Ben (Gentle Ben) Quotes

“Fog Benson had captured him when the cub was six months old. He had killed Ben’s mother and brought the young bear to town to show him off. And because Ben had cried for hours for his lost mother, Fog had laughingly named him ‘Squeaky Ben,’ after a local character with a querulous voice. As the cub grew and it became apparent his size would be tremendous, the ‘Squeaky’ part was dropped.”

″‘If you were mine-’ Mark had been saying this to himself since the first night he had stopped to see Ben. He often lay in bed thinking of it before going to sleep.”

“Mark was sure he’d never know such warm companionship with his father. Jamie had got it all. He wondered what would have happened if Jamie had asked for Ben.”

″‘You’d follow me around like a dog-’ At this, Mark paused, struck to his very heart with joy at the thought of arousing such love and devotion in what would be the biggest bear in the whole world. ‘Wouldn’t that be something!‘”

“Mark’s heart had begun hammering at his father’s first words. The mention of shooting Ben was too much. But he hardly realized he had spoken aloud the thought that flooded his mind until he heard his father’s incredulous voice, ‘Buy the bear for you? You want him?‘”

″‘You’d have me believe you just walked right up to him, picked up the chain, led him back, and tied him up! A five-year old brownie, half grown, maybe more.’ ‘Well, I petted him some first, and scratched his ears, and rubbed him under the chin. He likes being scratched under the chin.‘”

“That’s why I don’t want Mark fooling around with this bear. He’s all we’ve got left.”

″‘If he needs a pet,’ his father said, ‘we’ll get him a dog.’ ‘It’s too late,’ his mother’s voice answered. ‘Mark’s given his heart to Ben.‘”