Now Nell knew all this very well. She and David had often seen bears. She had no fear of them, at the same time uncertainty remained. And it was a bad time of year!
This particular bear had been asleep in the cave above. He had waked up with the ice still covering the fish, and small animals mostly slain by the foxes. He was probably turning over dead wood logs to hunt for beetles and slugs, but that is a poor meal to go on, after about five months’ fast, and he was in a very irritable mood.
Slowly he raised himself on his haunches and sat up. Nell would have liked to stand still and watch him, but felt it would not do. She moved away, quicker and quicker, but trying to do it in an unaggressive way.
"Good thing we haven’t got the shoes on," she said to David, making talk, as it were, with one eye on the big black bear.
"Why?" asked the boy, shifting his into an easier position where they were slung across his shoulder.
"Because I think we shall have to run for it."
"Oh yes," said Nell; "he’s in a bad temper. What a nuisance!"
"Can’t we shoot him?" suggested David, as they moved on with increasing speed.
"Shoot! My dear boy, with automatics! He wouldn’t mind much unless we shot his eye out, and then he’d be deadly! Wish I’d brought the little rifle, but I thought it was safer with the pelts on the sled, it’s so heavy to carry. You want something pretty strong to stop a bear. Dad says their skins are so thick. Bother it, he’s coming. Run, Da, and don’t tumble over the roots, whatever you do. Remember the bunk house is good and close. We’ll get there."
"Where’s that donkey Robin?" muttered David, but Nell did not answer; she was intent on this very tiresome adventure. It was fairly plain that the dog had found the bear trail and followed it to the cave. No doubt he was hunting up there among the rocks, and in a way she was not anxious for him to come till this was over, because a dog has small chance with a bear if it comes to fighting at close quarters. People have an idea that a bear kills by hugging, and will always squeeze his enemy to death, whereas the astonishing weapon it uses is the lightning swiftness of its _strike_. A bear strikes with his fore-paw--which is armed with terrible rending claw--as quickly as a snake darts, and he can break the neck of a moose or a buffalo with one smack. Nell knew all about this and she did not want Robin to come to close quarters, therefore she would not whistle, but ran on, David keeping up with her, faster and faster.