The evening world., 1916-02-18

OF down. Tho crackle of fresh wood
on the fire sounded faint and far
away. Some one dropped a blanket
over me. Half consciously / felt the
warm weight OF 1t, then everything
grew blank: i was dead TO tho world
and no dreams disturbed my sleep.
When l awakened again the sun
was bright on the blackened smoke
vent in the top OF the lodge. 1t took
me some moments to adjust myself
and then sat up, fervently thankful
that my waking was not among deep
snow, with all outdoors for house
walls. and tho cold sky It's roof. Across
the lodge Howe still slept. Near him
Dick snored audibly, stretched flat on
his back. Buck, squatting on his
launches. a stone pipe sagging down
one corner of his mouth. regarded me
with n qulzzicai smile.
well, We made IT," he observed.
Though we're what yuh might call
a hard-lookin' bunch"
I'VE certainly are. I'm afraid an
other day OF II would have put the
finishing touches to some OF us" I
said, with shiver at the remem-
brance.
'Oh, I guess the rest OF us could "a
TOUCHED It AZ while longer. but one
more night out would sure have fixed
him." Buck motioned to Howe. "a
camp fire wouldn't have been any use
TO him. the shape he was in"
II hopo he'll wake UP in his right
mind" I sighed.
"Oh, he'll be all right" Buck hope
fully declared. kinda queer thing,
wasn't It. him not KNOWN any OF us,
and seemin' dead willin' and anxious
to paddle his own canoe? stu, I
suppose I'd be kinda batty II my head
had been worked over like his has.
skipped up to the post u willis ago
and told that pill-thrower nh old
MacDonough's TO come down and
take look at him. Maybe Doc can
straighten out the kinks he's got in
his think-factory. He ought TO be
along pretty quick.
Say. this bunch oh natives "a nil
right, amt they?" Buck continued
we got roast caribou and some darn
nne bread in the pot for y1Ih I'll
wake Morton, and we'n eat-nnd
smoke. Get onto this ancient war
pipe uh mine. ! got II from HowlIn'
Dog-peach OF name, eh?-and /
raised some tobacco at the post"
Buck aroused Dick, and we in
dulged In the luxury OF Il wash, in n
TN phsln, before breakfast--which I
am sadly mlsnaming, for II was long
past noon when ] walked UP.
While we were sampling the con-
tents Of the pot an old Indian lifted
the lodge-fiap and stepped in. He
smiled, said How" to each of us in
turn, and squatted impassively by the
fire. Not till we had finished, and
were good-naturedly squabbling about
which should have tho first whack nj
sucks pipe, did he speak again, and
his first sentence brought sharp eX-
clamatlon from Buck
The devil he did," Buck snorted.
Then he grunted something In Cree
and the old follow went on, his
speech punctuated by many curious
motions of his wlthered hands. When
he'd finished Buck turned TO US.
What dye think" no grumbled, a
note OF pure disgust in his tone.
That baboon-faced reptile actually
had tho nerve to foller us up, and
some time last night he sneaked into
tho camp here and got away with a
gun some damn fool lnjun loft stand
In outside the door uh his teepCc.
Got an axe and knife too. II there 3
anything in the devil takln' care un
his own, he's sure got an arm round
the Apes neck, They've started
three uh their young men on his trail.
II they don't take him In. he'll