Little Falls herald. [volume] (Little Falls, Morrison County, Minn.) 1889-1950, 1918-01-18


ashore. That night the river damned
and broke several times. Tie follow
ing morning it had fallen asleep for
good.
.
1--WE can't be more'n 400 miles from
the Yukon" concluded Sloper, multi
plying his thumb nails by the scale Of
the map. The council, in which the
two incapables had whined to excel
lent disadvantage, was drawing to e
close.
''Hudson bay post, long time ago. No
use UNI now" jacques Baptiste's ia
Their had made the trip for the Fur
company in the old days, incidentally
marking the trail with a couple Of
frozen toes.
''Sufferin' cracky!' cried another Of
the party. mo whitesY'
"Nary white" Sloper sententiously
affirmed. "But it's only 500 more up
the Yukon to Dawson. Call it a rough
thousand from here"
Weatherbee and Cuthfert groaned in
chorus.
"How long'll that take, Baptiste?''
The half breed figured for moment.
"Workum like b, no. man play out,
ten, twenty, forty, fifty days. Um ba-
bies Gomez designating the incapa.
bles), mo can tell. Mebbe when b.
freeze over; mebbe not then"
The manufacture Of snowshoes and
moccasins ceased. Somebody called
the name Of an absent member. who
came out Of an ancient cabin at the
edge Of the campfire and joined them.
The cabin was one of the many mys-
ter1es which lurk in the vast recesses
Of the north. Built when and by
whom no man could tell. Two graves
in the open, piled high with stones,
perhaps contained the secret of those
early wanderers. But whose hand had
piled the stones?
The moment had come. Jacques
Baptiste paused in the fitting Of a
harness and pinned the struggling dog
in the snow. The cook made mute
protest for delay threw a handful Of
bacon into noisy pot Of beans, then
came to attention. Sloper rose to his
feet. His body was ludicrous con-
trast to the healthy physiques of the
incapables. Yellow and weak, fleeing
from South American fever hole, he
had not broken his flight across the
zones and was still able to toll with
men. His weight was probably ninety
pounds with the heavy hunting knife
thrown in, and his grizzled hair told.
of a prime which had ceased to be.
The fresh young muscles Of either
Weatherbee or Cuthfert were equal to
ten times the endeavor of his, yet he
could walk them into the earth in a
days journey. And all this day he
had whipped his stronger comrades
into venturing thousand miles Of the
stiffest hardship man can conceive. He
was the incarnation Of the unrest Of
his race, and the old Teutonic stub
bornness, dashed with the quick grasp
and action Of the Yankee, held the
flesh in the bondage of the spirit.
Cali those in favor Of going on with
the dogs as soon as the ice sets say
aye"
"Ayev' rang out eight voices-voices
destined to string trail of oaths along
many hundred miles Of pain.
"ContSary minded?"
"Now For the first time the incapa-
bles were united without some COM
promise Of personal interests.
"And what are you going to do about
it?" Weatherbee added belligerently.
majority rule! Major'+y ruler clam
ored the rest of the party.
II know the expedition is liable to
fall through if you don't come" Sloper
replied sweetly, 'but guess, If we try
real hard, we can manage to do with
out you. What do you say, boys?"
The sentiment was cheered to the
echo.
"But say, you know" Cuthfert ven
tured apprehensively, "what's a chap
like me to do?''
"Ain't you coming with us?"
"No-o."
''Then do as you please. We won't
have nothing to say
'Kind O. calkilate yuh might settle
IL Will CulL CtluOOulu IdIuucr VI
yourn," suggested a heavy going west
erner from the Dakotas, at the same
time pointing out Weatherbee. Hell
be shore to ask yuh what yur a-goin'
to do when it comes to cookin' an
gatherin' the wood"
"Then We'll consider it all arranged"
concluded Sloper. "We'll pull out to-
morrow, if we camp within five miles,
just to get everything in running order
and Remember if we've forgotten any
thing.''
The sleds groaned by on their steel
shod runners, and the dogs strained
low in the harnesses in which they
were born to die. Jacques Baptiste
paused by the side Of Sloper to get
a last glimpse of the cabin. The smoke
curled up pathetically from the Yukon
stovepipe. The two incapables were
watching them from the doorway
Sloper laid his hand on the others
shoulder.