Los Angeles herald., 1910-12-18

A long time after this Wolf John came to real
zation of his adventure and his resulting position His
very last impression had been the feeling of hot teeth
lacerating his and the sight of standing
transfxed by the horror of the sight Now the first in
this existence the picture of this woman, sweet
placid without the raceres of terror For the first time
in his life he knew the minstering socitude of
woman, a of the cearngs, white woman.
When she into the room he always followed her
movements with his eyes, silently absorbing her. this
creature to him, and when she went out at the
door he lonely and sad until she had again ap-
peafed. This was Dawes daughter. She was plump
girl of twenty-three, wearing her lght-brown hair in
thick braided tresses, for living in the wood she
beyond the fashions of lumbermen's daughters,
and there much of simplicity remaining to her.
She, in her turn mildly interested by this strange
creature. this half-wd with the great sadly shaded
eyes from which came many questions. Wolf John
found that they had cut off his long hair, that he lay
a white mans bed that there satisfying,
refreshing feeling in the white sheets His old
garments had disappeared. He was clothed in some
queer stuff. womans faded gown, though he did not
know what it A long time Wolf John sick.
After while Wolf John sit up in big chair and
look out to where flowers blooming in patch of
garden. He could smell the fragrance of them, and
from day to day the blossoms unfolding He would
look from their simple beauty to the wonlans face,
and he would rest his head the high char-back,
sghng regreng that long he had been denied these
things of the clearings What wild fern to these
scarlet coronets what were the squaws he had known
to this fair4skinned gracefully moving woman? When
After this his development was very swift
peculiar anirnal-like senstveness bade him watch her
every look for fear in his uncouh ignorance he would
offend by the smallest mannerism AS he grew strong
old tastes habits, DESIRES struggled for the mastery
and with these he had to fight for he knew them
to be unworthy One day. when he had walked into
They had given to him shirts and rough suit of
clothes Wolf John learned that these people looked
cleanliness sort of virtue He wondered if he
could cleanse himself of those years in the brush
cleanse himself to a condition of purity where he might
touch this woman's hand. man may try Without
knowing how successful he was Wolf John gradu-
ally transformed into clean, handsome fellow. quiet,
unobtrusive almost gentle.
That old life in the wood with its CRIME and savagery
and its subtle fascination, came back to him stronger
with each days reganed strength He felt Its pull
his restless spirit but from day to day he put off the
moment of yielding, promising himself that each week
would be his last among these people, not knowing that
with each succeeding day he welded links of
gratitude, of kindly feeling of crude undeveloped love
It was old Dave Larsen who reused him to sense of
his position by suggesting that he had nearly recovered,
by inviting him to remain With them and to share their
labor in the mill. Wolf John considered this PROPOSE
ton There lay his forest deep, silent trackless and
true. That old fear of mans nsncerity and self he
had not been quite able to battle down. He warned
himself not to be enslaved in the ways of these people,
where lived his friends of wing and claw long time
Wolf John pondered and struggled The life of the
clearings did it repay to one all it demanded? Was it
that he was charmed with his existencer What
had prevailed upon him to strange clothes, to
brush his hair to be clean, to speak without oaths?
Was it the life within the sound of shrieking saws
and the sight of much labor? Wolf John looked over
into the patch of flowers by the house wall He smiled
sadly. He sought old Dave Larsen and refused to
remain with them
Il fish in stream he said "The
waters are so very pleasant but l know not the way
There is my forest There many skins and furs to
have. Some day will return and will bring them to
you for the care you make for me-. You are kind, but
/ know the forest to be my country.
Dave sought to reassure him, saying that he owed
nothing insisting that they still in his debt for the
life of the girl, explaining in bluff that his sug
gestion had been made in the kndliest of spirit He
said they all liked Wolf John and did not care to see
him go. Wolf John smiled, shook the mans hand and
made Off
1t was in the little clearing where he had first seen
her that he again encountered the girl
"You going away2 she asked her eyes wide at
the sight of his old gun and the rolled pack his
shoulder.
my ways not your ways" he answered.
"You were not happy with usP
"Happy-yes. so happy; but man must go his own
way. A forest and clearing different things
They stare at each other. When there is clearing in
the forest, it prisoner among trees. When tree
is in the clearing it is alone"
"We would like you to stay" she said to him,
sincerely.
"Ah, but your people not my people," he replied
"You told you had people" she cha-
lenged, staring at him if she had discovered lie
Wolf John waved his hand around at the trees.
These my people. l know their ways l was
rude, in your sight. I was the forestbred.
II am sorry youre going. then," she said looking
down at her gingham dress. "You you must
back sometimes-and, you must come with
your clothe like that again." she finished with
little laugh.
"No," said Wolf John, frownng "Now that you
have taught to be clean and to speak good tongue
pcrhaps-perhaps will not be received by my forest
perhaps it will not know my voice. I was near to
being of tie cearngs. :"
"Come :. go back with me-" she invited, hold
ing out her hand.
Il go-not to be happy, but to be less unhappy
maybe :"
"Why leave the clearing, then?"
Wolf John looked at her earnestly. 1t seemed that
a confession was suddenly wrenched from him, some
thing he had long kept for his own, prisoner in
his breast
II go not from the clearing-but from you"
"But have asked you to stay" Had she known
all her words meant to him perhaps the girl would
have remained silent; would have allowed him to 60
Yet she felt sort of defiance some spirit of
quest, in winning this by the only means she