Out of French Canada comes this robust and rollicking tall tale of a bear cub who was trained by his master, the shrewd Jeannot Vallar, to march, to shoulder a gun, to handle a sword, and to wear hel-met, jacket, and boots like any soldier. When the governor's men, Corporal Pagot and Soldier Genest, came to conscript Vallar to fight against the Iroquois, he sent Alphonse off with them in his place. And then the fun began! The moose-faced Pagot and the wispy Genest soon learned respect for this strange recruit they were bringing back to the fort. He wasted no time in words, but he could catch fish with the greatest ease and he showed no fear of any animal in the forest at night. How the three comrades inadvertently volunteered to go as spies to the Iroquois village, and how they brought about peace with the Indians because of their bungling is told with sly humor and hilarious incident. The many vigorous line drawings by Nicolas Mord-vinoff, Caldecott medalist, carry the fun to its perfect conclusion.
