it was a trying ordeal for little nellie ribsam; but she met it with the courage and coolness of her brother. she could not swim a stroke, and, under heaven, everything depended on him. if she should lose her self-control, as would be the case with nine tenths of the girls of her age placed in a similar situation she was likely to drown both herself and her brother.
but so long as she obeyed instructions, and the bear did not interfere, they were safe. she placed her hands on the shoulders of nick, as he told her to do, and he struck out with his powerful stroke, which he could keep up for an hour if need be.
the difficulty of the situation was deepened tenfold by the anxiety to know what the bear meant to do. he had it in his power to overtake both, and it would have been a trifling matter for him to "dispose" of them in a twinkling: one or two strokes of his immense paw were sufficient.
it was the aim of nick, therefore, to get away as speedily as possible; and he exerted himself to the utmost, glancing continually over his shoulder, as did the sorely frightened nellie, who could not avoid a half gasping scream as the waters closed about her to her chin.
but bruin seemed to be absorbed in the management of the raft, which, in fact, was more than he could manage. it was all well enough, so long as it only half supported him; but when he came to lift his huge bulk out of the water the buoyancy of the float was overcome, and it went down.
the bear did not seem to understand it: a moment before he was resting upon a mass of logs, and now, when he looked around, they were invisible, and he was compelled to swim to support himself. he therefore struck out with a loud splash, and had scarcely done so when the light pine logs popped up again like so much cork.
the brute turned around and dropped both paws upon them. finding they kept afloat, he was too foolish to be content, but repeated his performance, and, as a consequence, speedily found himself pawing the water again to keep his own head above the surface.
this second failure seemed to disgust him, and he paid no further attention to the logs, but headed for the shore, which was so close at hand that he reached it in a minute or two.
this proceeding on the part of the bear, it will be understood, was of great benefit to the brother and sister, who improved it to the utmost. it occupied a brief time, during which nick swam strongly and steadily, and before the brute was master of the situation nick's feet touched bottom, and, taking the hand of nellie in his own, they walked ashore.
"where is he?" asked the girl, the moment their feet rested on dry land.
"he isn't far off," replied nick, "and i don't think he cares to disturb us, but i would rather keep him at a distance."
it may be set down as certain that nick and nellie were never in such serious peril from the beast as they believed. the bear was of the ordinary black kind, found in the middle states, which is not particularly savage, and often passes a person without offering him harm.
it is only when the hunter and his dogs assail the brute, or when he is driven by hunger, that he will boldly attack a person.
besides this, the animal of which i am speaking, had, no doubt, been routed out of his lair in the woods by the approach of the fire, and it was the most he could do to reach the pond in time to save himself. this accounted for his excessive fatigue, which made him loth to enter the water, where he knew he must swim, and which caused him, after entering it, immediately to make for the raft, that he might avail himself of its support.
he had no purpose of molesting the children, and was too indolent to resent the insignificant attack made upon him by nick with the stick.
but it was not to be supposed that the boy and girl could feel any assurance on this point, and their fright was such as would have come to any older person placed as they were.
it was only through the protection of a wonderful providence that they had escaped thus far from the fate of hundreds who, in different parts of the country, fell victims to the innumerable forest fires.
when the two emerged from the water, they saw nothing of the bear that had caused them so much disquietude. he had probably headed for the other side of the pond, and was now shut out from view by the volume of smoke which intervened.
"he'll be here after us," said the alarmed nellie, whose nervousness was excusable; "and i wish you would hurry away."
"i don't think there is any need to be scared, after all," replied her brother; "the bear has all he can do to look after himself, without bothering us."
the fugitives were in a pitiable plight. nellie's garments were soaked by the water through which she had passed, but the heavy heat of the air prevented her suffering from cold, though the clinging garments caused her to feel ill at ease; and, like her tidy mother, she longed to be at home, that she might change them for clean, dry ones.
when nick found they had to leave the raft, he caught up his shoes, with the stockings stuffed in them, and, hastily tying the strings together, slung them around his neck. he did not forget, in the excitement of the moment, that they were indispensable.
but there was no way of saving coat, vest and hat, without running more risk than any one ought to run, and the lad let them go, hoping that, possibly, he might recover them after a time.
he had scarcely set his feet upon the ground, when he took them off again. the earth was baking hot to the water's edge, and a live ember, which the ashes concealed from sight, was revealed when the bare foot was placed upon it.
nick cooled his blistering toes, and then, as quick as possible, drew on his wet shoes and stockings.
"i would be in a pretty fix if barefoot," said he, "i wouldn't have been able to walk home through these woods for a week or less."
it was plain to be seen that the fury of the conflagration had spent itself, so far as it affected this portion of the wood. that tornado of the flame, which swept everything before it, had leaped across the pond, and was speeding onward until it should die out from want of fuel.
in its path was the blackness of desolation. the trees were still burning, but it was in a smoldering, smoking way, with blazing branches here and there, dropping piecemeal to the ground. the flames, which charged forward as they do through the dry prairie grass, had passed by, and the brother and sister had now the opportunity to attempt to reach home.
but it would be hard to overestimate the distress caused by the atmosphere which the forest fires left behind them. there are many gases and vapors which we cannot breathe; but the trouble about smoke is that although we can manage to get along with it when it is not too dense, it is excessively irritating to the lungs.
several minutes passed, during which little trouble was experienced, and then the two were forced to cough and gasp until they almost sank to the ground from exhaustion. occasionally the vapor would lift, and, floating away, leave the air below comparatively pure, and then the black and blue atmosphere, heavy with impurities, would descend and wrap them about as with a garment.
"there's one thing sure," said nick, when he found himself able to speak with some degree of comfort.
"what is that?" asked his sister.
"this will gradually get better and better."
"i don't see how it can get any worse," was the truthful answer of nellie, who felt as though she had stood all she could bear.
since the danger of being caught in the flames was gone, the two were at liberty to venture in any direction they chose.
"we'll make the start, any way!" said nick, with his old resolution of manner; "keep close to me, and, if you see any new bears, don't run into the woods to hide without saying something to me."
