there’s many a tale of adventure told,
of heroes that do and dare,
but here is a tale of adventure bold,
of a goat, a crow, and a bear.
there’s a quarrel and fight,
and a desperate plot,
and a villain as bad as can be.
oh, it is a tale worth talking about!
just read it yourself, and see!
a sudden gust of cold wind swept along the mountain side and rattled the dry leaves and dead branches of some jack-oak bushes that stood at the entrance of a snug little cave. its sole occupant, awakened by the noise, opened his eyes and looked blinkingly up at the pale dawn-light that shone on the familiar rocks of the roof above him. once awake, he realized that he was thirsty and hungry, but he hated to get up, it would be so nice to have just a little more sleep.
[14]while the cave-dweller was deciding between the call of his stomach and his desire to sleep, a big bluejay, with feathers rumpled by the wind, lit on a rock at the cave entrance and, after peering within, called out:
“sleepy-head! sleepy-head!” then, as there was no response from the cave, he called again: “get up, wongo. ‘the early bird catches the worm,’ and the early bear may catch the fat sheep.”
“that’s all right about the early bird and the worm,” growled the little bear angrily, “but a bird doesn’t know much and it served the silly worm right for getting up too early. he ought to get caught.”
then wongo got to his feet and, as the noisy bluejay flew away, he crawled sleepily out of the cave and ambled down a secret trail that led to the canyon below.
although the sun was not quite up on this eventful day, a pale dawn-light flooded the mountain side, causing the trees and bushes to look dim and ghostly.
wongo was in an ill temper. hunger, thirst, and the desire to sleep, to say nothing of the wind that was bent on blowing his fur the wrong way, made him growl under his breath. and now he must go to the little stream that ran through the dark[15] canyon far below and get a drink, and if he met any kind of an animal on the way that was good to eat—well, that animal had better look out for himself!
suddenly he stopped and sniffed the cool breeze that was now sweeping up from the gorge below.
“meat!” he ejaculated. “fresh meat of the young calf.” then quickening his pace he soon stood on the rim of the canyon, with his nose in the air, sniffing to the right and to the left. it took but a moment to decide that the good smell came from up the canyon, but up the canyon was forbidden ground. that tantalizing odor meant just one thing, and that was that old grouch, the meanest and most feared old bear in all timbertangle, had killed a calf, and had, no doubt, enjoyed a hearty breakfast.
wongo had never seen old grouch, but he had always been very curious to know what he looked like. the fearsome tales told of the old bear by the many animals who had seen him had caused the little bear to leave the upper end of the canyon strictly alone. but on this particular morning hunger and curiosity weighed heavily against his fear. what if the old rascal had eaten all he wanted of the meat, and had gone away for a drink, or an early morning stroll, leaving a part of[16] it in his den? couldn’t wongo creep up close enough to the den to see without any danger to himself? suppose old grouch was as bad as everyone said he was, couldn’t wongo run as fast as any old bear?
as he argued thus to himself he stood gazing below him where, in the dim light of the dawn, he could see familiar patches of haw and berry bushes that still had plenty of fruit on them, but he was tired of haws and berries. the keen october air sharpened his appetite, and he wanted something more solid and satisfying than berries or the grubs that would be found under the flat rocks when the sun came up.
again wongo took long sniffs of the air, and while caution told him to give old grouch a wide berth, appetite and curiosity got the upper hand and he moved softly up the canyon toward the forbidden ground. more and more tempting grew the smell of the fresh meat, as he neared what his nose now told him must be old grouch’s den. he stopped beside a thicket of jack-oaks and, as the smell seemed to come from just beyond it, he slowly and carefully put his head through them that he might see.
suddenly there was a rush from behind, followed by a stinging blow on the head that sent[17] him tumbling over and over down the hillside. scrambling to his feet he made off at top speed, catching a glimpse of the great black bear from over his shoulder as he ran.
