Oxford Democrat. [volume] (Paris, Me.) 1833-1933, 1915-06-08

ARbAoA w &c S0s0 NAASNs
The next moment she caught his arm
with a startle of surprise. The flames
Of a small fire were dancing merrily
and crouched by the fire was McCan.
II was minded you'd run withou
me-" McCan explained when they came
up his small peering eyes glimmerint
with cunning. 80 l kept an eye OF
the girl an when l seen her cachin
skis an grub was on. I've brought
my own skis an webs an grub. VII
we be startin' nowY'
IAbiskwee looked swift consterna
don at Smoke, as swiftly achieved &
judgment on the matter and spoke.
"McCan. you are dog" she hissed
and her eyes were savage with anger
II know it is In your heart to raise the
camp If we don't take you. Very well
We must take you. But you know my
father. am like my father. You will
do your share Of the work. You will
obey. And II you play one dirty trick
It would be better for you II you had
never run"
Daylight found them in the belt Of
foothills that lay between the rolling
country and the mountains. McCau
suggested breakfast, but they held on.
Labiskwee explained to Smoke bel
knowledge Of the country and the way
she planned to battle pursuit. Thert
were but two ways out one west, the
other south. Snass would Immediately
dispatch parties Of young men to guard
the two trails. But there was another
way south. True, 1t did no more than
penetrate halfway into the high noun.
tains; then. twisting to the west and
crossing three divides. it joined the
regular trail. When the young men
found DO traces. on the regular trail
they would turn back in the belief that
the escape had been made by the west
traverse, never dreaming that the run.
aways had ventured the harder and
longer way around.
Glancing back at McCan, In the rear,
Labiskwee spoke In an undertone to
Smoke. "He Is eating" she said. ut
Is not good"
Smoke looked. The man was secret.
ly munching caribou suet from the
pocketful he carried.
mo eating between meals" he com,
manded. There's no game In the
country ahead, and the grub will have
to be whacked In equal rations from
the start. The only way you can travel
with us is by playing fair"
BY o'clock the crust had thawed
80 that the skis broke through, and
before 2 o'clock the web shoes were
breaking through. Camp was made
and the first meal eaten. Smoke took
stock Of the food. McCan's supply
was a disappointment. So many silver
fox skins had he stuffed into the bot
tom of the meat bag that there was 1T
tie space left for meat
Enough food for month, with care
ful outstanding and appetites that new.
er blunted their edge. was Smokes
and Labiskwee's judgment. Smoke ap,
porioned the weight and bulk Of the
packs. yielding in the end to Labisk-
wees Insistence that she. too. should
carry a pack.
Next day the stream Swallowed ont In
a wide mountain valley, and they were
already breaking through the crust on
the fats when they gained the harder
surface Of the slope Of the divide.
Ten mtautes later. and we wouldn't
have got across the flats," Smoke said
when they paused for breath on the
bald crest of the summit I'VE must
be q thousand feet higher here"
But Labiskwee, without speaking,
pointed down to an open fat among
the trees. In the midst Of II, scattered
abreast, were five dark specks that
scarcely moved.
"The young men," said LAbiskwee.
@They are wallowing to their hips,
Smoke said. 'They will never gain the
hard footing this day. We have hours
the start of them. Come on, McCan.
Buck up. We don't eat till we can't
travel"
In the higher valley In which they
now found themselves the crust did
not break till $ in the afternoon. al
which time they managed to gain the
shadow Of a mountain where the crust
was already freezing again.
Black darkness came on. after a long
twilight at 8 O'Clock, when they made
camp In clump of dwarf spruce. Nc
Can was helpless. The days march
had been exhausting. but In addition
despite his nine years experience In
the arctic, he had been eating snow
and was In agony with his parched and
burning mouth. he crouehed BY the
fire and groaned while they made the
camp.
In the night came wind and snow
and through the day Of blizzard they
fought their way blindly, missing the
turn of the way that led up a small
stream and crossed a divide to tht
west For two more days they wan
dered, crossing other and wrong di
vtdes, and in those two days the!
dropped spring behind and climbed NJ
into the abode Of winter.
"The young men have lost our trail
an what's to stop US restin' a dayT
McCan begged
But no rest was accorded. SmoK'
and Labiskwee knew their danger
They were lost In the high mountains
and they had seen no game nor sign
of game. Day after day they strug
gled on through an iron conhguratio'
| of landscape that compelled them Il
labyrinthins canyons and valleys tina
led rarely to the west. The terribl
toll and the cold ate up energy. ye
they cut down the size Of the radol
they permitted themselves.
One night Smoke was awakened by
sound Of struggling. Distinctly b.
heard a gasping and strangling fror
where McCan slept Kicking the hr
into fame. by its light he saw Labisk
wee. her hands at the mans throat an
forcing from his mouth chunk o
partly chewed meat. Even as Smok
saw this her hand went to her hip an
flashed with the sheath knife In 1t.
"Labiskweer' Smoke cried. and hi
voice was peremptory.
The hand hesitated.
"Don'ti" he said, coming to her side.