TWO BIG BEARS Little House in the Big Woods Little House On The Prairie By Laura Ingalls Wilder

two big bears

then one day paw said that spring was

coming

in the big woods the snow was beginning

to thaw

bits of it dropped from the branches of

the trees and made little holes in the

softening snow banks below

at noon all the big icicles along the

eaves of the little house

quivered and sparkled in the sunshine

and drops of water hung trembling at

their tips

paul said he must go to town to trade

the furs of the wild animals he’d been

trapping all winter

so one evening he made a big bundle of

them

there were so many furs that when they

were packed tightly

and tied together they made a bundle

almost as big as paw

very early one morning paw strapped the

bundle of furs on his shoulders

and started to walk to town there was so

many furs to carry

that he could not take his gun ma was

worried

but paul said that by starting before

sun up and walking very fast

all day he could get home again before

dark

the nearest town was far away

laura and mary had never seen a town

they had never seen a store

they had never seen even two houses

standing together

but they knew that in a town there were

many houses

and a store full of candy and calico and

other

wonderful things powder and shot

and salt and store sugar

they knew that paul would trade his furs

to the store keeper for beautiful things

from town

and all day they were expecting the

presents he would bring them

when the sun sank low above the treetops

and no more drops fell from the tips of

the icicles

they began to watch eagerly for paw the

sun

sank out of sight the woods grew dark

and he did not come ma started supper

and set the table

but he did not come it was time to do

the chores

and still he had not come ma

said that laura might come with her

while she milked the cow

laura could carry the lantern so laura

put on her coat

and mom buttoned it up and laura put her

hands into her red mittens

that hung by a red yarn string around

her neck

while ma lighted the candle in the

lantern

laura was proud to be helping ma with

the milking

and she carried the lantern very

carefully

its sides were of tin with places cut in

them for the candlelight to shine

through

when laura walked behind ma on the path

to the barn

the little bits of candlelight from the

lantern leaped

all around her on the snow the night was

not yet quite dark

the woods were dark but there was a gray

light on the snowy path

and in the sky there were a few faint

stars

the stars did not look as warm and

bright as the little lights that came

from the lantern

laura was surprised to see the dark

shape of suki the brown cow

standing at the barnyard gate maul was

surprised too

it was too early in the spring for suki

to be let out in the big woods to eat

grass

she lived in the barn but sometimes on

warm days

paul left the door of her stall open so

she could come into the barnyard

now ma and laura saw her behind the bars

waiting for them maul went up to the

gate

and pushed against it to open it but it

did not open very far

because there was suki standing against

it

ma said suki get over

she reached across the gate and slapped

suki’s shoulder

just then one of the dancing little bits

of light from the lantern jumped between

the bars of the gate

and laura saw long shaggy black fur

and two little glittering eyes

suki had thin short brown fur suki had

large

gentle eyes ma said

laura walk back to the house

so laura turned around and began to walk

toward the house

ma came behind her when they had gone

part way

ma snatched her up lantern and all and

ran

ma ran with her into the house and

slammed the door

then laura said ma was it

a bear yes laura ma

said it was a bear laura began to cry

she hung onto ma and sobbed oh will it

eat suki

no ma said hugging her sookie is safe in

the barn

think laura all those big heavy logs in

the barn walls and the door is heavy and

solid made to keep bears out

no the bear cannot get in and eat sookie

laura felt better then but he could have

hurt us

couldn’t he she asked he didn’t hurt us

ma said you were a good girl laura to do

exactly as i told you and to do it

quickly

without asking why ma was trembling

and she began to laugh a little to think

she said i’ve slapped a bear

then she put supper on the table for

laura and mary

paul had not come yet he didn’t come

laura and mary were undressed and they

said their prayers

and snuggled into their trundle bed ma

sat by the lamp mending one of paw’s

shirts

the house seemed cold and still and

strange without paw

laura listened to the wind in the big

woods all around the house the wind went

crying as though it were lost in the

dark and the cold

the wind sounded frightened

ma finished mending the shirt laura saw

her fold it slowly and carefully

she smoothed it with her hand then she

did a thing

she had never done before she went to

the door

and pulled the leather latch string

through its hole in the door

so that nobody could get in from outside

unless she lifted the latch

she came and took carrie all limp and

sleeping

out of the big bed she saw that laura

and mary was still awake and she said to

them

go to sleep girls everything is all

right

paul will be here in the morning then

she went back to her rocking chair

and sat there rocking gently and holding

baby carrie in her

arms she was sitting up late

waiting for paw and laura and mary meant

to stay awake too till he came

but at last they went to sleep

in the morning paul was there

he had brought candy for laura and mary

and two pieces of pretty calico to make

them each address

mary’s was a china blue pattern on a

white ground

and laura’s was dark red with little

golden brown dots on it

ma had calico for a dress too it was

brown

with a big feathery white pattern all

over it

they were all happy because paw had got

such good prices for his furs that he

could afford to get them such

beautiful presents the tracks of the big

bear

were all around the barn and there were

marks of his claws on the walls

but sookie and the horses were safe

inside

all that day the sun shone the snow

