The Parma herald. (Parma, Idaho) 1903-1917, 1917-10-11
CHAPTER xIII--contInued.
j

struck fresh signs of lynx. There wal
n great wlndfall ten or fifteen fee
high, and In one place the logs hat
formed sort Of cavern, with almost
solid walls on three sides. The snow
was beaten down by tracks, and the
fur Of rabbit was scattered about
Henri was jubilant
"We got heem-sure r. he said.
He built the bait-house, set trap
END looked about him shrewdly. Then
he explained his scheme to Weyman,
II the lynx was caught, and the two
wolves came 10 destroy II, the fight
would take place In that shelter under
the wlndfall, and the marauders would
have 20 pass through the opening. So
Henri set five smaller traps, conceal
ing them skiilfully under leaves and
moss and snow, and all were far
enough away from the bait-house so
that the trapped lynx could not spring
! them In his struggles.
When they fight, wolf jump this
way an' that-an' sure get In said
/ Henri. 'He miss one, two, t'ree-but
he sure get IN trap somewhere"
That same morning light snow fell,
making the work more complete, for
II covered up all footprints and buried
the telltale scent Of man. That night
Kazan and Gray Wolf passed within
hundred feet Of the wlndfall, and Gray
VOLTS keen scent detected something
strange and disquleting In the air She
Informed Kazan by pressing her shout
der against his, and they swung of
at right angles, keeping TO windward
Of the trap.line.
For two days and three cold starlit
nights nothing happened at the wind
fall. Henri understood, and explained
70 Weymnn. The lynx was a hunter
like himself, and also had it's hunt-llne
which II covered about once week |
~ the ffth night the lynx returned, |
went 10 the windfall, was lured |
straight to the bait, and the sharp
toothed steel trap clos~l relenllessly
over It's right hlndfOot. Kazan and
Gray Wolf were travelling u quarter of
a mile deeper in the forest when they
heard the clanklng of the steel chain
as the lynx fought to free itself. Ten
minutes later they stood In the door
OF the wlndfall cavern.
II was a white clear night, so filed
with brilliant stars that Henri himself
could have hunted by the light of them
The lynx had exhausted itself, and
lay crouched on It's belly as Kazan
and Gray Wolf appeared As usual. l
Gray Wolf held back while Kazan be- {
gan the battle. In the first or second {
Of these fights on the trap-line, Kazan \
would probably have been dlsembow- d
sled or had his jugular vein cut open,
had the fierce cats been free. They +
were more than his match in open Y
light though the biggest of them fell 1
EN- pounds under his weight. Chance I
md saved him on the Sun Rock. Gray
Wolf and the porcupine had both add '
ID to the defeat of the lynx on the "
And along Henri's hunting h
Inc IL was the trap that was his ally
even with his enemy thus shackled G
he took bigger chances than ever with W
he lynx under the windfan. II
The cat was an old warrior, six or
even years old. His claws were an n
nch and quarter long, and curved Il
Ike sclmitars. His forefeet and his left d
IindfoOt We're free, and as Kazan adj Il
anced, he drew back. so that the trap N
hahn was slack under his body. Here r,
Nazan could not follow his old tactics at
I circling about his trapped foe. until W
had become tangled in the chain, or II
ad so shortened and twisted II that st
here was no chance for leap He G,
al TO attack face to face, and sud W
emily he hinged I'm. They met shout tn
or to shoulder. Kazan's fungS w
Mapped at the others throat. and el
Kissed. Before he could strike again, q
10 lynx flung out its free hindfoot, ca
nd even Gray Wolf heard the ripping WI
,und that II made. With smart IN
azun was flung back, his shoulder w
I'm to the bone. fir
Then II was that one of Henrl's hid nc
IN traps saved him from second at. da
ck-und death. Steel jaws snapped M
'er one of his forefeet, and when he la
aped, the chain stopped him. Once no
twice before. blind Gray Wolf had CO
rs in great danger. For an instant Sc
e forgot her caution now, and as she ea
ard Kazuns snarl OF pain, she tn
rang in under the windfau. Five tw
APPS Henri had hidden in the space ci,
front of the bait-house, and Gray
offs feet found two of these. She bu
Il on her side, swapping and snarl- LAT
9. In his struggles Kazan sprang
e remaining two traps. One of them we
ssed. The fifth, and last, caught we
m by a hindfoot. sta
Henri and Weyman were out early. cal
hen they struck Off the main line ter
ward the windfall, Henri pointed to CIR
e tracks of Kazan and Gray Wolf, of
d his dark face lighted up with cal
easure and excitement When they KIN
acned the shelter under the mass of FIRE
lien timber, both stood speechless
r a moment, astOunded by what they wa
W. Even Henri had seen nothing lip
Re this before-two wolves and a wa
nx, all in traps, and almost within tw