“i’ll teach you to go snooping around my cave, you little fat thief,” shouted old grouch, as he glared after the fleeing wongo.
in mingled fear and rage the young bear ran on as fast as he could, not stopping until he arrived at the little brook at the bottom of the canyon. here he took a long drink, and while it cooled his temper somewhat, the cold water fairly splashed in his empty stomach.
as the thought of the fresh meat still lingered in his mind, wongo wondered if there might not be a stray sheep or two down on the plains near the canyon’s mouth. slowly returning to the rim of the gorge, he started disgustedly along a little trail that led toward the haw and berry bushes. but his thoughts were not of haws and berries. in the fall there was often the possibility of stealing a sheep, as the navaho indian women drove their flocks well up into the canyon for water at this season of the year. the thick underbrush caused the sheep to scatter in their passage up the canyon bed, thus giving any brave and cunning young bear a fine chance to make off with a nice meal of[18] fresh mutton, provided his bravery and cunning were sufficient to outwit the navaho dogs.
twice, of late, he had stolen a nice fat sheep from the scattered flocks, but on both occasions he had been assisted by his friend kaw, the crow. kaw had signaled to him from the top of a tall pine tree, where the sharp-eyed old bird could watch the movements of the dogs and could tell him where they were at any moment. as for the indian women and boys who drove the sheep, he could watch them himself as they were tall enough to be seen above the underbrush, and he had no difficulty in keeping out of their sight.
a queer kind of an old bird was kaw, but a good friend, as many an occasion had proven. the old crow loved to tease the little bear, and wongo always pretended to be indifferent to the teasing, yet he secretly liked kaw best when he was in a teasing mood, as on such occasions he frequently talked in rhyme, or recited some verses that amused wongo very much.
his first meeting with kaw had been a strange one, and he remembered quite clearly all that had taken place on that occasion. that was more than a year ago now, when wongo, who at that time was scarcely more than a fat cub, was on his way home one evening. he had been ambling along[19] through the quiet forest, and had chanced to pass the tall stump of a hollow tree that had a great black hole near the bottom of it. having been born with a great desire to inquire into all things, he suddenly wished to know just what it was like inside of that hole. he therefore walked up to the stump, and had just put his little nose inside when he heard the most fearful squawking and croaking noise that seemed to come from high up in the stump itself.
“woof!” ejaculated wongo, as he jumped backward, his little eyes bulging with fright and the short hair on his back standing up like porcupine quills. stumbling backward for a dozen paces he sat down upon his haunches and gazed wide-eyed up at the top of the stump. there sat a crow who was laughing so hard his black wings were fluttering against his sides. it was quite evident that it was he who had made the unearthly noise, and that he had simply shouted it down through the hollow stump.
“haw, haw,” laughed the crow, “well, i do declare,
did ever one see such a curious bear?
he’s so filled with desire
both to peep and enquire,
he’d poke his young nose anywhere.”
[20]with growing anger and amazement wongo cried out, “you black old croaker, i suppose you think you’re smart.”
at that the crow half fell, half flopped down to the top of a near-by bush, and having straightened his face into a more serious expression said:
“don’t add a hasty temper to your weakness of indulging in idle curiosity. i could not resist so rare a bit of fun, and besides,” he added, “i taught you a valuable lesson if you will only heed it, my young friend.”
“young, indeed!” snapped wongo, who was at[21] that time very sensitive about his age. “anyone can see that i am many times bigger than you, so must be much older.”
“your size has nothing to do with your age,” replied the crow. “listen while i tell you about the pebble and the sage:
“an old man walking o’er the strand,
picked a pebble from the sand.
‘i wish that i were small,’ sighed he,
‘for i would gay and youthful be.’
“‘size has naught to do with age,’
said the pebble to the sage.
‘you’re very old, one might remark,
but i watched noah build the ark.’”
seeing from the rather blank expression on wongo’s face that he had failed to understand the reference to noah and the ark, the crow continued more bluntly:
“and thus, my friend, although you’re big,
so’s a jackass or a pig.
that i am small is very true,
yet i am older, far, than you.
