The Saint Paul globe., 1900-04-15
Iw1MT Big
NyoF Story.


remarked the Chicago judge, who was at
French Lick Springs for his liver.
1T is all a very simple matter, this
getting away from wolves,' said the sec
retary of state of Missouri, who was
drinking the waters for insomnia.
Think so?" asked the lumberman from
Rat Portage. mot up in our country.
Not up there where it Is twenty degrees
below and snow four feet deep this
blessed minute. Suppose YOU were
chased in the country north of Rat Port
age. Not a soul between our town and
Hudson's bay. And we do get chased up
there in the North I've been chased
myself"
1T was way back before there were
any railroads in the West of Canada, in
the early seventies" said the Rat Port
age man.
Lord Archibald McGolrick was gov
ernoT of Winnipeg, and I was a corporal
in the mounted police. Lady McGo,rick
had ordered some things for Christmas
persents early in the fan. They came to
Pert Arthur, ON Lake Superior, by boat.
In the first week of December. 1 and
James Marsden, William McAlpln, and
old Du Vallon. the French guide. was
on our way through the wilderness to
Winnipeg with them presents, which
was a han clock, a big gold watch, some
Jars of butter, lot of pop-corn-unr op-
ped-and a spring bed and some other
things which 1 forget.
Third day out, we shot a deer and
loaded him on one of the two sledges we
was travelling in, to eat as we went
along. We had two sledges and TIVE rode
in one and two in the other. Fourth day
the rear sledge tipped over in the snow
and everything in it fell out Awful deep
snow. 1t was the morning of the next
day that we heard away off somewhere,
the bowling of a wolf.
Wen fix EN- said Marsden, 10 king
to his gun.
Well do that same said McAlpin,
feeling down in the rear sledge to get
out the ammunition There wasn't no
ammunition there! It had fallen out In
the tip-over Of the day before, and we
had overlooked it In putting the things
back in.
!" We're ct up. said old DuVallon.
Not yet, said I. we amt
Well, as ! said" continued the Rat
Portage man, I'VE gained half an hour
took to throwing things out to them
pieces of cloth, which they would stop
to look az. Then DuVallon threw the
governors new gold watch straight at
the first wolf in the pack. He leaped
and grabbed it, and before he knew
what he was about, had swallowed 1t.
But the watch didn't wait untif its
case was ct up to make trouble for the
wolf. he got sick and gaggy and stopped
an lay down. and the others were on
him and ct him.
Once more we got needed respite.
But after little. there they all was.
right behind Us again. They got almost
up to the siedge.
" We're ct up said old Duvallon
Not yet said I, we amt
The watch done the business before
said Marsden. Throw out the hall clock
That was the wild suggestion of a
hopeless man, a drowning man clutching
at straw, but We got her up on end,
and bang out she went of the head of
wolf, who was not two feet behind the
rear sledge. The rest stopped to eat him
and again we gained time.
Then what McAlpin said about the
main spring unwinding in the VOLTS stom-
aeh give me an idea. ] started to get out
the deer carcass
'''There,' SAID Marsden. WHY didn't
We throw that out before?
We aln't going to throw it out now,'
said I, and 1 began cutting strips of
tendon and hide from the deer. Then I
rooted out some Of the springs Of Lady
McGolricks bed. They was spiral wire.
For convenience in packing, they had
been pressed by machinery down to a
compass by two inches and held there
by being wound by twine. Cut the twine
and they'd spring up to the height of a
foot. They was very stiff wire and
once unwound the strength of a strong
man couldn't compress 'em beyond six
inches, Only machinery could get them
down to two inches. / loosened the end
Of the twine on one spring and started
to unwind 1t. AS l took of the twine
bit by bit put down the deer hide and
tendon in It's place, until all of the tWine
was replaced by tendon and hide and
the spring had not budged from its orig
inal compressed condition. I fixed four
before the wolves were up to us again.
We're ct up said old DuVallon.
Not yet,' said I, we amt and
threw out the four springs wrapped up
in chunks of meat. -Four wolves gobbIed
'em
There said J. hungry as they are.
exercising in the cold air the way thew
are, the gastric juices Of them wolves
will eat those springs free In short or
DER
'But as the minutes flew and the
wolves was so near we had to club 'em
as they tried to scramble into the rear
sledge. We got frightened.
"'We're ct up said old DuVallon
a. Not yet said 1, we amt for Just
then up leaped four wolves cutting the
most remarkable didoes, and fell down
on the snow, where they turned and twist
ed as If they was trying to turn them
selve inside out. The rest Jumped on to
'em and commenced to eat.
THAT made ten wolves the rest had ct
that day. 1t seemed to fill 'em up. for
when we had camped for the night we
hadn't seen nor heard of 'em. But at 10
next morning, they were in full cry be-
hind us. I was ready for 'em and fixed
six. They was dwindling in numbers
now. Six filled the pack up so well that
we didn't see 'em again until noon of the
next day. Fixed six more. So it went on
for three days more, until on the sixth
day Of the chase only six wolves of the
original forty-six remained. They was
monstrous big ones, these last representa-
tives Of the big pack. They had ct all
the rest. As we sat behind our circle of
fire on the sixth night we could see 'em
prowling around out in the darkness. We
had used up our last spring.
There was a little old deserted log
cabin inside the circle OF our fire We mt
the horses in there and blocked 1p the
one window and door by piling the Hedges
up in front, and got u on the roof. AS
soon as 1t was light and the fire had
burned down, the wolves Jumped over
and came after US. They tried to scrarn-
BILE up the sledges to the roof. but wa
easily knocked 'em down with sledr.
stakes. Then breeze sprang up and the
dying fire revived and got pretty hot.
The wolves stopped trying to get ne
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