The Red Cloud chief., 1907-10-18

our faces are to the front. If you have
been square. so much the better; IL
not. leave behind the taints of artificial
things and start again on the level.
Tb1t's all"
1t had happened, therefore, that,
since the men had asked her no ques-
tons, she had allowed the hours to
pass and still hesitated TO explain fur
ther than she had explained to Captain
Stephens. Ii was much easier To let
things continue as they were, and
there was, after all, SO little that she
was at liberty to tell them.
In the short time since meeting them
the girl had grown to like Dextry, with
his blunt chivalry and boyish. whimsi.
cal philosophy, but she avoided Glen
lister, feeling II shrinking, hidden ter
ror of him, ever since her caveSdrOp-
ping of the previous night. At the
memory of that scene she grew hot.
then cold-hot with anger, icy ut the
sinister power and sureness which
had vibrated In his voice. What kind
of life was she entering where men
spoke of strange women with this as
SuEuntt anu nlnttu luuS u wv btlSllps
That he was handsome and uncon-
scious of it she acknowledged, and
had she met him in her accustomed
circle of friends, CARRIED In the con
v~entionalitics, she would perhaps have
thought of him as Il striking man, Wig
orous and intelligent, but here he seem
ed naturally to take on the attributes
of his surroundings, acquiring Il pie.
turesquc negligec of dress and morals
and suggesting rugged. elemental,
chilling potentialities. While with
him-and he had sought her repeat
edly that day-she was uneaSily aware
of his strong personality Juggling Mt
her; aware of the unbridlcd passion.
ate Hood of Il nature unbrOOkinE OF
delay and Needless of denial. This 1t
was that a%ntagonized her aud set her
every mental slncw in rigid resistance.
During DeXtry's garrulous ramblinSS
Glcnister emerged from the darkness
and silently took his place beside her
against the rail.
What portent do you see that makes
you stare into the night so ~anXiously:'
he inquired.
81 am wishing for n sight of the
midnight SUI or the aurora borcalis."
she replied.
TOO late for one an too fur south
for the other" DeXtry i~nterposed.
Wen see the sun further north,
though"
"Have you ever heard the real origin
of the northern lights?' the young man
inquired.
Naturally, l never have" she an
swered.
well, here 1t is. l have it from
the lips of a great hunter of the
Tananas. He told it to me when was
sick once in his cabin, and inasmuch
as he Is a wise Indian and has a
reputation for truth | have no doubt
that 1t Is scrupulously correct.
"In the very old days, before the
white man or corncd beef had invaded
this land, the greatest tribe in all the
north was the Tananas. The bravest
hunter of these was Itika, the second
chief. He could follow Il moose till II
fell exhausted in the snow, and he had
many belts made from the claws of the
brown bear. which is deadly wicked
and, rs every one knows. inhabited by
the spirits of 'yabla men, or devils.
zone winter a terrible famine settled
over the Tanana valley. The moose
departed from the gulches, and the car
ibou melted from the hills like mist
The dogs grew gaunt and howled al
night, the babies cried, the women be
na,,n hAllnx, oval anI nnnvish
"Then 1t was that Itika decided tt
go hunting over the saw tooth range
, which formed the edge Of the world
They tried to dissuade him, saying !
was certain death because a pack Of
, mOnstrous white wolves taller than TIT
2 moose and swifter than the eagle was
known to range these mountains, run
' ming madly In chase. Always on clear
|, cold nights could be seen the flashing
|, of the moonbeams from their CLEAN
: ing, hungry sides, and, although man!
a hunters had crossed the passes In Othe
years, they never returned, for the pacl
!, slew them.
Nothing could deter Itika, however
80 he threaded his way up through tn
. range and, night coming, burrowed int
a drift to sleep in his caribou skin
Peering out into the darkness, he say
Ia the flashing lights a thousand time
brighter than ever before. The Who'll
heavens were ablaze with shiftin
streamers that raced and wrlthed bac
and forth In wild revel. Listening, b
70 heard the hiss and whine Of dry sno'
- under the feet Of the pack and a di'
20 tant noise AS Of rushing winds, a
- though the air was deathly still.