“i knew old silvertip, your father, long before you were born, and,” he added thoughtfully, “i suppose you come by your desire to peep and pry[22] honestly enough, as it was your father’s weakness before you. had he been less inquisitive, and had he taken my advice, he would not have been caught in the clumsy trap that proved his undoing.”
the fact that this old crow had known his father caused wongo’s attitude toward him to change from one of anger to one of respect. he began to listen to the crow’s remarks with a more kindly feeling.
“but to go back to the lesson i tried to teach you,” continued kaw, “you should never poke your head inside a hollow tree. if a bobcat or a swarm of bees had been in that hole they could have given you a lot of painful punishment before you could have said scat, and yet, when i come to think of it,” he added with a droll expression on his face, “i suppose you could make bees stand for you.”
“how could i?” asked wongo. “i don’t think i understand how i could make bees do anything except get after me.”
“well,” said the crow, as he spread his wings for flight, “if i remember my alphabet lessons rightly, a b always stands for bear.”
“that’s so,” thought wongo as he watched kaw wing his slow flight into the darkening forest, and he turned homeward resolved that as soon as[23] he arrived he would ask his mother to tell him about noah and the ark.
but all this had happened the year before, and since that time the crow had proven to be a delightful friend and companion. and now, on this cool october morning, the little bear wished that his friend kaw would happen along to tell him if he had seen any stray sheep wandering unguarded in the canyon below.
at the thought of the recent encounter with old grouch, his hair bristled with anger, and as he walked down the little trail hungry and disgruntled, he mumbled half aloud, “when i am grown i’ll whip old grouch, and i’ll certainly give him such a good beating he will be glad to leave the country.”
suddenly a familiar voice, that seemed to come from above him, remarked, “he who wins a fight does not always depend upon size, friend wongo.”
“hullo, kaw,” said the bear, whose ill temper began to leave him the instant he heard the voice of his friend. “i was just thinking of you a moment ago, and when you spoke i was wishing i were big enough to whip old grouch, and i’ll surely do it when i am grown. i had a fight with the old black rascal a few minutes ago, but it wasn’t a fair fight, for he hit me from behind, and i fell down a hill, and when i got up he was too far[24] away for me to fight him. but i’ll get even with him some day.”
“so you would grow more before attempting to punish the old enemy of the canyon, would you?” asked the crow. then, without waiting for wongo to reply, he asked, “did you ever hear the story about the terrible turk?”
“no, i haven’t,” said the bear. “what about him?”
clearing his throat, which at best was a bit husky, the crow began:
“with a flock of wild turkeys that lived in a pine
near the top of old tonka-pah peak,
was a whopping big gobbler that measured three feet
from his tail to the tip of his beak.
“this conceited old turkey was greatly puffed up,
even thought he was too good to work.
as he’d bullied and whipped all the gobblers around,
he was known as the terrible turk.
“one night a strange gobbler flew up to the tree;
he looked small in the yellow moonlight.
there was something about him—just what i can’t say,
that would cause you to think he could fight.
“well the two gobblers fought, just as one might expect,
and the terrible turk thought it fun
when the fighting began. he remarked to the hens,
‘watch me start this young bird on the run.’
[25]
“well they fought all the night; ’twas no everyday fight,
but by the faint light of the dawn
could be seen the young turkey high up in the tree,
and the terrible turk—he was gone.
“so remember, my friend, when you fight for a prize,
that success does not always depend upon size.”
“do you advise me to try to whip old grouch now?” asked wongo.
“well, not in an actual fight with tooth and claw,” drawled the crow. “we sometimes have to fight with our wits, and there is usually more than one way to defeat an enemy. i, myself, have long wanted to get rid of that old trouble-maker, and we may hit upon a plan, but hush!” he ejaculated in a lower tone, “there he goes now.”
