Condon globe. (Condon, Gilliam Co., Or.) 189?-1919, 1913-04-18
THE HONOR OF
THE BIG SHOWS
CONTINUED from page S.

for Il was not until the late spring
SHOWS had gone that the people at Lac
Balm found what the foxes and the
wolves had left OF him far to the south
Fearlessly Jan plunged into the white
world of the lake. There was neither
rock nor tree to guide him, for every
where was the heavy ghost raiment Of
the Indian god. Day came, only lit
tie lighter than the night. He crossed
the lake. his snowshoes sinking ankle
deep at every step, and once each half
hour he fired single shot from his
rifle. He heard shots TO the south and
knew that II was Iedoq, each report
coming to him more family than the
last until they had died away entirely.
Across the lake he struck the forest
again, and his shouts echoed In futile
Inquiry In Its weird depths. At noon
Jan stopped and ate his lunch: then he
went on. carrying his rifle always upon
his right shoulder, so that the steps of
his right leg would be shortened aud he
would travel In circle. as he believed
Dixon had done.
The storm thlckened with the falling
OF night, and he burrowed himself a
great hole in the soft snow and filed
1t with balsam boughs for a bed.
When he awakened, hours later. he
stood up and thrust out his head and
found himself buried to the armpits,
hA at -
he drew himself out until he stood
knee deep In the surface.
He lifted his pack. As he swung II
before him. one arm thrust through
strap, he gave startled cry. Half OF
one side OF the pack was eaten away!
4 thin trickle of flour ran through his
ingers upon the snow. He pulled out
a gnawed pound OF bacon, little tea
and that was all.
Frantically he ripped the rent wider
In his search, and when he stood up his
wild face staring into the chaos about
him, he held only the bit OF bacon In
his hand. In 1t were the imprlnts of
tiny teeth-sharp little razor edged
teeth that told him what had happen
ed While he had slept mink had
tobbed him OF his food!
With one OF his shoes he began dig
glng furiously In the snow. He tore
his balsam bed to pieces. Somewhere
somewhere not very far away--the
little animal must have cached its
theft. He dug down until he came to
the frozen earth. For an hour he
worked and found nothing.
Then he stopped. Over a small fire
he melted snow for tea and broiled a
slice of the bacon, which he ate with
the few biscuit crumbs he found In
the pack. Every particle of -four that
be could find he scraped up with his
knife and put into one OF the deep
pockets of his caribou coat. After that
he set out in the direction in which he
thought he would find Lac Balm.
Still he shouted for Dixon and fired
an occasional shot from his rifle. BY
noon he should have struck the lake.
Noon came and passed: the gloom OF
second night fell upon him. He
of what remained Of the bacon. The
handful of -four in his pocket he did
not disturb.
1t was still night when he broke his
rest and struggled on. His first fears
were gone. In place of them there
filed him now grim sort of pleasure.
A second time he was battling with
death for Melisse. And this, after all.
was not II very hard fight for him.
When he ate the last bit of his bacon
he made up his mind what he would
do when the end came. In the stock
of his rife he would scratch a few
ranged the words in his braln-foir of
them-"Mellsse, love you" He re-
peated them to himself as he stagger-
ed on, and that night beside the fire
he built he began by carving her name.
Tomorrow" he said softly, II will
do the rest"
He was growing very hungry, but he
did not touch the -four. For six hours
he slept and then drank his fill of hot
tea.
1--WE will travel until day, Jan Tho
reau," he informed himself, "and then,
If nothing turns up, we will build our
last camp and eat the -four. 1t will be
the last of US, for there will be no
meat above this snow for days"
His snowshoes were an Impediment
now, and he left them behind along
with one Of his two blankets, which
had grown to be like lead upon his
shoulders. He counted his cartridges
ten of them. One of these he fred
| into the air.
Was that an echo he heard?
A sudden thrill shot through him.
Ee strained his ears to catch repeti-
ton of the sound. In moment 1t
came again-clearly no echo this time.
The shot came from just over the
mountain,