10. This became too puzzling. I could not but be near the explanation. I heard barkings and shoutings; ten or twelve bull-dogs, seven or eight men armed with iron-shod sticks, and with muzzles in their hands, ran up at the heels of the fugitive bears. One of these men paused while the others were bringing back the muzzled beasts, and he explained to me this strange riddle.

11. The proprietor of å cîrcus was taking advantage of the Easter holidays to send his bears and his dogs to give some performances in the country. The whole party traveled on foot; at the last resting-place the bears had been loosed, and while their keepers were dining at the neighboring tavern, they had taken advåntage of their liberty to proceed měrrily and ålōne on their journey. They were BEARS OUT FOR A HOLIDAY.

II.

8. A FROST-BITTEN NOSE.

DAY

NE DAY I took it into my head to go my rounds on foot. I armed myself from head to foot against the inroads of the cold; I enveloped myself in å large Astrakhan 2 frock'coat; I buried my ears in a fûr cap; I wound round my neck a Cash'mēre scarf, and sallied into the street-the only part of me that was exposed to the âir being the tip of my nose.

2. At first, every thing went on ådʼmirably; I was even surprised at the little impression the cold made upon me, and I laughed to myself at the many tales I had heard on the subject. I was, moreover, delighted that chance had given me this opportunity of becoming acclimatized. However, as the first two pupils on whom I called were not at home, I began to think that chance managed matters too well, when I fancied I saw the people I met looking at me with a certain uneasiness, but still without speaking.

3. Presently, å gentleman mōre communicative, it would 1 East'er, à chûrch feast-day in 3 Ac cli'ma tized, inured or acnemory of Christ's resurrection. customed to a climate different from that which is natural.

2 Astrakhan (äs trä kän'), å city of Russia (rush'ĭ å), capital of a government of its own name, situated on an elevated island in the Volga.

4 Com mu'ni ca tive, inclined or ready to converse with, or impart to, others.

seem, than the rest, said to me in påssing, "Nofs!" As I did not know one word of Russ, I thought it was not worth while to stop for the sake of a monosyllable, and I walked on. At the corner of Peâr street I met a countryman, who was passing at full speed, driving his sledge; but, rapid as was his course, he too thought himself bound to speak to me, and called out, "Nofs! nofs !"

4. At length, on reaching Admiralty squâre, I found myself face to face with a strong fellow, who said nothing at all, but who, picking up a handful of snow, threw himself upon me; and before I could free myself from all my wrappers, began to besmear my face, and to rub it, and more especially my nose, with all his might. I did not much relish the joke, especially considering the weather; and, drawing my hand out of my pocket, I dealt him a blow that sent him rolling ten yards off.

5. Unfortunately or fortunately for me, two peasants just then påssed, who, after looking at me for a moment, seized hold of me, and in spite of my resistance, held me fast by the arms; while the desperate fellow who first attacked me took up another handful of snow, and, as if determined not to be beaten, threw himself once mōre upon me. This time, taking advantage of my utter inability to defend myself, he again began his frictions; but though my arms were tied, my tongue was free. Thinking myself the victim of some mistake, or of some concerted attack, I shouted most lustily 2 for help.

6. An officer came up running, and åsked me in French what was the matter. "What, sir!" I exclaimed, making à last effort, and getting rid of my three men, who, with the most unconcerned âir in the world, went on their way-" do you not see what those rascals were doing to me?"

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Why, they were think that a good

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7. “Well, what were they doing to you?" rubbing my face with snow. Would you joke, I wonder, in such weather as this?" But, my good friend, they were rendering you an enormous service," replied my interlocutor, looking at me, as we French say, in the věry white of the eyes.

1 Friction (frik'shun), the act of rubbing the surface of one body against that of another.

2 Lus'ti ly, vigorously.

3 In ter loc'u tor, one who speaks in dialogue.

8. "How so?" "Why, of course, your nose was being frozen." "Good heavens!" I exclaimed, feeling with my hand the threatened feature.

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9. "Sir," said à passer-by, addressing my friend the officer, "I warn you that your nose is freezing." "Thank you, sir," said the officer; and stooping down, he gathered up à handful of snow, and performed for himself the same service which had been rendered to me by the poor fellow whom I had rewarded so badly.

10. "You mean to say sir, if it had not been for the man who first attacked me, that- "You would have lost your

nose," rejoined the officer, while rubbing his own. 11. "In that case, sir, allow me-" and off I ran in pursuit of my friend, who, thinking that I wanted to kill him outright, began running also; so that, as fear is generally mōre nimble than gratitude, I should probably never have overtaken him, had not some people, seeing him running away and me in pursuit, taken him for å thief, and seized him. When I came up, I found him talking with great volubility,1 trying to show that he was only guilty of too much kindness.

12. Ten florins which I gave him explained matters. He kissed my hand, and one of the bystanders, who spoke French, recommended me to take more care of my nose in future. The recommendation was unnecessary; during the rest of my walk I never lost sight of it.

