Iron County news. [volume] (Hurley, Wis.) 1913-1950, 1918-02-16

Thereafter, day by day. the miles I'M
rolled behind them. Always Roaring
Bill faced straight north. For week
he kept on tireleSsly. and consuming
desire to know how far he intended to
go began to take hold of her. At last
they dropped into a valley where the
woods thinned out, and down the CEN
ter of which flowed stable river.
This they followed north a matter Of
three days. On the west the valley
wall ran 10 tlmbered ridge.
Then the stream they followed
merged itself in another, both wide and
deep, which flowed west through a
level-bottomed valley three miles or
more in width. Roaring Bill halted on
the river bank and stripped his horses
clean, though 1t was but two in the
afternoon and their midday fire less
than an hour extinguished She
watched him curiously. When his
packs were off he beckoned to her.
Hold them minute" he said. and
put the lead ropes in her hand
Then he went up the bank into a
| thicket of sasllatoons. Out of this he
presently emerged, hearing on his
shoulders a canoe, old and weather.
beaten, but stanch, for it rode light
as feather on the stream. Bill
seated himself in the canoe, holding to
Silks lead rope. The other two he
left free.
"N0w," he directed. when I start
across, you drive Niger and Satin In
II they show signs Of hanging back.
Bounce a rock or two Off them If they
lag"
Her task WIS an easy one, for Satin
and Niger followed Silk unhesitat-
ingly. The river Tapped along the
sleek sides of them for fifty yards
/ Then they dropped suddenly into
swimming water, and the current swept
/ them downstream slantwise for the OPP
posite shore, only their heads showing
above the surface. Hazel wondered
/ what river 1t might be. 1t was good
quarter of mile wide. and swift.
Roaring Bill did not trouble to en-
! tighten her as to the locality. Wher
he got back he slowed the saddle and
pack equipment in the canoe.
"All aboard for the north side" he
said boyishly. And Hazel climbed ODE
dfently amldships.
I On the farther side, Bill empued the
canoe, and slowed 1t out of sight in q
convenient thcket, repacked his
horses and struck out again. Haze
drew upon her knowledge of British
4 Columbia geography, and decided thai
the big river where Bill hid his canoe
must be the Fraser where 1t debouchet
from the mountains. And in that case
she was far north, and in wilderness
/ indeed.
Her muscles gradually hardened tC
the saddle and 10 walking. Her appe
tite grew in proportion. the small sup
ply Of eatahle dalnties that Roaring
BIZ had brought from the Meadows
dwindled and disappeared, until they
were living on bannocks baked Ia
frontier in his frying pan, on beans
and coffee, and venlson killed by the
way. Yet she rellshed the coarse fare
even while she rebelled against the cir
cumetances Of It's partaking.
DO YOU realize" she broke out one
evening over the fire, THAT this is sim
ply abductIonW
mot ct all" BIZ answered prompt
( ". "Abduction means to take away
/ surreptitiously by force. to carry away
wrOngfuly and by violence any human
/ being 70 kidnnp. Now you can't by
any stretch Of the Imagination accuse
me Of force, violence or kidnapping
not by long shot You merely wan
dered into my camp, and Il wasn't con
venient for me 10 turn back. There
/ fore clrcumstances-not my net, re
member-made II advisable for you Il
accompany me. OF course I'll admit
that, according 10 custom and usage
you would expect me to do the polite
thing and restore you to your OWL
stamping ground. But there's no law
making It mandatory for a fellow tC
pilot home Il lady In distress. Isn't
that right?'