Every evening in the gloaming he would pace back and forth, raise his kingly head, utter his piercing shriek, then stop and hark for a response; walk again, shriek and listen, while the bears would bellow an answer.
The bears, too, were often exciting and interesting.

Once I rescued a toddling child when running towards "big bear," and not more than two feet from where he stood waiting with hungry eyes.

At another time, they both broke loose, on a bitter cold day when I was alone in the house.

I defended myself with fire, meeting them at every door and window with a hickory brand.

I wondered as they went round and round the house, if they would stop in the chimney corner, and make the acquaintance of Tom; but they took no notice of him, and after they had eaten several buckets of porridge, they concluded there was nothing in the house they wanted, so became good natured and went and climbed a tree.
Such schoolmasters must have imparted a flavor of savagery to my Mexican war letters, which attracted readers as they did visitors..