Ottumwa tri-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1903-1916, 1915-11-20

that he had killed couple Of men,
and robbed others, but as yet the po
lice had failed to get anything on
him. But along with this bad side OF
him, Sandy McTrigger possessed a
GOODNESS and a courage which even
his worst enemies could not but ad,
mire, and also certain mental depths
which his unpleasant features did not
proclaim.
Inside of six NOR his Red Gold City
had sprung up on the McFarlane, a
hundred and fifty miles from Fort
! Smith, and Fort Smith was five hun
dred miles from civilization. When
Sandy came he Looked over the crude
collection of shaces, gambling houses
and saloons In the new town, and made
UP his mind that the time was not ripe
for any Of his 'Inside' schemes Just
yet. He gambled little, and won SUI
ficient to buy himself grub and half
an outfit. A feature of this outfit was
an old muzzle loading rifle. Sandy,
who always carried the latest Savage
on the market laughed at 1t. But 1t
was the best his finances would allow
of. He started south - up the McFar-
lane. Beyond certain point on the
river prospectors had found no gold.
Sandy pushed confidently beyond this
point. Not until he was In new coun-
try did he begin his search. Slowly ne
worked his way up small tributary
whose headwaters were fifty or sixty
miles to the south and east. Here and
there he found fairly good placer gold.
/ He might have PANIED six or eight dol
lars worth day. With this much ne
was disguised. Week after week he
continued to work his way upstream,
and the farther he went the poorer his
pans became. AT last only occasionally
did he find colors. After such disgust
ing weeks as these Sandy was danger
Gus - when In the company or others
Alone he was harmless.
One afternoon he ran his canoe
ashore on white strip Of sand. This
was at a bend. where the stream had
widened, and gave promise OF at least
few co1ors. He had bent down close
to the edge Of the water when some
thing caught his attention on the wet
sand. What he saw were the footprints
of animals Two had come down to
drink. They had stood side by side.
And the footprints were fresh - made
not more than an hour or two before.
A CLEAN of interest shot into Sandy's
ewes He looked behind him and up
and down the stream,
evolves" he grunted. Wish I could
a. shot at em with that old minute gun
back there. Gawd - listen to that!
And in broad daylight too!'
He Jumped to his feet, staring on In
to the bush.
A quarter of mile away Gray Wolf
had caught the dreaded scent OF man
in the wind, and was giving voice to
her warming 1t was a long Walllng
howl, and not until its last echoes mad
died away did Sandy McTrigger move.
Then he returned to the canoe. took
out his old gun, put fresh cap on the
nipple and disappeared quickly over
the edge of the bank.
For a week Kazan and Gray Wolf
had been wandering about the head
waters of the McFarlane and this was
the first time since the preceding Win
ter that Gray Wolf had caught the
scent Of man in the air. When the
wind brought the danger signal to her
she was alone. Two or three minutes
before the scent came to her kazan
had left her side in swift pursuit Of
snow shoe rabbit, and she lay fiat on
her belly under a bush, waiting Tor
him. In these moments when she was
alone Gray Wolf was constantly sniff
ing the air. Blindness had developed
next to infallible. First she had heard
her scent and hearing until they were
the rattle of Sandy McTrigger's paddle
against the side Of his canoe quarter
swiftly. Five minutes after her warn.
Of a mile away Scent had followed
ing howl Kazan stood at her side, his
head flung up. his jaws open and pant
ing. Sandy had hunted Arctic foxes,
and he was using the Eskimo tactics
now. swinging in half circle until he
should come up in the face of the
wind Kazan caught a single Whit OF
the man tainted air and his spine grew
stiff. But blind Gray Wolf was keener
than the little red eyed fox of the
north. Her pointed nose slowly fol-
lowed Sandy's progress. She heard
drv stick crack under his feet three
hundred yards away. She caught the
metallic click of his gun barrel as IL
struck a birch sap1ing The moment
she lost Sandy in the wind she whined
and rubbed herself against Kazan and
trotted a few steps to the southwest
At times such as this Kazan seldom
refused to take guidance from her.
They trotted away side by side and by
the time Sandy was creeping up snake
like with the wind in his face, kazan
was peering from the fringe or river