He knew that he was safe enough in the cage and could do this with impunity. Therefore he chuckled to himself. “I jes’ fink dem b’ars fink dey am some big stuff,” he muttered, “but dey am a flea bite ’longside ob de Steam Man.” In one sense this was true enough. The Steam Man, however, hardly stood higher than one of the brutes, who was a perfect monster. The bears came down the mountain boldly and straight toward the Steam Man. Pomp watched them curiously. One of them began sniffing the air and both came to a halt twenty feet distant. For a moment they sniffed the air thus, then the largest rose upon his hind feet and let out a roar that made the air tremble. Straight toward the Steam Man he came. He was not five feet from the Steam Man when mischievous Pomp unable to restrain himself, pulled the whistle valve. A terrific shriek went up on the air. It was deafening in its force and the effect was ludicrous in the extreme. The big grizzly fell backward as if shot and turned a complete somersault. He rolled over and over in a heap and both bears went a safe distance up the mountain side. There they paused and began to roar and growl furiously and tear up the ground with their claws. Pomp nearly split his sides with laughter. It was to him the funniest thing he had seen for many a day. “Golly, I jes’ reckon dat was one very much s’prised bear,” he cried, hilariously. “I jes’ fink he don’ want no paht ob de Steam Man any more.” But in this surmise Pomp was wrong. The two bears had again begun to advance down the mountain side. They advanced cautiously, taking much time and sniffing the air suspiciously as before. They took a detour, and both approached the Steam Man from the side. Steadily, cautiously they approached. Again Pomp pulled the valve. As the Steam Man’s whistle went up on the air both bears went tumbling back somersaults. They retreated some yards, but recovered and advanced again to the attack. This time they manifested less fear to the whistle, standing their ground. Pomp saw that the crisis had come, and he picked up his repeating rifle. With quick aim he pulled the trigger. One of the bears received a bullet in the shoulder. But the wound only brought a maddened roar from the brute. Rearing upon its hind legs it made an attempt to rush upon the Steam Man. Throwing its arms about the Man the bear proceeded to give him a hug. But it was not of long duration. The bear’s teeth failed to penetrate the Man’s iron armor, and the hot iron burned into the bear’s flesh. The air was instantly filled with the smoke and aroma of burning hair and bear meat. With a howl of agony the bear recoiled and began scratching its belly furiously with its forward paws. Angered, it dealt the Man a terrific blow, and Pomp saw that the crisis had come. He threw another cartridge into the breech of his rifle and took aim. The brute’s eye was within range.