The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1903-01-04
nv JACK LONDON

b JACK LONDON.
TT was near z. Along the northern
horizon a rosy glow. fading TO the
west and deepening TO the east.
marked the unseen dip of the midnight
sun. The cleaning and the dawn were
so commingled that there was no night
simply wedding OF day with day.
fcarcely perceptible blending of two cir
es OF the sun. a kildee timidly chirDed
goodnight: the fun. rich throat OF robin
proclaimed gOod-mO-rOW. FlOm an island
on the breast OF the Yukon colony of
wild fowl voiced its intermnable
wrongs, while loon laughed mockingiy
back across d still stretch Of river.
In the foreground against the bank OF
q lazy eddy, birch bark canoes were lined
two and three deep In the muddy cur
rent of the river the saimOn-run was on.
In the background, from the tangle OF
skin tents rose the voices of the fisher
folk. Bucks skylarked with bucks or
flirted with the maidens, while the older
sQuaWs gOSSiped as they braided rope
from the green roots of trailing vines. At
their feet the naked progeny played and
squabbled. or rolled in the muck with the
tawny wolf dogs.
To one side of the encampment. and
conspicuOusly apart from it. stood sec
ond camp of two tents. 1t was white
mans camp. In case of offense. it com
mandcd the Indian quarters hundred
yards away. of defense, "A rise to the
ground and the cleared intervening space.
and last, of defeat, the swift slope Of
q score of Yards to the canoes below.
From one of the tents came the petulant
cry OF a sick child and the grooming song
of a mother. In the open. over the
smouldering embers Of fire. two men
''Eh? ] love the church like a good son.
Bien, So great a love that my days have
been spent in fleeing away from her and
my nights IN dreaming dreams of reckon
ing. Look you!" The half-bTeed's voice
rose to an angry snarl. y am Red River
born My father was whlte-as whlte as
you. But you are Yankee. and he was
British bred and a gentleman's SON And
my mother was the daughter OF a chlef,
and ] was a man. Ay, and one had To
look the second time to see what manner
of blood ran in my veins. for I lived with
the whites and was one or them. ana
Tmy fathers heart beat in me II hap
pened there was maiden White-Who
looked on me with kind eyes. Her father
had much land and many horses; also
he was a big man among his people and
his blood was the blood of the French.
lie said the girl knew not her own mind.
and talked Overmuch with her and be-
came wroth.
But she knew her mind for we came
quick before the priest But quicker had
come her father. with lying words, 50
that the priest Stiffened his neck and
would not make us that we might live
one with the other. AS at the beginning
It was the church which would not bless
my birth. so now 1t was the church which
refused me marriage and put the blood
I cause to love the church. So I struck
the priest on his womans mouth, and
we took swift horses. the girl and I, to
Fort Pierre. where was a minister of
good heart. But hot on our trail was her
father and brothers and other men he
had gathered him. And we fought. our
horses on tie run. till / emDtied three
saddles. and the rest drew off and went
on 10 Fort Pierre. Then we took east
the girl and ]. and we lived one with the
other. and we were not married. So in
the end she bore me a child. a woman
child. ana died. Then I went among my
mothers people, that it might nurse at
a warm breast and live But my hands
were wet With the blood of men. And
the Riders Of the North came for me.
but my mothers brother. who was then
chief in his Cwn right, hid me and gave
me horses and food. And we went away,
my WOman-child and 7. even to the Hud-
son bay country. where white men were
few and the questions they asked not
many. And ! worked for the company
as a hunter, as a guide, as a driver of
dogs. till my woman-child was become A