AN UNWELCOME PASSENGER.
A second time a loud snort was heard, as though some large animal were
blowing the water from his nostrils, and at the same instant Nick and
Nellie caught sight of the huge snout of the bear coming through the
water toward them.
He was making directly for the raft beyond all question.
"By jingo, this raft wasn't built to carry bears!" exclaimed the
startled lad, who used the pole with all the strength of which he was
master; but, unfortunately, the bottom of the pond was composed of
slippery rocks in many places, and the blunt end of the crooked limb
slid along the upper surface of one of these so quickly that Nick
dropped on his side and came within a hair's breadth of rolling
overboard.
But he was up again like a flash, and toiling with might and main.
Rafts as generally constructed, are not capable of much speed, and
though Nick Ribsam got out all there was in the one which he had
managed, it was not to be expected that he could compare with the
velocity of a strong, healthy bear.
"He's coming, Nick! Oh, he will catch us sure!" exclaimed the sorely
frightened Nellie, edging so far away that she, too, was in danger of
going over.
"I know he is," replied the sturdy lad, working hard with the guiding
pole, "and I think he can beat us. Do you stay where you are, and don't
try to get any further off or you will be drowned. I'll bang him over
the head if he tries to climb on here and ride with us."
Such was the purpose of the beast, beyond question; and, approaching
fast, only a brief time elapsed ere his huge snout was shoved against
the logs, his big paws, dripping with wet, flapped out from below the
surface and both rested on the raft, which sank so low that Nellie
screamed and Nick turned pale.
Determined to keep off such an undesirable passenger, the lad raised
the stick in his hand and brought it down with all his strength on the
head of the bear, which acted as though unaware that he was struck.
Nick repeated the blows, that would have settled the business for a less
formidable animal but it was plain that brain did not consider the
matter a serious one. Having secured a rest for his paws, his whole body
was supported in the water, and the beast, which was no doubt very
tired, simply ceased all effort, and floated with the wind.
"Why don't you knock him off?" asked Nellie, impatiently.
"Because I ain't strong enough, I suppose; he's the toughest customer I
ever got hold of, or seemed to have a good chance to get hold of me."
"I've a great notion to dig out his eyes myself."
"If you try it, it will be the last bear you ever scratch; look at those
paws! did you ever see such nails? didn't you hear them rattle against
the logs when he struck them?"
"Suppose he tries to climb upon the raft," ventured Nellie, trying to
edge still further away, "what will become of us?"
"The raft won't hold him; he'll sink it, and we'll have to get along as
best we can; but, Nellie, he acts to me as though he is satisfied with
being where he is, and he won't disturb us so long as we let him alone."
"But you struck him several hard blows."
"He's forgotten all about it, if he ever knew it. I guess he has had a
pretty lively run to reach the pond in time to save his hide, and now
that he is in the water, he will stay there a good while."
There was a likelihood that Nick was right, and that the bear wanted
nothing more than a rest; and yet the possibility that he would soon try
to draw his entire body upon the raft prevented the brother and sister
from having any peace of mind.
When this singular tableau had lasted several minutes, it was discovered
that the wind was carrying the raft, with its incubus, toward the
western shore again, and Nick, afraid that if they all landed together,
the bear might seize the occasion to make a supper off of them, reached
the pole over the side, and began working the logs to the middle of the
pond.
During this performance the brute never stirred. His head, shoulders and
paws were out of the water, the principal bulk of his body being
beneath, and he seemed contented to be navigated about the small lake in
any fashion the proprietor of the raft deemed best.
When considerable time had passed without his offering to destroy them,
the boy and girl were able to view the beast with feelings of less
alarm. They looked at the large head, pig-like snout, round, dark eyes,
and could well understand the terror which an unarmed person feels on
meeting one of them in the woods.
But so long as bruin remained there, so long was he a threat; and Nick
was trying hard to think of some plan by which to get rid of him.
He had tested beating him, but with no success, while he ran the risk of
exciting him to a dangerous degree of savagery if he should persist in
it. The boy had no weapon about him, unless his jack-knife should be
counted as such, and nothing could be accomplished with that. He asked
himself whether it were possible to dive under the raft and give him two
or three vigorous thrusts with the implement; but, fortunately, the lad
had too much sense to undertake anything of that sort, which, more than
likely, would have resulted in the destruction of himself and sister.
There really seemed no way open for the young hero to do anything at
all, except to follow the advice of his father: "Do all you can for
yourself and then leave the rest to Providence."
"If I could think of anything," said he to Nellie, "I would do it, but
we shall have to wait."
"Maybe when he is rested he will swim off and go ashore."
"I wish he would; but it seems to me that he has got a look in his eye,
which says that pretty soon he will try to enjoy a little more of the
raft than he now does: and when he undertakes it, you can make up your
mind, Nellie, that there will be a row."
"Why not let the raft drift close to land, so as to give him a chance to
get off?" she asked.
"Suppose he doesn't take the chance, which he has now; no, we'll wait
awhile and see what he thinks about it."
So soon as they could feel anything like relief from watching the
passenger, the brother and sister looked at the scene around them, which
was enough to strike any one with awe.
The murky vapor was pouring across the water; burning leaves, sticks,
and large branches of wood seemed to be carried almost horizontally on
the wind, while the blazing forest roared like the ocean when swept by
the monsoon.
Whether the memorable dark day of 1881 still overspread the earth
beyond, the two had no means of knowing; but they did know and feel that
they were enveloped in an awful night, illumined only by the burning
forests about them.
Should the bear fail to harm them, they might well ask themselves the
question, when would they be able to leave the water, in which they had
taken refuge. It was not likely they would be forced to keep to the raft
itself very long, but, after stepping foot on shore, they would be
surrounded, if not by the burning forest itself, by its embers, which
would render traveling perilous for days to come.
Altogether, it will be seen that the situation of the two was as
unpleasant--if, not absolutely dangerous--as it could well be.
Nick was on the point, more than once, of following the advice of his
sister,--to allow the raft to be carried by the wind against the shore,
with the hope that the bear, when his hind legs should touch bottom,
would take himself off; but he was afraid to do so, for it seemed to him
that when the brute should be relieved of the necessity of looking after
himself, he would turn and look after the boy and girl too closely for
their safety.
The very danger, however, that was dreaded more than all others, came
when least expected.
Nick had worked the unwieldy craft out in the pond again and had sat
down beside Nellie, when, with one of his startling sniffs, the bear
made a plunge, which heaved half of his body out of the water and lifted
it upon the raft.
As Nick Ribsam had previously remarked, the structure was not built for
the accommodation of such passengers, and it began sinking, as the
unwonted weight bore it down.
"Don't be scared," said he to his sister; "maybe it's the best thing
that could happen; put your hands on my shoulders and keep cool, and
we'll swim out yet."