over again just as he had seen them at the time and they did not shake him what of it they were dead and dead long since they weren t about it they weren t on their across a boat and waiting to die death was easy � easier than he had ever imagined and now that it was near the thought of it made him glad a new vision came to him he saw the feverish city of his dream � the gold metropolis of the north perched above the on a high earth bank and far spreading burning daylight across the flat he saw the river tied to the bank and lined against it three deep he saw the working and the long dog with double behind supplies to the and he saw the gambling houses banks stock and all the gear and and the chances and opportunities of a vastly bigger gambling game than any he had ever seen it was hell he thought with the a working and that big strike coming to be out of it all life thrilled and stirred at the thought and once more began uttering his ancient lies daylight rolled over and off the boat leaning against it as he sat on the ice he wanted to be in on that strike and why shouldn t he somewhere in all those wasted muscles of his was enough strength if he could gather it all at once to up end the boat and it quite the idea suggested itself of a share in the town site from and joe they would sell a third interest cheap then if the strike came on the he be well in on it with the town site if on the he not be quite out of it in the meantime he would gather strength he stretched out on the ice full length face downward and for half an hour he lay and rested then he arose shook the flashing blindness from his eyes and took hold of the boat he knew his condition accurately if the first effort failed the following efforts were doomed to fail he must pull all his rallied strength into the one effort and so thoroughly must he put all of it in that there would be none left for other attempts he lifted and he with the of him as well as with the body himself body and spirit in the effort the boat rose he thought he was ta but he continued to lift he t ie bo x n burning daylight started on its downward slide with the last of his strength he himself into it landing in a sick heap on s legs he was beyond attempting to rise and as he lay he heard and felt the boat take the water by watching the tree tops he knew it was whirling a shock and flying fragments of ice told him that it had struck the bank a dozen times it whirled and struck and then it floated easily and free daylight came to and decided he had been asleep the sun that several hours had passed it was early afternoon he dragged himself into the stem and sat up the boat was in the middle of the stream the wooded banks with their base lines of flashing ice were slipping by near him floated a huge pine a of the current brought the boat against it crawling forward he fastened the painter to a root the tree deeper in the water was travelling faster and the painter as the boat took the tow then with a last giddy wherein he saw the banks and swaying and the sun swinging in sweep across the sky daylight wrapped himself in his rabbit skin robe lay down m the bottom and fell asleep when he awoke it was dark night he was lying on his back and he could see the stars shining a subdued murmur of swollen waters could be heard a sharp jerk informed him that the boat slack into the painter had been straightened out by the moving pine tree a piece of stray drift ice against the boat and along its side well the following jam hadn t caught him yet was his thought as he his eyes and slept again it was bright day when next he opened his eyes the sun showed it to be midday a glance at the banks and he knew that he was on the mighty sixty mile could not be far away he was burning daylight weak his movements were slow and accompanied by panting and head swimming as he dragged himself into a sitting up position in the stem his rifle beside him he looked a long time at but not see whether he breathed or not and he was too far away to make an investigation he to dreaming and meditating again dreams and thoughts being often broken by stretches of wherein he neither slept nor was nor was aware of anything it seemed to him more like slipping in his brain and in this way he the situation he was still alive and most likely be saved but how came it that he was not lying dead across the boat on top the ice rim then he recollected the great final effort he had made but why had he made it he asked himself it had not been fear of death he had not been afraid that was sure then he remembered the and the big strike he believed was coming and he knew that the spur had been his desire to sit in for a hand at that big game and again why what if he made his million he would die just the same as those that never won more than then again why but the blank stretches in his thinking process began to come more frequently and he surrendered to the delightful that 