melted and little streams of water ran

from the icicles

which all the time grew thinner before

the sun set that night

the bear tracks were only shapeless

marks in the wet

soft snow after supper paw took

laura and mary on his knees and said he

had a new story to tell them

the story of paw and the bear in the way

when i went to town yesterday with the

furs

i found it hard walking in the soft snow

it took me a long time to get to town

and other men with furs had come in

earlier to do their trading

the store keeper was busy and i had to

wait until he could look at my furs

then we had to bargain about the price

of each one

and then i had to pick out things i

wanted to take and trade

so it was nearly sundown before i could

start home

i tried to hurry but the walking was

hard and i was tired

so i had not gone far before night came

and i was alone in the big woods without

my gun

there were still six miles to walk and i

came along as fast as i could

the night grew darker and darker and i

wished for my

gun because i knew that some of the

bears had come out of their winter dens

i had seen their tracks when i went to

town in the morning

bears are hungry and cross at this time

of year

you know they’ve been sleeping in their

dens all winter long with nothing to eat

and that makes them thin and angry when

they wake up

i did not want to meet one i hurried

along as quick as i could in the dark

by and by the stars gave a little light

it was still black as pitch where the

woods were thick

but in the open places i could see dimly

i could see the snowy road ahead a

little way

and i could see the dark wood standing

all around me

i was glad when i came into an open

place where the stars gave me this faint

light

all the time i was watching as well as i

could for bears

i was listening for the sounds they make

when they go carelessly through the

bushes

then i came again into an open place and

there

right in the middle of my road i saw a

big

black bear he was standing up on his

hind legs

looking at me i could see his eyes shine

i could see his pig snout i could even

see one of his claws in the starlight

my scalp prickled and my hair stood

straight up

i stopped in my tracks and stood still

the bear did not move there he stood

looking at me i knew it would do no good

to try to go around him

he would follow me into the dark woods

where he could see better than i could

i did not want to fight a winter star

bear in the dark

oh how i wished for my gun i had to pass

that bear to get home

i thought that if i could scare him he

might get out of the road and let me go

by

so i took a deep breath and suddenly i

shouted with all my might and ran at him

waving my arms

he didn’t move i did not run very far

toward him i tell you i stopped and

looked at him

and he stood looking at me then i

shouted again

there he stood i kept on shouting and

waving my

arms but he did not budge

well it would do me no good to run away

there were other bears in the woods

i might meet one anytime i might as well

deal with this one as with another

besides i was coming home tomorrow and

you girls

i would never get here if i ran away

from everything in the woods that scared

me

so at last i looked around and i got a

good big club

a solid heavy branch that had been

broken from a tree by the weight of snow

in the winter

i lifted it up in my hands and i ran

straight at that bear i swung my club as

hard as i could and brought it down

bang on his head and there he stood

for he was nothing but a big black burn

stump

i had passed it on my way to town that

morning

it wasn’t a bear at all i only thought

it was a bear because i’d been thinking

all the time about bears and being

afraid i’d meet one

it really wasn’t a bear at all mary

asked

no mary it wasn’t a bear at all there i

had been

yelling and dancing and waving my arms

all by myself

in the big woods trying to scare a stump

laura said ours was really a bear

but we were not scared because we

thought it was sookie

paw did not say anything but he hugged

her tighter

that bear might have eaten mommy all up

lara said snuggling closer to him but

maul walked right up to him

and slapped him and he didn’t do

anything at all

why didn’t he do anything i guess he was

too surprised to do anything laura

paul said i guess he was afraid when the

lantern shone in his eyes

and when ma walked up to him and slapped

him he knew she wasn’t afraid

well you were brave too laura said

even if it was only a stump you thought

it was a bear

you’d have hit him on the head with a

club if he’d been a bear wouldn’t your

paw

yes said paw i would

you see i had to then ma said it was

bedtime

she helped laura and mary undress and

button up their red flannel nightgowns

they knelt down by the trundle bed and

said their prayers

now i lay meat down to sleep i pray the

lord

my soul to keep if i should die

before i wake i pray the lord

my soul to take ma kissed them both

and tuck the covers in around them they

lay there a while

looking at maw’s smooth parted hair and

her hands

busy with sewing in the lamplight her

needle made little clicking

sounds against her thimble and then the

thread went softly

swish through the pretty calico that paw

had traded furs for

laura looked at paw who was greasing his

boots

his mustaches and his hair and his long

brown beard was silky in the lamplight

and the colors of his plaid jacket were

gay

he whistled cheerfully while he worked

and then he sang

the birds were singing in the morning

and the myrtle and the ivy were in bloom

and the sun or the hills was adorning

twas then that i laid her

in the tomb

it was a warm night the fire had gone to

coals on the hearth

and pod did not build it up all around

the little

house in the big woods there were little

sounds of falling snow

and from the eaves there was the drip

drip

of the melting icicles in just a little

while the trees would be putting out

their baby leaves all

rosy and yellow and pale green and there

would be wildflowers and birds in the

woods

then there would be no more stories by

the fire at night

but all day long laura and mary would

run and play among the trees for it

would be spring