hick bushes into which a horseman could not penetrate.

The moment the bears got wind of what was going forward they made off
as fast as possible, and then commenced a scene of firing, galloping,
and yelling that defies description! Four out of the seven were shot
before they gained the bushes; the other three were wounded, but made
good their retreat. As their places of shelter, however, were like
islands in the plain, they had no chance of escaping.

The horsemen now dismounted and dashed recklessly into the bushes,
where they soon discovered and killed two of the bears; the third was
not found for some time. At last an Iroquois came upon it so suddenly
that he had not time to point his gun before the bear sprang upon him
and struck him to the earth, where it held him down.

Instantly the place was surrounded by eager men; but the bushes were
so thick, and the fallen trees among which the bear stood were so
numerous, that they could not use their guns without running the risk
of shooting their companion. Most of them drew their knives and seemed
about to rush on the bear with these; but the monster's aspect, as it
glared around, was so terrible that they held back for a moment in
hesitation.

At this moment Henri, who had been at some distance engaged in the
killing of one of the other bears, came rushing forward after his own
peculiar manner. "Ah! fat is eet--hay? de bar no go under yit?"

Just then his eye fell on the wounded Iroquois with the bear above
him, and he uttered a yell so intense in tone that the bear himself
seemed to feel that something decisive was about to be done at last.
Henri did not pause, but with a flying dash he sprang like a spread
eagle, arms and legs extended, right into the bear's bosom. At the
same moment he sent his long hunting-knife down into its heart. But
Bruin is proverbially hard to kill, and although mortally wounded, he
had strength enough to open his jaws and close them on Henri's neck.

There was a cry of horror, and at the same moment a volley was fired
at the bear's head; for the trappers felt that it was better to risk
shooting their comrades than see them killed before their eyes.
Fortunately the bullets took effect, and tumbled him over at once
without doing damage to either of the men, although several of the
balls just grazed Henri's temple and carried off his cap.

Although uninjured by the shot, the poor Iroquois had not escaped
scathless from the paw of the b