Warren sheaf. [volume] (Warren, Marshall County, Minn.) 1880-current, 1898-04-28
WOLVES ON ICE.
By CHARLES KELSEY GAINES.
Copyright, 1898.
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Copyright, 1898,

A0H, MOI" said our veteran guide,
stretching his tired limbs in the
full glow Of campfire from which the
rest of us shrunl back little. There
are no wolves now in the Adirondack
woods; at least l don't know of any,
Everybody hates wolf, and the ugly
brutes have all been killed off, I guess
The only game laws for them are such
as offer a reward for their scalps.
Then there used to be wolves in
these parts?" queried.
He pushed a fallen brand back into
the fire with his boot heel.
oh, yes! l can remember when
that you may know without looking
I'm not particularly young. Yes,
know thing or two about wolves and
let me tell you, right here, they're the
ugliest thing that carries howl inside
hide when once they get on your
trail. Catamounts are bad enough but
they don't run in packs. I've known
a bear to take a lot of lead to settle
him, but you only have to tackle one,
you are-there used to be wolves about
here, and I'm not the one to forget
it,
He paused, after the manner of old
men who want encoura cement to tell
a story.
''1ou've had an adventure, then?' I
exclaimed. go ahead and tell us all
about it,"
An adventure to make your hair
stand on end''-he cried, warming. to
the subject and sitting erect. "Any-
how, it made mine stick up like the
bristles Oh brush. You see had an
other life to look out for besides my
own, and that almost scared me
crazy
He rose to throw on fresh logs; and
while they sputtered and blazed, and
cast Pickering CLEAN on tree trunks
deep among the shadows, he settled
down again to comfort and his
story.
Il was only IA then, and my sister
couldn't have been more than seven.
We were living near Three Falls, close
by the river. 1t was well along in De-
cember, and though, for a wonder,
there wasn't much snow, the ice was
foot thick, and in many places so
smooth and black that you could hard
5y tell it from open water. Of course I
was wild to go skating, and mother told
HE [ might if I'D take along sister
Lorena and be sure to come back early.
so L got out the little boxsled and
tucked in Lorena, snug and warm, and
we started.
THAT sled was really sort of min
iature sleigh, built especially for
Lcrena, who was the spoiled child in
our family. It had cushioned seat
and padded sides, and back SO high
that l could skate behind and push it
like one of those new-fangled baby
carriages.
"Fll never forget how Lorena looked
that day; she comes up before nv
sight just as the bowling of the
wolves sounds in my ears whenever I
think about it. She had yellow hair
and big eyes and a rosebud sort of
face; and when she wanted anything
she had only to pout just the least bit,
Sahd she got IL r1ShI away. She was
wrapped and muf1led until she seemed
as broad as she was long, but her rosy
cheeks peeped out of her soft worsted
hood like bright red pink smothered
III bed of white cnes. Our Lorena
was little beauty and no mistake, for
all she was sister to such plain-lool1-
. ing fellow.
eve went on the ice just above the
rapids, and as soon as had strapped
on my skates and stamped in the heel
, brads we started up the river. Mine
Were the old-fashioned kind Of skates,
of course--the sort that turns up in
front with brass knobs over your toes,
but had ground the edges sharp as