The citizen. (Frederick City, Md.) 1895-1923, 1897-01-22
ing her; and she came in s... o the

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means burned out, but she feared lest il
should fail before the end of her jour-
ney. The sleepy neighbors were aston
ished at her appearance. They threat
ened to detain her by force, when she
refused their invitation to stay all night
with them. But Mrs. Buckler was by
this time good deal worked up" as
she afterward expressed herself; and
she treated their kind persuasions with
scant courtesy. She almost ran from
the house; but in her apron, among the
sweet apples, she carried the extra pine
knot, all the same.
To ward off unpleasant thoughts, she
kept picturing in her mind the way the
children would enjoy the apples in the
morning. She also thought of the re-
monstrances, tempered with ill-con-
cealed admiration, with which her hus-
band would greet her return. Her
blood quite glowed again as she thought
of the lofty fashion in which she would
make light of it all. Just at this mo-
ment she saw, in the middle of the path
before her, large black bear, watching
her curiously.
Her heart stood still, and she herself
instantly followed this example. Then
she reflected that she must appear
calmly Indifferent, if she would hope to
escape. Slowly she moved forward
again, waving her torch; and the bear,
stepping out of the path, watched her
steadily from among the underbrush
as she went by. Then he stepped back
into the path and followed her.
Her first and most natural impulse
was to run like the wind for home, but
this, after one startled leap forward,
she checked with mighty effort of her
will. She walked on with swift but
steady steps, watching the bear out of
the corner of her eye, but all the time
clutching obstinately at her apronful
of apples. The bear, very slowly, kept
drawing closer and closer, bent upon at
lacking, but evidently deferred by
dread of the torch.
tut the torch, meanwhile, was burn
l. low; and Mrs. Buckler, in her ex
element, failed at first to notice this.
She was holding the pine-knot over her
shoulder, as a sort of shield against her
pursuer. When, with a shaking at the
knees, she realized that it was on the
point of Pickering out, she tried hastily
to light the other; and in the effort
some of her treasured apples fell out of
her apron and rolled behind her on the
path.
AS soon as the bear came to these
apples he stopped and began devour-
ing them with the keenest relish.
"Why!" thought Mrs. Buckler, with
sudden tightening of her load of ter
ror; ''it's not me he's after, but the
sweet apples!" and straightway all her
old courage returned.
She paused and took time to light her
new pine-knot deliberately and well.
Then she hurried on; and it was some
minutes before her pursuer was again
at her heels.
And now, so sudden are the revul-
sions of woman's feelings, she was
concerned only for the sweet apples.
They were the children's apples; and it
went sorely against her grain to let a
bear have any of them. Not until he
had come most uncomfortably close
could she bring herself to again propiti-
ate him; and then she doled out but
three of the precious green globes,
dropping them on the path behind her
with slow reluctance.
The animal took perhaps quarter of
a minute to dispose of this niggardly
contribution, and then came on again
with sort of hopeful confidence.
mol" declared Mrs. Buckler, firmly,
you amt goin' to have another onel"
and she fairly broke into run. But
when that heavy, stumbling gallop
sounded close at her back, her reso-
luton weakened, and she dropped q
couple more out of the apron. While
the much gratified bear delayed to eat
these, she rounded turn of the road,
and was gladdened by the sight of her
own window glimmering some 200
yards in front.
Calling her husbands name two or
three times at the top OF her voice, till
she saw him fling open the door and
rush out to meet her, she Rugged the
remnant of the apples to her breast.
flung her torch at the bear, and sped
like deer toward the house. Whether
the bear followed her further or not,
she never knew. 1t certainly did not
come near enough to the house for her
husband to catch sight of it, for, as she
flung herself into his arms, painting,
triumphant, halfway between laughter
and tears, he asked her what was the
matter.
"Matterl" she cried, Indignantly.
"That's just like man, after all I've
gone through to get home!" And she
pulled him violently into the house and
slammed the door.
Steve BuclSler was quite too judieious
to remind her of the fact that he had
urged her either to come home before
dark. or else stay all night. Heidi not
even let it appear in his face for an in
slant that he thought of such thing.
He listened to the story with all the
breathless excitement that she had an
ticipated. praised her bravery and re-
source, vowed to shoot the bear next
day, ate one of the sweet apples. and
then, being very sleepy, went to bed.
But Mrs. Buckler, before she followed
his example, proudly tucked several OF
the apples under the children's pillows.
IN. Y Independent.
THROWN AT THE WOMEN.
When woman gets an idea that
man has been disappointed in love she