Iowa state bystander. [volume] (Des Moines, Iowa) 1894-1916, 1913-11-14
FROM THE BEARS PAW
BY ANNIE HINRicHsEN.

Gibraltar and ! are partners. Gid
raltar is a dancing bear. Some people
might say l am Gibraltar's owner, but
between him and me there's never
been a question OF master and beast.
We're partners, share and share alike.
We walk from town to town. We
have enough to eat, and there Ia no
sweeter sleep than the sleep one gets
under the stars.
One day as Gibraltar and I were
strolling along country lane we
saw a girl coming toward US. She
stopped little way and called:
will your bear hurt me?"
mo, indeed, MISS" says I. Hes
as gentle as a kitten"
She came up to US and my! she
was pretty. Her eyes were like the
sky and her cheeks were like the
wild roses in the hedges.
will he mind ii pat him?" she
asked
She patted old Gibraltar's head
and pulled his ears. II do love BEARS
she said. Whats his name?"
/ lOIu ASl anu BIG oolu SAAeaS wa -
beautiful name for bear.
made him dance and she sat down
by the road and laughed and clapped
her hands.
After awhile she said she must 60.
She dropped dollar in my, money
basket and went her way.
1t was about sundown and we
stopped at the first haystack and ate
Our supper and went to sleep.
In the night l woke up. There
were people on the other side OF the
haystack. A woman was crying.
Then a man said he was sorry; that
he couldn't help it; he didn't love her
any more; change was the law OF ma
ture and she must accept conditions.
She said something about the love
of the old days and the claim it gave
her. That seemed 20 make the fellow
tired and he said he didn't care for
hash love. He asked her to give him
something's couldn't hear what-and
she said she wouldn't, it was hers and
gave little scream.
"Oh, you BRUTE" she said. you've
broken the chain and stolen 1t.
That woke Gibraltar and he groan-
ed. The man came around the hay
stack What are you doing here?'
he asked.
"Sleepin'," l says.
Get out" says he. "This isn't
hoboes' roost."
Next morning when I woke up l
saw we were near a house and we
ambled toward it looking for break
fast. 1t was big house with long
porch in front of st and on the porch
were lot of people. 1t wasn't farm.
house, as l had supposed, but some
swell's summer cottage, and Gibraltar
and had butted into house party.
When they saw US they called to US
to come to the porch, they wanted Glib
raltar to dance.
On the lowest step sat my little sun.
shine lady and beside her was the
fellow l had seen the night before.
| Near them was a tall woman With
yellow hair.
After Gibraltar had done his stunts
| passed the money basket. The last
person it came to was the fellow be-
side the sunshine lady and he. was so
busy talking to her that he never
looked at what he pulled out of his
pocket and threw into the basket.
hung the basket on Gibraltar's
paw and told him to make a bow.
He bowed so low that the basket slid
off and fell at the sunshine lady's
feet There was something in 1t which
didn't look like money and she picked
it up.
1t was a gold locket about the size
| of a half dollar. She opened 1t, and
there was the fellows picture and:
ITO Beatrice, from George"
She snapped the locket shut and
handed it to the tall woman. This
is yours, think" she said.
The man looked as if he wanted to
smash things, Gibraltar and me par
ticularly.
The little sunshine lady put her
hands in Gibraltar's fur and shook his
big head. "Gibraltar," she said, you
have done a great deal for me today
aud 1 thank you, old fellow. Even
out of the paws Of bears"
She kind O. choked then and took
10 Gibraltar's chain and we went of.
When Snuff Was Useful.