Since he had started, the fiercest animal Fred
had seen had been the noisy little coyote. After night fall the sly,
little beasts often came within sound of the camp and their weird barks or
cries made the silence of the night appear even more intense. Of bears
Fred had not seen one. Pete had related the story of the fate which had
befallen a friend of his who, making his way through the forest one day
had jumped upon a log which appeared in his pathway and without any delay
then had leaped down upon the ground before him. The "ground" however, had
proved to be a she-bear with her two cubs nearby. "They found only the
bones of poor Jim Hyde," Pete had remarked at the end of the story.
"I don't see how you know that Jim jumped upon a log," suggested John when
the guide's story had been told.
"That was easy," declared Pete. "We saw the prints of his feet leading
right up to the log and marks where he stood on the top and then over on
the other side there was nothing but the bones of the poor fellow."
Fred recalled the somewhat gruesome tale as he entered further within the
shades of the canyon.
The sight, however, was so fascinating that he still continued on his way.
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