CHAPTER XXVI
A CLEVER RUSE
The boy acrobat scrambled up from the roadside ditch, seized thepitchfork, and dashed along in the direction Big Bob had taken.
A glance showed the audacious animal still at the window of thefarmhouse, though now under it.
Bruin had swept the contents of the window sill to the ground with onemovement of his great paw. He was now discussing the merits of thedishes he had dislodged with a crash.
Andy ran around to the other side of the house. From within occasionalhysterical shrieks issued. They were mingled with distracted sobs. Atanother open window Andy halted.
He could look into a middle apartment crossing the entire house.Crouching in a corner was a young woman. Her eyes were fixed in terroron the window at which the bear had appeared.
In her arms was a child, crying in affright. An older woman stood at atelephone, twisting its call bell handle frantically.
"Don't be afraid," said Andy. "It's a harmless old bear escaped from thecircus down at the tracks."
The two women regarded him mutely, too scared to believe him. Andy heardthe telephone bell ring.
"Quick! quick!" cried the woman at the instrument. "Send help. A bigbear! We'll be devoured alive!"
"No you won't," declared Andy in a shout, making around the house.
He hardly knew what to do next, but he kept his eyes open. He hoped forsome discovery among the truck littering the yard that would suggest away of getting Big Bob again on the run.
"Capital--the very thing," cried Andy suddenly.
He dropped the pitchfork and whipped out his pocket knife. In twoseconds he had severed a forty-foot stretch of clothes line running froma hook on the house to a post.
Then Andy ran to the kitchen door. Hanging at its side was a big pieceof raw beef.
It was evidently from an animal recently slaughtered, for it was stillmoist and dripping. Andy tightly secured one end of the clothes lineabout it. He ran to the side of the house.
Big Bob was just finishing a repast on some apple pie. Andy gave themeat a fling. It struck the bear in the face. Big Bob raised his head.He sniffed and licked his lips. He made an eager, hungry spring for themeat, which had rebounded several feet.
"Come on," said Andy, sure now that his bait was a good one, and thathis experiment would succeed. "I've got you, I guess."
Andy started on a run, paying out the rope. Just as Big Bob was about topounce upon the toothsome spoil, Andy gave it a jerk.
He gauged his rate of progress on a close estimate. Along the trail spedbruin. Andy put across the fields.
He heard a bell ring out. Glancing back at the farmhouse, he saw a humanarm reaching through an open window. It pulled at a rope leading to abig alarm bell hanging from the eaves. Looking beyond the farmhouse healso saw three or four men in a distant field, summoned by the bell, nowrushing in its direction.
"I'll get Big Bob beyond the danger line, anyhow," decided Andy. "No,you don't!"
The fugitive had pounced fairly on the dragging beef. Andy gave it awhirling jerk. Bruin uttered a baffled growl.
"Come on," laughed Andy. "This is jolly fun--if it doesn't end in atragedy."
Andy ran under the bottom rail of a fence. He made time and distance,for the bear did not squeeze through so readily. Andy put through abrushy reach beyond. Big Bob began to lag. He limped and panted.
"If I can only tucker him out," thought Andy.
He kept up the race for fully half-an-hour. As he reached the edge of aboggy stretch, Andy saw, directly beyond, the top of a house poking upamong a grove of fir trees.
Andy's eyes were everywhere as he neared the building. Its lower partwas so tightly shuttered and closed up that he decided at once it was anempty house.
Getting nearer, however, he discovered that the door at the bottom ofthe stone cellar steps was open. Andy glanced back of him. Big Bob, withlolling tongue, was lumbering steadily on his track, perhaps twenty feetto the rear.
"I'll try it," determined Andy.
He ran down the steps, halted in the dark cellar, pulled in the meat andflung it ahead of him. Then stepping to one side he prepared to actpromptly when the right moment arrived.
Big Bob came to the steps, cleared them in a spring and ran past Andy.The latter dodged outside in a flash. He banged the door shut, shot itsbolt, sank to the steps and swept his hand over his dripping brow.
"Whew!" panted Andy. "But I've made it."
Andy felt that he had done a pretty clever thing. He had gotten thefugitive safely caged behind a stout locked door. The cellar had severalwindows, but they were high up, and too small for Big Bob to eversqueeze through.
"I don't believe there is anybody at home," said Andy, getting up toinvestigate. "I'm going to find out. Gracious! I have--there is."
Andy was terribly startled, almost appalled. At just that moment afrightful yell rang out. It proceeded from the cellar into which he hadlocked the bear.
A sharp crash followed. Andy, staring spellbound, saw one of the sidewindows of the cellar dashed out.
Through the aperture, immediately following, there clambered a man.
He was hatless, a big red streak crossed his cheek, his coat was inribbons down the back.
White as a sheet, chattering and trembling, he scrambled to his feet,gave one affrighted glance back of him, and shot for the road likea meteor.
Bang! bang! bang!
"Oh, dear!" cried the distressed Andy. "What's up now?"
Andy the Acrobat Page 26
