown cub after all."
"But even at that he's a dangerous customer, with those sharp claws, and his ugly white teeth," protested Lub.
"That's right," added Ethan. "If we tackled him, chances are we'd be sorry for it, unless we had something to knock him on the head with. That makes me think of my bully little camp hatchet. Watch me sneak it right now!"