“where?” asked wongo, excitedly.
“down the other side of the canyon,” replied kaw, “but you are not high enough up to see him. i saw the old thief steal a young calf last night, and i suppose he has eaten his fill, and is now after a drink.”
“yes,” said wongo. “i know about that calf meat, and—” he stopped suddenly, as he thought it might be best not to tell his friend why it was that he had gotten into trouble with old grouch.
“you are not hungry, are you, friend wongo?”[26] asked kaw, paying no heed to the little bear’s sudden stop in his remark about the calf meat.
“my hunger is all there is in me,” said wongo, promptly. “i am more than half starved.”
“well,” chuckled kaw, “i was thinking that you might take a short cut to old grouch’s den right now, while i keep an eye on him. i think you may find a pretty good feed beneath the big flat rock that is near the front of his cave. keep an ear open for my call. i will let you know when he turns homeward.”
at the thought of his recent encounter with old grouch, wongo hesitated for a moment, but he had great faith in kaw, and he must have something to eat, so he trotted away up the canyon as noiselessly as he could go. a half hour later, just as he had finished the last bit of grouch’s hidden meat, he heard kaw’s faint, far-away “caw, caw” of warning and beat a hasty retreat around the mountain side.
after putting a safe distance between himself and the den of old grouch, wongo trotted down a slope to a ledge of flat rocks that projected high above a steep cut in the mountain.
[27]
from this ledge wongo looked down over the plains below
[28]from this ledge he had often looked down over the sage-covered plains far below, and one spot in particular had always attracted his attention and aroused his ever-present curiosity. it was a tiny place, or so it seemed from the mountain, a place where navaho indians lived, and kaw had told him that it was made of mud-covered trees that were stood up together to make a kind of cave,[29] but, of course, it could not be a real cave, for real caves must be made in rocks or dug into the earth. often, as he looked down at this strange little house, a thin, bluish cloud arose from the center of it, and when the wind was in the right direction it brought to his nostrils odors of strange things—things good to eat.
the indian man-house always filled wongo with wonder, and he desired more than anything else to go up to it and see just what it looked like close at hand. once, when he had looked down upon it just at nightfall, he had seen something that shone red like a bit of the sun when it sinks in a summer haze. that shining red light was another very curious thing that he must know about, and he must see it up close. he would ask kaw about that bit of the sun that he had seen shining from the indian man-house.
now that his stomach was filled, wongo seemed to be filled with confidence also. the warm sun shone hot from the desert, its welcome rays adding to his feeling of comfort and self-assurance. why[30] should he have fear of the little place where lived the navahos? why fear anything? to-night he would go down the mountain and visit the indian man-house and see for himself just what it looked like. nothing, aside from the dogs that he could outwit or run away from, could harm him.
he knew that the navahos would not so much as touch him. had not his mother told him that they believed there was a witch—whatever that was—in every bear, and that if they harmed the bear the witch thing would make great trouble come upon them? neither his mother nor kaw, the crow, seemed to know what a witch was, but that didn’t matter so long as it caused the indians to have fear, and thus kept them from shooting their arrows into bears, as he had seen them shoot into deer and rabbits. wongo had observed that when indian arrows stuck into animals they nearly always killed them.
turning away from the ledge, he started slowly down the mountain, deciding that he would, that very night, satisfy his curiosity about the man-house. in the meantime he would go down into the canyon and get a cool drink, after which he would visit some berry patches just over the ridge, and explore among the foothills a bit before his nap-time, which always came just after the sun[31] had walked past the middle of the sky. at that period of the day the sun’s warm rays seemed to cast a sleepy spell over the silent mountain side, so all of the animals, with one accord, had decided it should be the hour for their mid-day sleep.
so wongo ambled down the mountain and feasted on the berries in the patch over the ridge, after a cooling drink at the canyon spring. then the little bear went happily to his cave for his nap.
