Dakota farmers' leader. (Canton, S.D.) 1890-19??, 1911-07-21
7COPvRt0HT ioiO 81 THE CENTURY co
COPYRicHT 1910 oY n SUCCESS G.

night during the storm mad Deen nOtn'
ing but a hallucinat1on. None the less
he knew that 1t would be easier to
walk past that empty hut in full broad
day. than in this tricky. misty. uncer-
tain light of dawn.
He carried out this plan at once,
to the point, that Is. Of going up the
glacier to the cave. building a fire
there and satisfying his sharp hunger
with an enormous meal. But he had
not slept at all the night before. and
now the warmth and the satisfaction
OF his appetite made his nerveless
hand release the bone he was gnaw-
ing, and caused him to roll over be-
side the fire and to fall asleep.
He slept deeply for a number OF
hours. Then, arming himself with q
throwing-stick and a NUMBER OF darts,
he stepped outside the cave, intent
upon his expedition to the other side
Of the peninsula where there was q
possibility of finding the yacht.
The cave was situated some little
distance up the glacier, and the
shortest, though by far the more diff
ficult, way Of reaching his destination
lay, not along the beach but up
through the interior valley and across
the precipitous coast range OF hills.
1t was not the natural way to go,
but the fact that it was actually short
er gave him a sort of excuse for avoid
ing another visit, just now, to the
scene of his discontinue OF the night
before. He % at himself, not 10
much for taking this cours as for the
reasons which his common sense al
legged against him.
His present route took him close
TO the gold ledge, and the sight OF the
inexhaustible, precious, useless metal
that remained here brought upon him
for the first time, in full force. q
ems of his loss. q sense OF what thai
luckless trip ashore from the Aurora
In search Of that rosewood box had
cost him.
At an increased pace he descended
from the glacier, crossed the valley
and scaled the landward side OF one
Of the mountains of the coast range,
to a notch where he could command
q view Of the sea to the westward.
He saw there what, in b bottom Of
his mind. he had all along been sure
he would see-nothing but another
barren. bleak horizon.
At that, for a while. his fortitude
broke down. and he raved and wept
and cursed like n demented. But at
last, spent, sobered, conscious once
more of a sharp hunger, he climbed .
MAN. Ho~<hAp ,,v tho rnnrnfnin IN n
ledge, where, ~ his minute knowledge
OF the country led him to expect, he
found a number of looms sitting. He
killed one Of these birds with a dart.
and then, like the brute he was. ate 1t
raw and warm.
BY that time It was late in the att
ernoon. Bravado, combined with Q
more real belief than ne had yet sue
ceeded in retaining. to the effect that
all his terror Of the night before had
resulted from nothing more serious
than a nightmare, led him to decide to
go home by way OF the beach. rather
than along the dincult interior trail
up which he had come.
The descent from the chn-head to
the beach was nothing to q man Of his
inhuman strength and activity, though
an ordinary skilled mo~untaineer might
have hesitated before attempting 1t.
Nevertheless, two-thirds of the way
down he nearly fell-but for luck he
would have fallen, for he caught q
glimpse Of . lonely figure, a quarter Of
q mile away, perhaps. seated upon 9
ledge, bending forward. chin in hand
In an attitude which recalled. and
horribly echoed. that Of the man he
long & had murdered.
When he had steadied himself . lit
tie, he made his way cautiously down
to the level of the beach. His emotions
were divided about equally betwesE
fear and anger, the anger existing be
cause Of the fear.
with infinite caution he approached
that lonely, unsuspecting figure, slip
ping from the shelter Of n rock t.
that Of one a little nearer.
Three times his left hand drew bach
the throwing-stick, balanced and
aimed along a line that would send TT
| thin ivory dart ~ swiftly and a. sure
ly to that beautiful throat V the onl
that had found and transixed PerrJ
Hunters; and three times his mus
cles braced themselves for the efor'
to propel II. But each time. with
breathless oath, he lowered thu
weapon again. and With the hack q
his hairy hand wiped tho sweat from
his forehead.
The act had none Of the quality q
mercy In It: 1t was simply the result
| Of . logical dilemma. II the thing hi
saw before him were . ghost, tn
ghost Of the man he had already mur
dered, his dart would do no harm. l
It were not . ghost; II 1t we're what /
looked more and more like ~ he drew
nearer, = living, breathing woman-h,
licked his lips and wrung them witt
his hand-if It we're . woman. he di,
mot want to kill her. II no could b,
sure. could only be sure. he woull
drop his weapon and make one rusl
and hold her helpless in those grea
hands Of his.
And with every nve PAGES tina
lessened the distance between them
that certainty grew upon him. Nc
she was no immateriai spirit Of . ma,