"Fire another," said the Boyg. But Peer knew better; if he had fired another shot, the bullet would have rebounded against himself.
Thereupon Peer and his dogs took hold of the Troll-Monster and dragged him out, so that they could get into the sæter. Meanwhile there was jeering and laughing in all the hills around.
"Peer Gynt dragged hard, but the dogs dragged harder," said a voice.
Next morning he went out stalking. When he came out on the uplands he saw a girl, who was calling some sheep up a hillside. But when he came to the place the girl was gone and the sheep too, and he saw nothing but a great flock of bears.
"Well, I never saw bears in a flock before," thought Peer to himself. When he came nearer, they had all disappeared except one.
"Look after your pig:
Peer Gynt is out
with his gun so big,"[1]
shouted a voice over in a hillock.
"Oh, it'll be a bad business for Peer, but not for my pig; for he hasn't washed himself to-day," said another voice in the hill. Peer washed his hands with the water he had, and shot the bear. There was more laughter and jeering in the hill.
"You should have looked after your pig!" cried a voice.
"I didn't remember he had a water-jug between his legs," answered the other.
Peer skinned the bear and buried the carcass among the stones, but the head and the hide he took with him. On his way home he met a fox.
- ↑ Literally, "with his tail." A gun loosely slung over the
shoulder bears a certain resemblance to a tail sticking up in the air.