III.

9. A TALE OF TERROR.

4

DUMAS.3

WAS once traveling in Calabria, a land of wicked people, who, I believe, hate every one, and especially the French. To tell you the reason why, would take too long: suffice it to

1 Vŏl'ū bil'i ty, ready motion of the tongue in speaking; readiness in speech.

2 Flor'ins, coins first made at Florence. The silver florin waş valued at from twenty-fhree to fiftyfour cents; the gold florin åbout a dollar and å hälf.

3 Alexandre Dumas (do mä′), å French novelist and dramatist, born in Paris, July 28, 1824.

4 Că la'bri a, the south part cf the kingdom of Naples, separated from Sicily by the Straits of Messina. 5 Suffice (suf fiz'), to satisfy or

content,

say, that they hate us with à deadly hatred, and that one of our countrymen gets on věry badly when he falls into their hands.

2. In these mountains the roads are precipices.1 It was with much dif'ficulty that my horse made his way over them. I had for my companion ȧ young man who went first. Taking a päth2 which appeared to him shorter and mōre practicable,3 he led us åstray. It served me right. Why did I trust to ȧ head of only twenty years?

2

3. While daylight låsted, we tried to find our way through the wood; but the more we tried the more we were bewildered; and it was pitch dark when we arrived at a věry black-looking house. We entered-not without fear-but what could we do? We found a whōle family of chärcōal-bûrners, seated round a table, at which they immediately invited us to take places.

4. My young man did not wait to be pressed. We soon made ourselves at home, and began to eat and drink; or at least my companion did. My time was chiefly occupied in examining the place and the appearance of our hōsts. They had quite the look of chärcoal-bûrners; but as for the house, you would have taken it for an arsenal.5

5. What an assortment of guns, pistols, swords, knives, and cutlasses! Every thing displeased me, and I saw very well that I displeased everybody. My companion, on the contrary, making himself quite one of the family, läughed and chatted with them, and with an imprudence that I ought to have foreseen (but, ålås! it was so decreed), told them at once where we came from, where we were going, and who we were. He informed them, in short, that we were Frenchmen!

6. Just imagine! We, all the while, ålōne, out of our road, so far from all human aid, and in the power of our mortal? enemies! And then, as if to omit nothing that might insure

1 Prěc'i pice, å headlong descent; a very steep overhanging place. 2 Path (päth).

* Prǎc'ti ca ble, capable of being done; admitting of use, or of being påssed or traveled; passable.

4 Hōst, one from whom another receives food, lodging, or entertainment; à landlord.

5 Ar'se nal, å public building, or buildings, for the storage, or for the manufacture and storage, of arms and all other military equipments, whether for land or sea service.

6 Cut❜lass, à broad, cûrving swōrd, with but one cutting edge.

'Môr'tal, bent on one's destruction; deadly.

our death, he played the rich man; promised to pay these people whatever they wished for our entertainment, and for our guides the next day.

7. Then he spoke of his valïse, begging them to take particular câre of it, and to put it at the head of his bed; for he did not wish, he said, any other pillow. O youth, youth, thou art to be pitied! Cousin, one would have thought we carried the crown diämonds. All that there was in my comrade's valise to cause so great solicitude1 was-a bundle of his sweetheart's letters!

8. Supper over, our hōsts left us. They slept bēlōw, we in the room åbove that where we had supped. A loft, to which we had to mount seven or eight feet by a ladder, was the resting-place that awaited us. It was a sort of nest, into which we were to introduce ourselves by creeping under cross-beams loaded with provisions for the whole year. My companion climbed up ålōne, and, already hälf asleep, threw himself down with his head upon the precious valise.

9. As for myself, I determined to watch; and, having made ȧ good fire, I sat down near it. The night, which had been undisturbed, was at length near its end. Just before the break of day, when almost reassured, I heard our host and his wife talking and disputing below. Listening intently at the chimney, which communicated with the one in the lower room, I distinctly heard 2 the husband utter these words: "Well, come now, must we kill them bōth? The wife replied, "Yes;" and

I heard no mōre.

10. How shall I go on? I stood scârcely breathing, my whōle body cold as marble. To have seen me, you would not have known whether I was dead or ålīve. Horrible !3 when I but think of it, even now! We two, without weapons, against twelve or fifteen who had so many! And my companion hälf dead with sleep and fatigue! To call him-to make the slightest noise-I dared not; to escape ålōne was impossible; the window was not věry high from the ground; but beneath it, howling like wolves, were two savage bull-dogs. Imagine, if you can, the agony 4 of my situation.

1 So lic'i tūde, anxious care; uneasiness of mind caused by the fear of evil or the desire of good. 2 Heard (herd).

8 Hŏr'ri ble, causing, or tending to cause, a shuddering: frightful. 4 Ag'o ny, extreme or very great pain of body or mind.