The News-Herald. [volume] (Hillsboro, Highland Co., Ohio) 1886-1973, 1904-03-10

equalities. the stones. the roots, the
patches Of soft ground which lay In
his way. He felt duly that they were
not fair. He could negotiate the dis
tance, but anything else was gratui.
tous insult.
Then suddenly he gained his second
wind. He felt better and stronger and
moved freer.
At midnight 1njun Charley called a
halt. He spread his blanket. leaned
on one elbow long enough to eat strip
of dried meat and fell asleep. Thorpe
initiated his example. Three hours
later the Indian reused his companion.
and the two set out again.
From 3 o'clock until 8 they walked
continually without a pause. without
an instant's breathing spell. Then
they rested half an hour. ate little
venison and smoked q pipe.
An hour after noon they repeated the
rest. Thorpe rose with certain phys
ical reluctance. The Indian seemed a.
fresh as when he started. At sunset
they took an hour, then forward again
by the dim Intermittent light Of the
moon and stars through the ghostly
haunts Of forest until Thorpe thought
he would drop with weariness and
was mentally incapable Of contemplat.
ing more than hundred steps In ad.
vance.
"When get TO that square patch Of
light I'll quit" he would say to him
self and struggle painfully the requir-
Cd twenty yards.
mo. won't quit here" he would
continue. "1'll make II that birch.
Then I'll lie down and die"
And so on. To the actual physical
exhaustion Of Thorpe's muscles was
added that immense mental WEAKNESS
which uncertainty Of time and distance
inflicts on man. The journey might
last a week for all he knew. In the
presence Of an emergency these men
of action had actually not exchanged
. dozen words. The Indian led; Thorpe
followed.
When the halt was called Thorpe
fell into his blanket too weary even to
eat. Next morning sharp. shooting
pains, like the stabs Of swords. ran
through his groin.
"You come" repeated the Indian,
stolid as ever.
Then the sun was an hour high. The
travellers suddenly ran into trail.
which as suddenly dived into a spruce
thicket. On the other side of It Thorpe
Unexpectedly found himself in an ex-
tensive clearing dotted with the black
ened stumps of pines. Athwart the dis
tance he could perceive the wide blue
horizon of Lake Michigan. He had
crossed the upper peninsula on foot.
Boat come by today" said lnjun
Charley, indicating the tall stacks of a
mill. Him no stop. You max him stop
take you with him. You get train Mack
inaw City tonight. Dose men, dey on
dat train"
Thorpe calculated rapidly. The en-
emy would require even with their
teams day to cover the thirty miles to
the fishing village of Munising. whence
the stage ran each morning to Scney,
the present terminal of the South
Shore railroad. He. Thorpe. on foot and
three hours behind. could never have
caught the stage. But from Seney only
one train day was dispatched to con.
meet at Mackinaw City with the Michi-
gan Central. and on that one train. due
to leave this very morning. the up river
man was just about pulling out He
would arrive at Mackinaw City at 4
o'clock in the afternoon. where he
would be forced to wait until In the
evening. BY catching boat at the
mill 10 which II IN Charley had led
him Thorpe could still make the same
train. Thus 'he start in the race for
Detroitslapd ofiic would he fair.
"All right he cried all his energy
returning TO him. Here goes! Wen
beat him out YETI
You come back| inquired the Indi-
an, peering with n certain anxiety into
his companions eyes.
Come back" cried Thorpe. "You bet
your hat.'
81 wait" replied the Indian, and was
gone.
Thorpe saw over the headland to the
east dense trail Of black smoke. He
set on on stumbling run toward the
mill.