as very much dazed, and the
bear might have had him in its deadly hug ere he could have recovered
himself, had not a new actor appeared upon the scene. The boats had
come to a halt to rest the men just about the time that Hector ran off
after the dogs, and Andrew Macrae, noting the boy's disappearance,
snatched up a gun and climbed the river-bank to see what had become of
him.

'He's na here,' he exclaimed in surprise, as he stood looking all about
him. 'Where can the feckless bairn ha' gone to?'

Just then his keen ears, trained not to miss the slightest sound,
caught faintly the sharp barking of the two dogs. 'Eh! eh!' he
muttered. 'They've started up some creature--maybe a squirrel or the
like. I'll just run and see what they're doing.'

So, gun in hand, he set off at a long easy lope that was little slower
than a horse's trot. As the barking came more strongly to his ears, he
realized that something serious was taking place, and quickened his
pace, until he had reached the limit of his powers.

But a few minutes of such exertion were required to bring him to the
scene of action, and swinging around the pine tree, he arrived at the
very crisis of his son's peril.

Throwing the gun to his shoulder, and not waiting to take careful aim,
he fired just as the great black brute reared to strike at Hector. The
whole charge of heavy buckshot took effect full in the bear's breast,
and down he pitched almost upon Hector, but incapable of further harm.

Mr. Macrae's feelings were so mixed that he hardly knew how to express
himself. He had been angry with Hector for straying away from the
river-bank, but now he was naturally hugely proud of his own success as
a bear killer, and this rose superior to his anger. Raising Hector to
his feet, he said, mildly enough: 'Ye didna heed ma word, laddie,' and
then added with swelling voice, 'eh, but it's a grand creature! Rin
now to the boat, and tell the men to come and help me with it. I canna
carry it back alone.'

Relieved beyond expression at his escape from the bear, and from his
father's deserved reproof, Hector darted off, and presently returned
with several of the men, who were all greatly interested in the big
game Andrew Macrae had bagged.

Andrew was anxious that his 'gude wife' should see his noble prize,
before it was skinned, and so he persuaded the men to help him take it
down to the river.

The little party made quite a triumphal procession, with Hecto