The Monmouth inquirer., 1925-03-05

higher. ana at the cracking Ia thel
boughs the old virago reared up and
made q couple OF bounds that took
her six feet up the trunk.
The surgeon scrambled upward,
tearing through the branches. with
the leather satchel banging against
his stomach. But the bear came up
with amazing agility; she seemed to
wriggle through the dense branches
like a squirrel, and while Craig was
painfully gaining another yard, the
enemy had almost come up on a level
with his feet.
He was quite unamed; he had
even dropped his pocket-knife on the
road. But he remembered thnt there
we're couple Of short-verD short
operating knives In his casa. and he
lcrksd open the satchel to get at
them
Tho bears head protruded from tho
dark leafage below him. In a panic
he kicked at it, and the return blow
ripped the bottom OF his trousers leg
into ribbons.
He could not feel the knife. but,
hardly knowing what he did, he
snatched the largest bottle in the case.
and fung It downward with all his
strength.
1t hit and rebounded from the hairy
neck. The bears face rose to his
knee with an open-mouthed scowl. and
he smashed another bottle squarely
ecross It.
The animal :. ayered, with a chck-
ing cough. Eho let go with her hind
feet. chung ON instant with her fore
claws, and then dropped smashing
through the branches. striking the
earth like stone.
Craig stared down at her. almost
letting go his or n hold in his amaze
mont. There she lay, as IL stonedead,
at the bottom OF the tree.
There was pungent, choking odor
In the air, but st the moment he was
too excited to speculate upon It or to
recognize It.
He could not believe that the AMI
NAL was dead. for he knew that he
had no poisons of such instantaneous
effect In his case. He ventured to
slide down the tree, however, keeping
as far from the motioniess body OF his
enemy as he could; and once on the
ground, he flung of the medicine-case
and bolted up the road almost as fast
as Peter had gone.
He ran for nearly half mile, and
then slowed, out Of breath. to q fast
walk. The mooniN road remained
empty behind him, and he came In
sight OF Warwick in less than an hour.
Just there he encountered party
coming to look for hfm, with lanterns
and rifles. Peter had come up to the
barn gate half an hour before, drip
ping wet and shivcring with fright,
trailing a broken harness. and with
three long, bleeding scratches on his
flank
With this reinforcement. Craig
went back. They found the buggy ~
ing where It had capsisedy but the
bear was gone. No trace Of her could
be found within fifty yards. and be-
fore going, she had contrived to drag
the cub from under the buggy and
to tear open the sack. Crippled as
he was, she had taken him with her.
to recover II he could without veterin-
airy aid.
The rapid recovery Of the animal
was as puzzling as its sudden collapse,
and Craig was more than ever at
loss to account for it. The medicine
case lay where he had dropped 1t. and
he searched the ground for the brok.
en- bottle.
After some minutes he found the
neck with the cork In 1t, and 1t still
seemed to have clinging oder. pierre
ing and pungent He knew what 1t
was, even before he found the larger
fragment with the label sticking to It.
Holding 1t up to the moonlight. he
read the inscription, "Lig. Ammonia
Fort"
The bottle had been almost full.
and I'VE ounces Of strong liquid ann
monia discharged upon the bears
eyes and nose must have been more
than enough to blind and strange her
for some time.
No weapon could have been more
effective, and it was blOodless vic
tory besides. FRANK LILLLE POLr
LOCK