Oxford Democrat. [volume] (Paris, Me.) 1833-1933, 1915-05-18

out to the right" Smoke answered Z"
thought nobody was wintering In thi
section"
"First l heard Of anybody up tn
Nordbeska," Shorty said. staring at tn
all but obliterated track. "Mebbe the!
are hunters an pulled their freigh
long ago."
NO" Smoke decided There's beel
travel both ways. but the last trave
was up that creek. Whoever they are
they're there now. There's been N
travel for weeks. Now what's beer
keeping them there all the timer Lett
follow the track up the creek. There''
plenty Of dead timber. We can camI
any time"
'Sure. we can camp any time, bu
we got to travel most Of the time II ",
amt goin' to starve, an we got Il
travel in the right direction"
1T won't make the trip q day
longer" Smoke urged Possibly nt
more than a mile longer"
~Men has died for as little an mile.
Shorty retorted "Get up you poo
sorefoots, you-get up! Haw! You
Bright Hawr
The lead dog obeyed, and the whole
team strained weakly into the soft
snow.
"whoar Shorty yelled Its pact
trail"
Smoke pulled his snowshoes from
under the sled lashings, bound them t.
bis moccaslned feet and went to the
fore to press and pack the Light surface
for the dogs.
It was heavy work. Dogs and mer
had been for days on short rations, and
few and limited were the reserves Of
energy they could call upon The
high rocky walls quickly drew neal
together. so that their way led up neal
the bottom Of a narrow gorge.
Its a trap" Shorty said "The
whole look Of 1t Is rotten. It's hole
In the ground It's the stampin
ground Of trouble"
ouonc ulodC ao fSPiys oao ~Ss He~~
an hour they toiled on in silence that
was again broken by Shorty.
"She's a-workin'." he grumbled
"she's sure a-workln', an III tell you
II you're minded to hear an listen"
'tGo on" Smoke answered
"Well, she tells me, plain an simple
that We amt never goin' to get out OF
this hole In the ground In days an
days. We're goin' to find trouble an
be stuck In here long time an then
some"
docs she say anything about grub
We haven't grub for days and days
and days, and then some. There's the
beginning Of your trouble" Smoke
said, halting on bis snowshoes and
staring at an object that lay on one
side Of the old trail.
Shorty left the gee pole and Joined
him, and together they gazed down on
the body Of man beside the trail
"Well fed" said Smoke.
Look at them lips" said Shorty.
"Stiff as a poker" said Smoke, lift.
ing an arm that without moving moved
the whole body.
The man lay on his side. solidly
frozen. From the fact that no snow
powdered him it was patent that be
had lain there but a short time
There was a general fall Of snow
three days back" said Shorty.
Smoke nodded. bending over the
corpse. twisting it half up to face
them and pointing to a bullet wound
In the temple. He glanced to the side
and tilted his head at a revolver that
lay on top Of the snow.
A hundred yards farther on they
came upon second body that lay face
downward In the trail 1.-TWO things
are pretty clear" Smoke said
They're fat. That means no famine
They've not struck 1t rich, else they
wouldn't have committed suicide"
IF they did," Shorty objected
'@They certainly did. There are nc
tracks besides their own. and each Il
powder burned" Smoke dragged the
corpse to one side and with the toe
Of bis moccasin nosed revolver on,
Of the snow into which 1t had been
pressed by the body. That's what did
the work. told you we'd find some
thing"
From the looks of 1t we amt start
ed yet. Now, what'd two fat geezers
want to kill themselves forr'
"When we find that out we'll have
found the rest of your trouble" Smoke
answered Come on. It's blowing
dark"
Quite dark It was when smoke''
snowshoe tripped him over body
he fell across a sled on which lay an
other body, and when be had dug th'
snow out Of bis neck and struck .
match he and Shorty glimpsed a thirt
body. wrapped in blankets. lying be
side a partially dug grave; also. en-
the match aickered out. they caugh
night Of half dozen additional graves
"B-r-r-rr' Shorty shivered. "Suicid'
Camp. All fed up. reckon they'r'
all dead"
mo. Peep at that" Smoke was look
ing farther along at a dim glimmer o.
light And there's another Highland
q third one there. Come on. Let's hike.
No more corpses delayed them. ant
In several minutes. over hard packet
trail, they were ID camp.
"Its q city," Shorty whispered
There must be twenty cabins. An
not a dog. Amt that funnyT
"And that explains it." Smoke whis
pered back excitedly. "Its the Laur'
Sibley outfit Don't you remember
Came up the Yukon last fall on tn
Port Townsend No. G. Went right b!
Dawson without stopping. The steam
er must have landed them at the moutl
Of the creek"
"Sure, I remember. They was Moe
mons"
"No-vegetarians." Smoke grinne'
in the darkness. They won't eat meat
and they won't work dogs"
ITS all the same. ! knowed the.
was somethin' funny about 'em. Ha'
the all wise steer to the yellow. Tia
Laura Hbley was soin' % take e