Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1917-06-07
CHAPTER vu-(cOntinued)

lxrrLJEN the STOW is four feet deep uT
w where the grizzly dens, the black bear
can still feed In tho deep valleys an thlcH
timber. He goes 10 ned meooy week
or two weeks later than the grlzzly' an
he gets up in the spring week OF t"O
weeks earlier he's fatter when ne uehs up
an he amt so poor when ne comes oul--
an SO the mothers got more strength to
give to her cubs. 1t looks that way 70
me-" ,,,,o
,s ,,ou're n wear old (" cried Langdon en-
Enthusiastically Bruce, ] never hought OF
that! !" ,,-.. 49,.
"There's a good many things you don't
think about until you run across en-, sa'u
thn yrount.ineer IT'S what you said a
while ago-such things are what makes
huntin' a fine sport when you've learned
buntIn' amt always killin'-but lettin' live.
one day 1 lay seven hours on mountain
ton watchin' a band o sheep at play an
I had more fun than II I'd killed the
whole bunch" -,.s
Rruce rose to his feet and stretched
binseIf, an after-supper operation that al
ways preceded his announcement that he
was going TO turn In.
"FIne day tomorrow" he said, yawning.
Look how white the snow is on the peaks
"Bruce--
"what?"
How heavy is this bear we're afterr'
Twelve hundred pounds-mebby little
more. didn't have the pleas4Fe. OF lookin'
at him SO close as you did, Jimmy II l
had we'd been dryin' his skin now!"
"And he's in his primer
"Between eight and twelve years old, I'd
say. by the way he went up the slope An
old bear don't roll so easy
you've run across some pretty old bears
Bruce?"
80 old some Of 'em needed crutches"
said Bruce unlacing his boots i've shot
bears so old they'd lost their teeth"
How old?"
'.Thirty-thirty-hve forty years
Goodnight. Jimmy"
Goodnight, Bruce"
Iangdon was awakened some time hours
later by a deluge OF rain that brought
him out Of his blankets with yell to Bruce.
They had not put up their tepee, and a
moment later he heard Bruce ahathematlz-
ing their idiocy.
The night was as black as a cavern, ex-
cent when It was broken by lurid flashes
of lightning, 8pd the mountains rolled and
runnbled with deep thunder. Disentangling
himself from his drenched blanket, Lang
don stood up. A glare OF lightning re-
yealed Bruce sitting in his blankets, his
hair dripping down over his long, lean
face. and at sight Of him Langdon laughed
outright.
Fine day tomorrow" he taunted, re-
heating Bruce's words Of a few hours be-
fore Look how white the snow is on the
peaks"
crash Of thunder.
IangdoH waited for another lightning
fash and then dove for the shelter Of a
thick balsam. Under this he crouched for
Ave or ten minutes, when the rain stopped
as sudd emily as It had begun. The thunder
rolled southwark, and the lightning went
with H. In the darkness he heard Bruce
Tunnbling somewhere near. Then match
was lighted. and he saw his comrade look
ing at his watch.
"Pretty near 3 o'clock he said. Nice
shower, wasn't it?"
II rather expected st." replied Langdon
earelessly You know, Bruce, whenever
the snow on the peaks IL 90 white"
shut up-an let's get a fire Good
thing we had sense enough 70 cover our
grub with the hankets Are 20 wet?"
Langdon was wringing the water from
his hair. He fslt Ike a drowned rat.
mo. ! was under . thick bslsam. and
prepared fer u. when you called my at
tendon 70 the Whiteness 81 as snow on
lhs peaks knsNn