Daily capital journal. (Salem, Oregon) 1903-1919, 1915-08-07

through n wall of blackness as fast a
the dogs could spring into 1t.
CHAPTER XII.
~Hil You'll Mush on! Chook! Chookl
~ MOKE felt the sled heel up OF
IN one runner as 1t rounded an In
w. visible curve, and from ahea(
came the snarls Of beasts anC
the oaths Of men. This was knowr
afterward as the Barnes-Slocum jam
1t was the teams of these two mer
which first cOllded, and into It at ful
career piled Smokes seven big fighters
Scarcely more than emi-domesticated
wolves, the excitement Of that night on
Mono creek had sent every dog aght.
Ing mad. From behind sled after sled
hurled into the turmoil. Men who had
their teams nearly extricated were
overwhelmed by fresh avalanches Of
dogs-each animal well fed, well rest.
ed and ripe for battle.
What happened In the next half hour
Smoke never distinctly remembered.
At the end he emerged exhausted, sob
blng for breath, his jaw sore from a fist
blow, his shoulder aching from the
bruise Of club, the blood running
warmly down one leg from the rip of
dogs fangs, and both sleeves Of his
parka torn to shreds. As In a dream
while the battle still ragged behind, he
helped Shorty reharness the dogs. One.
dying they cut from the traces, and
In the darkness they felt their way to
the repair Of the disrupted harnesses.
Now you lie down an get your wind
back" Shorty commanded.
And through the darkness the dogs
sped with unabated strength down
Mono creek, across the long cutoff and
10 the Yukon. Here, at the tupc.
tlon with the main river trail, some
body had lighted a fire, and here
Shorty said goodby. BY the light of
the fire, as the sled leaped behind the
hylng dogs Smoke caught another Of
the uniorgettable pictures of the
horthland 1t was of Shorty, swayinr
ana sinking down Imply in the snow
yelling his parting encouragement one
eye Dackened and closed, knuckles
bruised and broken, and one arm rim.
pea and fang torn, gushing forth n
steady stream OF blood.
How many ahead?" Smoke askod
as he dropped his tired Hudson bavs
ana sprang on to the waiting sled nt
'he first relay station.
Il counted eleven" the man col,od
after him, for he was already ownv
behind the leaplng dogs.
Fifteen miles they were 70 corry hrr,
ON the next stage, which would fetch
MN to the mouth OF White river
Ihere were nine OF them. but tboy
composed his weakest team. Tho
twenty-five miles between White rIvor
ana Sixty Mile he had broken info t,vo
Stages because OF ice jams, and boro
two OF his heaviest, toughest teams
were stationed. ''''i'
He lay on the sled at full ,o,c.h
iaee down, holding on with both bords
whenever the dogs Stacked from ton
most speed he rose to his knees md
yelling and urging, cllnglng precorIons
y Win one hand, threw his wbln into
tnem' Poor team that It was ne noss
ed two sleds before White river wos
reached. Here at the freezeun n ,or
nad piled barrier. allowing the on"n ma"
water that formed for half A milo ho
low TO freeze smoothly. This smoo,b
stretch enabled the racers 10 molo A.
ing exchanges Of sleds, ana down on
tne course they had placed their rolors -"
below the jams. '''''S
over the jam and out on 70 t,o
smooth smoke tore along, calling lonI
ly' Billy! Bnlyr >"'''us 'Ouu'
Billy heard and answered nm, h.
the light OF the many fires an ,ba ~, ~
SinoNe saw a sled swing In from th,
SIDE and come abreast Its DOES yyore cro
Itrsh and oyerhnulcd his. As tho s,ods
swerved toward each other he looroS
across across aud Billy promptly rol,ed ~ oS
where's Big olatJ' Smoke cried -'
'Leadlngr Biny's voice nnsw,,,,
W. auu smoke was again flying tbrourS
the wall OF blackness '''ousn
In the Jams OF that relay. vbo,. e.,
way led across a chaos OF unondo, tue ,a
cakes aud where Smoke sllpned ocs .S 'Se
.Orwam end OF the sled and with % y
maui rope toiled behind the when d,,
ne passed three sleds. N's'
Among the Jams OF the next short 70.
ay Into sixty Mile he passed two ~, ~ "
cams And that ho might Know ~ aSn
laa'ely what had happened ~ ,Se,, NV
,ne OF his own dogs wcnched a sSon'' o'l
ier was unable to keep IN ana wa.
irasged In the harness. Aa ho On, a ,s
INJURED animal out he heard tho w Whit I','
hs cries OF dogs behind him ana ~,
'oiec OF man that was famn,or =,
vas Won schroeder Smoke called !
Warming to prevent rcar end co,u
lon' and the baron, having bls AMI.
nals ana swinging on the eve mia |
vent by a dozen feet 10 the side.