For some time we stood near the door, prepared for flight. It was
growing light, and with the daylight our courage revived. First
Willis, then John and I, went back to the hole in the floor and
peeped down; but it was too dark to distinguish any object.

Growing bolder, Willis ventured slowly to lift another floor plank
over where our hairy bed-fellow lay; and even now I seem to see
John's dilated eyes, as we looked down on a great round mat of
shaggy black hair!

We had now no doubt that it was, indeed, a bear. Willis lowered the
plank gently into its place; and going outside, we discovered that
there was a hole at the far end of the barn where the old stone
work under the sill had fallen out.

The discovery excited us so that we forgot our miseries. The bear's
skin and the state bounty would be worth sixteen dollars. As
Willis's gun was useless, we concluded that the thing for us to do
was to run home--if we could find the way--and get assistance.

We had scarcely left the barn when we saw two men come out of the
woods. One of them had a gun. As they drew nearer, we perceived
that the foremost was Willis's older brother, Ben Murch, and the
other John's father.

"They're hunting for us! Now don't you tell them we got lost!" said
Willis, with the guile so apt to develop in a boy who has older
brothers who tease him.

"But we did," said John.