From what I read of that, the bear had charged them for sure. But as it reads, he was done charging, and was standing still when shots were fired. I think that's what Rod is getting at. The next sentence after the highlighed part says the bear was standing 3' away from the clients, and that's when he felt like be could shoot safely. I don't think he shot while the bear was active in its charge. That's how I read it anyway.

I don't have a dog in this fight, but I think both sides are right. There was a charge, and the bear was shot afterwards while it was standing in front of the clients. Anyway, off to the range and some more time with the flintlock!