“Oh, I do hope the gentleman Bear will be sure to come,” cried little Val.
As he said this they very plainly heard the sound of a horse’s hoofs coming up the street. They all ran to the window. What was their surprise and delight to see that it was the Bear on horseback! As the horse stopped before Dr. Littlepump’s door, the stout gentleman in the rough coat bent forward, then let himself slowly down, hanging carefully till his fur boots touched the ground. At this all the children burst out laughing; but instantly recollecting themselves, they ran away from the windows, and scrambled into seats round the stove, coughing a little, to pretend it had been only that. And now a knock was heard at the door and a loud ring! Margaret ran and opened the door and in came the Bear.
Everybody was so glad to see him. Wallis and Margaret helped him to take off his cloak and comforter. Mrs. Littlepump begged him to take a seat near the stove. Dorothea presented him with a large cup of nice coffee, hot, and strong, and very sweet, and Dr. Littlepump handed him Uncle Abraham’s pipe.
Everybody being now comfortably settled, the Bear rose from his chair, and, bowing all round, looked at Dr. Littlepump and said, “Mr. Dr. Littlepump, let me know what is the wish of our young friends here?”
“Oh, Mr. Good-Natured Bear!” cried Nancy, “do please continue your delightful story!”
The Bear laid one paw upon his heart,—bowed—sat down—and after looking thoughtfully into the bowl of his pipe for a few minutes, as if to collect his ideas, thus continued:
“At the foot of our cave, there was, as I have told you, a plot of high, green grass with a path through it up to the entrance. At the back of the rock in which the cave was, there grew several fine old oak trees, and some young elms, all promising to become very tall and beautiful. My father was very fond of walking alone among those fine trees.
One afternoon he was taking a nap on our bed of leaves in the cave, when he was aroused by a noise at the back of the rock, among the trees. The sound was that of a number of hard blows one after another. My father went to see what it was, and there he saw a woodman with an axe cutting down the young elms. In perfect rage, my father ran towards the man, who instantly scampered away as fast as he could, crying out: ‘Oh! Oh! Oh!’
The next morning as soon as it was light the same noise was heard again among the trees. Up jumped my father, but my mother, fearing some danger, went with him. It was a good thing she did so, as the forester had brought his two sons with loaded guns to watch for my father while the woodman was at work. My mother saw the two youths each hiding behind a large tree and she begged my father, both for her sake and mine, to come away. At last he did so, though not without much gruffness and grumbling.
By the evening the woodman had cut down about a third part of the young elms. Then he went away, intending to come and carry them off in the morning. My mother tried to persuade my father not to interfere because it was too near our home. But my father said they were his trees and he could not bear to lose them. So at night he collected all the trees that were cut down, and carried them, one or two at a time, to a river, at a short distance, where the current was strong, and threw them in with a great splash. Long before morning the current had carried them all far away.