The News-Herald. [volume] (Hillsboro, Highland Co., Ohio) 1886-1973, 1913-12-25
FROM THE BEARS PAW
BY ANNIE HINRIcHsEN.


raltar is dancing bear. Some people
might say 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 is no
sweeter sleep than the sleep one gets
under the stars.
One day as Gibraltar and I were
strolling along a country lane we
saw girl coming toward ur. She
stopped a 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 if l pat him?" she
asked.
She patted old Gibraltar's head
and pulled his ears. 81 do love bears"
she said What's his name?"
told her and she said that WAS a
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 | 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 1t gave
her. That seemed to make the fellow
tired and he said he didn't care for
hash love. He asked her to give him
something-I 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 it."
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 a
hoboes' roost."
Next morning when / woke up
saw we were near a house and we
ambled toward it looking for break
fast. 1t was a big house with long
| porch in front of it and on the porch
were lot of people. 1t wasn't farm
house, as / 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 | 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 las
person it came to was the fellow be
! side the sunshine lady and he was 81
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
paw and told him to make bow
He'bowed so low that the basket slit
off and fell at the sunshine lady:
feet. There was something in it which
didn't look like money and she picket
it up.
1t was a gold locket about the siz'
of half dollar. She opened it, ant
there was the fellows picture and
ITO Beatrice, from George"
She snapped the locket shut ant
handed it to the tall woman. "Thi
is yours, | think" she said.
The man looked as if he wanted t
smash things, Gibraltar and me par
ticularly
The little sunshine lady put he
hands in Gibraltar's fur and shook hi
big head Gibraltar" she said, "yo'
have done a great deal for me toda,
and l thank you, old fellow Eve
out of the paws of bears"
She kind O. choked then and l too
up Gibraltar's chain and we went of