an. If I kill the two bears you
speak of, will you marry me?"

"Oh, do not ask me, good Blunderbore, I cannot! It is impossible. I
cannot love you; you are--forgive me for saying it--too big, and fierce,
and ugly to love."

Blunderbore frowned angrily, and the audience applauded vociferously at
this.

"You cannot love me! Hah!" exclaimed the Giant, glaring round with
clenched teeth.

At this moment the Big Bear uttered an awful roar, Whackinta gave a
piercing scream and fled, and Blunderbore hid himself hastily behind the
hummock. The next moment the two bears bounded on the stage and began
to gambol round it, tossing up their hind-legs and roaring and leaping
in a manner that drew forth repeated plaudits. At length the Little
Bear discovered the baby, and, uttering a frantic roar of delight, took
it in its fore-paws and held it up. The Big Bear roared also of course,
and, rushing forward, caught the baby by the leg, and endeavoured to
tear it away from the Little Bear, at which treatment the poor baby
again commenced to cry passionately. In the struggle the baby's head
came off, upon which the Little Bear put the head into its mouth and
swallowed it. The Big Bear immediately did the same with the body; but
its mouth was too small, and the body stuck fast and could not be
finally disposed of until the Little Bear came to the rescue and pushed
it forcibly down its throat. Having finished this delicate little
morsel, the two bears rose on their hind-legs and danced a hornpipe
together--Tom Singleton playing the tune for them on a flute behind the
scenes. When this was done they danced off the stage, and immediately,
as if in the distance, was heard the voice of a man singing. It came
gradually nearer, and at last Buzzby, in the character of Ben Bolt,
swaggered up to the foot-lights with his hands in his breeches pockets.

"I'm a jolly, jolly tar,
Wot has comed from afar,
An' it's all for to seek my fortin,"

sang Buzzby. "But I've not found it yit," he continued, breaking into
prose, "and there don't seem much prospect o' findin' it here anyhow.
Wot an 'orrible cold place it is, ugh!"

Buzzby was received with enthusiastic cheers, for he was dressed in the
old familiar blue jacket, white ducks, pumps, and straw hat set jauntily
on one side of his head--a costume which had not been seen for so many
months by the crew of the _Dolphin_ that their hearts warmed to it as if
it were an old friend.