Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1874-08-01
Concluded from first page.)


reader some idea of his educational pre-
gress:
l. He will, rolled up in Round Ball,
roll down the Wood Shed. Rapidly, illus
trating His manner of Escaping from Ills
Enemy in His Native Wilds.
,. He will Ascend the Well Pole, and
remove from the Very Top a Hat, and as
much of the Crown aud Brim thereof as
May be Permitted.
8. He viii perform in u pantoHime,
descriptive of the Conduct of the Big Bear.
The Middle-Sized Bear, and The Little
Bear of the Popular Nursery Legend.
A. He win shake his chain Rapidly,
showing his Manner of striking Dismay
and Terror in the Breasts of Wanderers
in Ursine Widernesses.
The morning of the exhibition came,
but an hour before the performance the
wretched Baby was missing.
The Chinese cook could not indicate his
whereabouts. | searched the premises
thoroughly, and then, in despair, took my
hat and hurried out into the narrow lane
that led toward the open fields and the
woods beyond. But found no trace nor
track of Baby Sylvester. returned, after
an hours fruitless search, to find my
guests already assembled on the rear
verandah. l briefly recounted my disap-
pointment, my probable loss, and begged
their assistance.
why" said Spanish friend. who
prided himself on his accurate knowledge
of English, to Barker, who seemed to be
trying vainlv to rise from his reclining po-
sition on the verandah, "why do you not
disengage yourself from the verandah of
our friend and why, in the name of
Heaven. do you attach to yourself so much
of this thing. and make to yourself such
unnecessary contortion? Ah,n he con-
tinued, suddenly Withdrawing one of his
own feet from the verandah with an evil
dent effort, 81 am myself attached Sure
ly it is something here "
1t evidently was. My guests were all
rising with difficulty,-the floor of the
verandah was covered with some gluti-
nous substance. 1t was-sirupl
/ saw it all in flash. | ran to the
barn: the key of golden sirup." pur-
chased only the day before, lay empty up
on the floor. There were sticky tracks
all over the Enclosure, but still no Baby.
There's something moving the ground
over there by that pile of Dirt" SAID Bar
ker.
He was right; the earth was sinking in
one corner of the Enclosure like an earth
quake. l approached cautiously. l saw,
what / had not before noticed, that the
ground was thrown up; and there, in the
middle of an immense gravelike cavity,
crouched Baby Sylvester, still digging,
and slowly, but surely. sinking from sight
in a mass of dust and clay.
What were his intentions Whether he
was stung by remorse, and wished to hide
himself from my reproachful eyes, or
whether he was simply trying to dry his
sirup-besmeared coat, / never shall know,
for that day, alas ! was his last with me.
He was pumped upon for two hours, at
the end of which time he still yielded u
thin treacle. He was then taken and care
fully enwrappedin blankets and locked up
in the store room. The next morning he
was gone! The lower portion of the win
dow-sash and pane were gone too. His
successful experiments on the fragile tex
ture of glass at the confectioner's. on the
first day of of his entrance to civilization
had not been lost upon him. His first
essay at combining cause and effect ended
in his escape.
Where he went, where he hid, who
captured him if he did not succeed in
reaching the foothill beyond Oakland,
even the offer of a large reward, backed
by the efforts of an intelligent police could
not discover. Inever saw him again from
that day until
Did see him was in a horse car on
Sixth avenue, a few days ago, when the
horses suddenly became manageable
and left the track for the sidewalk, amid
the oaths and execrations of the driver
Immediately in front of the car a crowd had
gathered around two performing bears
and Snowman. One. of the animals
thin, emaciated, and the mere wreck of
his native strength, attracted my attention.
| endeavored to attract his. He turned
pair of 5leared, sightless eyes in my di-
rection, but there was no sign of recogni-
ton. / leaned from the car-window and
called, softly, "Baby!'' But he did not
heed. / closed the window. The car was
just moving on, when he suddenly turned,
and, either by accident or design, thrust a
Gallons paw through the glass.
.'1t's worth 1.50 to put in new pane, "
said the conductor, ''if folks will play
with bears -"-Bret Hdrte IN 81. Nich-
olas for july.