The Prescott daily news., 1908-04-02
THE GREATER
 HATE
 (Coprrigbt.) 4
By ROY NORTON

s"ohi co Siy Truce, ana the wilder ness glowered at them ever as they wandered through 1t seeking with des- perate struggles the preservation of their self-valued lives.
 One was tall and swart with the hand-painting of the sun reflected rom Arctic snows. The other was short and stocky, with the beetling brow and somber look of the man who has trying heart history written In the deeps within him. And they, fellow travellers for the time but hating each other ever, fared away to- gether.
 Hunger walked with them and lent staggers to their steps as the squeak ings of their snow shoes blended to- gether at their meeting place. Below them for indefinite miles stretched the canyon up which they had come, its only relief from snowy whiteness be- ing the darker copses of green where pine boughs protruded.
 The tall man stood questioningly for what seemed long time, and then, as if his every nerve had weakened, he stumbled forward beseeching: Grub, for Gods sake, grub! have eaten nothing for the last two days"
 There was pause, but no throb of weakness in the voice that wearily an swered: Nor for three days"
 It was like a blow to the tall man. He squatted on his heels. twisted his fingers and moaned. while tears dripped unheeded down his bearded face. Tom remained immovable and breeding. Here before him was the object of his years of search-the oth- CT man and his revenge.
 Through all those years he had thought that when this man was found the end would come without delay. He had pictured to himself the savage joy and satisfaction of the kill. God! How he wanted to kill!
 It was this starved and weakened and sobbing thing that in those far away years had stepped in between him and his betrothed-the only wom- an who had commanded all his hearts homage-and with cunning lies. clever insinuations and heartless malign- ments had estranged her. Yes, worse than that. had taken her for his own and then instead of cherishing her had made her life such a hell on earth that she had been glad to pass from this into the portals of another world had been glad to rest-to sleep-to find the great quiet.
 And never until she lay dying in his arms had he known all this. And never until then had he realized that life could hold as its sole object and ambition desire to kill another man.
 The few minutes that had slipped away since they met seemed ages. Suddenly the terrors of their position smote upon them. and together they turned and faced that terrific and for bidding wall that lowered above them. a plane of snow whose crusted sur face glistened coldly repellent
 No other chance" said the stocky one. more to the mountainside than to his nearer.
  any other way takes 20 days. That means" He shrugged in hopeless ness.
 As If by common thought and single impulse, they loosened their packs Of blankets which must be abandoned and dropped them upon the snow. their smaller camp impedimenta jang- ling as 1t fell. Flying each other to see whether the true was to be in full, they discarded their rifles. They frightened their belts around their torn and worn garments. Their snow shoes were unthonged and dashed fan tastically across their backs. They were ready.
 And thus with but pick and shovel they assaulted the mountain range, cutting foothold in its glassy face and climbing upward. like doggedly per sistent insects, toward the ridges high above them
 And so they reached the crest of the divide. a wind-swept ridge where little swirls of cutting, blinding, biting snow smote them in their faces and drove chill teeth into their starved bodies.
 They rested, lying on their arms and gathering strength for the tray easement of the ridge which stretched away before them like narrow path on the backbone of the world. Chilled with their respite they arose to their feet and staggeringly made their way along this pathway to shelter and food. The tall one took the lead. Be- hind him, with steadier step, grim face ard clinchad fingers strOde the