"Of course," I replied sarcastically; "and be shown all over the country
in the movies making fools of ourselves."

"Did you notice that that young man said they would be firing blank
cartridges?"

Well, even a blank cartridge can be a dangerous thing. Then and there I
reminded her of my niece's boy, who was struck on the Fourth of July by
a wad from one, and had to be watched for lockjaw for several weeks.

It was at that moment that we heard Bill, who had no tent, by choice,
and lay under a tree, give a loud whoop, followed by what was
unmistakably an oath.

"Bear!" he yelled. "Watch out, he's headed for the tent! It's a
grizzly."

Tish felt round wildly for her revolver, but it was gone! And the bear
was close by. We could hear it snuffing about, and to add to the
confusion Aggie wakened and commenced to sneeze with terror.

"Bill!" Tish called. "I've lost my revolver!"

"I took it, Miss Carberry. But I've been lying in a puddle, and it won't
go off."

All hope seemed gone. The frail walls of our tent were no protection
whatever, and as we all knew, even a tree was no refuge from a bear,
which, as we had seen in the Zoological Garden at home, can climb like a