CHAPTER V

OUT IN THE GREAT WORLD

The Great World calls, and soon or late

Must each obey and rule his fate.

Mother Bear.

Not in all the Green Forest is there a wiser or better mother than Mrs. Bear. No one knows better than she the dangers of the Great World, or the importance of learning early in life all those things which a Bear who would live to a good old age should know. So after allowing the twins, Boxer¹ and Woof-Woof, to play around the entrance to their home under the great windfall for a few days, she took[27] them for their first walk in the Green Forest.

“Now,” said she, as she prepared to lead the way, “you are to do just as I do. You are to follow right at my heels, and the one who turns aside for anything without my permission will be spanked². Do you understand?”

“Yes’m,” replied Boxer and Woof-Woof meekly³.

My, my, my, how excited they were as Mother Bear led the way out from under the old windfall! This was to be a great, a wonderful adventure. They tingled⁴ all over. They were actually going out to see something of the Great World.

The first thing Mother Bear[28] did was to sit up and carefully test the wind with her nose. Boxer sat up and did exactly the same thing. Woof-Woof sat up and did exactly the same thing. The Merry Little Breezes tickled⁵ their noses with many scents⁷. Mother Bear knew what each one was, but of course the twins didn’t know any of them. All they knew was that they smelled good.

Mother Bear cocked her ears forward and listened. Boxer cocked his ears forward and listened. Woof-Woof cocked her ears forward and listened. Mother Bear looked this way and looked that way. Boxer looked this way and looked that way. So did Woof-Woof.

[29]“These are the things you must always do whenever you start out in the Great World,” explained Mother Bear in her deep, grumbly-rumbly voice. “You must learn to know the meaning of every scent⁶ that reaches your nose, of every sound that reaches your ears, of everything you see, for only by such knowledge can you keep out of danger. But you must never trust your ears or your eyes only. Your nose is more to be trusted than either ears or eyes or both ears and eyes. But always use all three.”

“Yes’m,” replied Boxer and Woof-Woof.

Then Mother Bear started off among the great trees, shuffling⁸ along and swinging her head[30] from side to side. Right at her heels shuffled⁹ Boxer, swinging his head from side to side, and right at his heels shuffled Woof-Woof, swinging her head from side to side. Whatever Mother Bear did the twins did. They did it because Mother Bear did it. They were keeping their promise. And little as they were, they felt very big and important, for now at last they were out in the Great World.

Chatterer the Red Squirrel saw them start out, and he chuckled¹⁰ as he watched those two funny little cubs¹¹ do exactly as Mother Bear did. He followed along in the tree tops, jumping from tree to tree, but taking the greatest[31] care to make no noise. He was fairly aching for a chance to scare those cubs. But as long as Mother Bear was with them, he didn’t dare to try.

Mother Bear stopped and sniffed¹² at an old log. Then she went on. Boxer stopped and solemnly sniffed at that old log. Then he went on. Woof-Woof stopped and sniffed at that old log. Then she went on. And so at last they came to a place where the earth was soft and where grew certain roots of which Mrs. Bear is very fond.