Mower County transcript. [volume] (Lansing, Minn.) 1868-1915, 1884-12-24
shoulder, the bartender, who was really
a kind hearted fellow. yentured to ask

shoulder, the bartender, who was really
kind hearted fellow, ventured to ask
what he was going to do.
'I'm going to run that Internal thief
off the claim" replied Cartwright,
whose rage had been succeeded by bru-
tai GOODNESS that bespoke his intent Of
doing exactly what he said.
"Look here, Bill" exclaimed the bar
tender, "don't be fool. Why, you
know it won't do you no good to go and
raise row there now: besides, you
amt agoing to throw that mans wife
and kids right out in the snow, are
you?"
"What dye 'spose keer fur his wife
and kids?" snarled Cartwright. "Do
you s'pose that jess because mans got
family he can start out q Robin folks?
I've stood things like a--sa saint long
enough, and now-once for all: I'm
goin' to settle him!"
And leaping through his veins with
every drop of blood was a pitiless par
pose, rooted deep in his heart and re-
fecting there each. evil passion, each
distorted wrong, each shattered hope
and nurtured enmity, like phantoms on
pool.
It was long journey; and he started
on an easy gate. It was clear, cold
afternoon, the air in it's absolute dryness
and rare6ed purity was like telescope
and cut the stern old range clear as
cameo against the sky. When he got
well out of the camp Cartwright put on
the snow shoes and forged rapidly
along the ascent Of the Mosquito Noun
tains. At o'clock he was less than a
mile from the pass when ON annoying
accident occurred; his rife slipped out
of his hand and tumbled into an ice
crevice at the side of the road. It took
him over an hour to rescue it with an i'm
provised lariat, and by that time the
evening had set in. As it was impossi-
BILE to safely traverse the treacherous
roadway in the dusk. nothing remained
to do but wait for the moon. It rose
early, and in few hours hung full and
bright above the mountains. Cart
wright drew his coat closer and hurried
on.
Mosquito pass, towards which he
pushed, is net pass at all in the COM
mon understanding of the word, but a
shallow furrow across the crest of the
range at it's dizziest point. Wrapped in
everlasting snow, exposed to the tenn
pestuous winds, and fanked by an aw-
full chasm of ice, it is death to attempt
it in winter, save at the stillest times.
OF such was that night; yet as Cart
wright crept along he clutched the
black rocks with his fingers and Uared
not stand erect for fear the furious
blast would tear him bodily from the
ground. Slowly he crawled, the only
living thing in the stupendous solitude
among the clouds, and with darkness
blacker than the skies above, deeper,
denser and deadlier than the gorge be-
low, around about his heart.
At last he was over, and, resting a
moment, hurried on. There was par
TALLY level stretch for some distance
and then the descent be an. An hour
more and he stood. on the zigzag trail;
half q mile down the slope directly be-
low him he saw the lights of the cabin
windows, and paused, with a murderous
CLEAN in his eyes, to look at the locks
of his Winchester.
The moon by this time was riding
high and turned the snow-feld above,
below and all around him to glis;ening,
ghostly white. The sky had none of
the dome-like look Of lower attitudes,
but stretched on and on in the dark
blue ether to fathomless forever, and
in this immensely Of space the Christ
mas stars hung like a million lamps.
The distant peaks stood in cluster of
jet-like shadows and the black outline
of the range was bordered with silver
thread.
As Cartwright gazed, with something
perhaps of a subtle magic of the scene
creeping in upon him, he gave eudden
start and threw q wild look at the icy
field above. It seemed to him that q
small bush or beaten down tree that
cast black shadow about quarter of a
mile up had moved in some mysterious
way, and was much nearer to him then
it appeared before. He paled a little
through his bronze, and stood like a
statue, looking that way.
Five minutes passed-ten-and then,
heavens! what witchery of the night
was that? The whole vast field of ice
and snow. with its myriads of glittering
points and world of shadows, with its
stones and bushes and all it's conforma-
ton, moved steadily, slowly, silently
toward him for space-then stopped
again! There was sense that the earth
itself was giving way, and the Birnam
Woods that came to Dunsinane were
not more terrifying THAI this slow shift
ing of all things stable; but il was no
riddle to the mountaineer.
He knew that snow slide, one of
those frozen avalanches that start in the
loosening of lump of ice, silently
gathering strength by the tapping of one
layer over another until they crash
down, the embodiment of death and
| strength, tossing rocks like pebbles
and swapping thick pines like reeds
he knew that one of these was trembling
upon the verge of it's spring.
Cartwright's wandering eyeg fell upon
| the cabin and in the briefest instant
in q hundreth part of the time it takes
| to write these words-he realized that
it lay in the path of the monster and
was doomed; and in the incongruity oil
| Sp4I4b bAdO WIS utsA kEOb0S4u0, q u0rCe
indignation stirred within him against
the messenger of death that came in
the dead of the night and made nc
sign.
As for himself, he had only to ster
aside and let the avalanche go by, bui
the fate of the cabin clashed with his
rough notions of fairness; it assailed
his life long doctrines of chance; hi
brutal courage was aroused against il
because it came SO unaware.
How nearly akin it was to his OWL
errand he never thought; he was sen.
sible alone of an impulse to thwart the
disaster without heroic motives, he
suddenly did what hero would.
To think was to act. It is said that
a pebble will turn an avalanche.
sportsman knows that breeze will de
feet bullet. Near by was the trunk
of an old pine tree. He sprung to il
like lightning, and pried it forward
| with his rifle. At the last wrench the