t they are easily tamed and make
great pets. Hasn't it a fine white spot on its breast?"

The men stood about and allowed it to move about within the circle. It
cast its eyes around, as much as to say: "Well, what are you going to do
about it?"

George cried out: "Hold it for a minute," and he pounced on one of the
provision bags, and brought out a pot of honey. He forced his way in
among the watchers, and with a stick dipped into the honey held it up
before the animal.

It smelled the honey, and began to lick the stick, and then it darted
for the pot. "What a tongue," exclaimed Harry.

"That is what they are noted for. The tongue is made for the very
purpose of going into deep holes, and the greatest use is to rob the
hives of the wild honey bee."

[Illustration: _Fig. 11. Bruang. The Malayan Bear._]

The antics of George and the bear were most amusing to the watchers, and
occasioned roars of laughter. When the pot was emptied he wanted more,
and nosed around George until the latter could hardly keep his feet.

"He is getting to be a mighty close friend," said John, when he could
find time to stop laughing for a moment.

"Well, don't let him get away," cried George, as he saw the cordon
around the animal broken up, leaving plenty of opening for it to get
away.

But, of course, the natives didn't understand him, and soon Mr. Bear had
all the opportunity in the world to go home. But he didn't. He walked
alongside of George, and the latter liked to stroke his soft fur, to
which no objection was offered.

The bear followed and was by his side every minute of the time for the
next hour, and while they sat down to lunch little Sunny, as George
named him, was at the feast. He had samples of everything in sight, and
the menu tasted good, from honey at the beginning of the repast, to
honey at the end of it.

* * * * *

The progress was necessarily slow, because there were so many things to
examine and to make notes of. They went out of the way from the direct
route, so as to cover as wide an area as possible. Before camping for
the night they had ascended a slight elevation, and there, to the right
and to the left they saw the wide stretches of the great ocean.

Directly ahead was a narrow tongue of land, leading to a broadening
area, and off in the dim distance was a high point. The Chief's son
pointed there and said:

"On the other side of that high place is where the bad peopl