Twice Bought

While Brixton was hurrying with a guilty conscience deeper and deeper into the dark woods whichcovered the spur of the mountains in the neighbourhood of Pine Tree Diggings, glancing backnervously from time to time as if he expected the pursuers to be close at his heels, an enemy wasadvancing to meet him in front, of whom he little dreamed.A brown bear, either enjoying his morning walk or on the look-out for breakfast, suddenly met himface to face, and stood up on its hind legs as if to have a good look at him.Tom was no coward; indeed he was gifted with more than an average amount of animal courage. Heat once levelled his rifle at the creature's breast and fired. The bear rushed at him, nevertheless, as ifuninjured. Drawing his revolver, Tom discharged two shots before the monster reached him. Allthree shots had taken effect but bears are noted for tenacity of life, and are frequently able to fight afurious battle after being mortally wounded. The rifle ball had touched its heart, and the revolverbullets had gone deep into its chest, yet it showed little sign of having been hurt.Knowing full well the fate that awaited him if he stood to wrestle with a bear, the youth turned torun, but the bear was too quick for him. It struck him on the back and felled him to the earth.Strange to say, at that moment Tom Brixton's ill-gotten gains stood him in good stead. There can beno question that the bear's tremendous claws would have sunk deep into the youth's back, andprobably broken his spine, if they had not been arrested by the bag of gold which was slung at hisback. Although knocked down and slightly stunned, Brixton was still unwounded, and, even in theact of falling, had presence of mind to draw his long knife and plunge it up to the haft in thecreature's side, at the same time twisting himself violently round so as to fall on his back and thusface the foe.In this position, partly owing to the form of the ground, the bear found it difficult to grasp itsopponent in its awful embrace, but it held him with its claws and seized his left shoulder with itsteeth. This rendered the use of the revolver impossible, but fortunately Brixton's right arm was stillfree, and he drove the keen knife a second time deep into the animal's sides. Whether mortal or not, the wound did not immediately kill. Tom felt that his hour was come, and a deadly fear came overhim as the thought of death, his recent life, and judgment, flashed through his brain. He drew outthe knife, however, to make another desperate thrust. The bear's great throat was close over his face.He thought of its jugular vein, and made a deadly thrust at the spot where he imagined that to run