The daily Alaskan., 1920-09-02
3CALL OF TIE WILD
By ETHEL W. FARMER.
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}. is2o. by Mcclure Nowspaper Syndicate

The rlplu WhlTlulS oh '"S SN'9 machine stopped suddenly, and EIoise turned sharply around in her, chaF and faced her sister sQuare!y.
 "Are YOU nearly finlshed" she asked with assumed gaycty.
 "Oh, no" Virginia answered sleep fly, carefully Scrutiuizing the beauu- fuI piece of embroidery in her lap.
 "Why don't you leave 1t for a little whIle?" EloISe leased.
 "Oh, I could not possibly do that came the determined answer. With a final, wlStful glance out or tbe window at the wonderful snow covered world the stitcher's sigh min gIed with the renewed buzzing of the eyasperatlng machine Built did not buzz for long. for she soon threw her work aside and jumped to her feet with a laugh.
 Come, now, sIs, why not don our beloved Snowshoes and strike or TOT the woods? Let us seek some thrlh' Ing romance In the cold, open coun- try, 1 just know that romance Is only waiting for us. Perhaps some daring hero will be waiting to rescue us from some wild animal in the heart of the woOds!"
 "Romance?" Virginia spoke in dis gust. That word was not meant for us! And who ever heard of wild anI- mals in our woods? ElOlse, please be sensible and let me work"
 "Very well, fair sister" EloiSe spoke lightly, but I must be off for I hear the urging call of the wild and she ran happily from the room.
 Soon she returned, becomingly clad In her sport costume, with Snowshoes tucked under her arm. The bright red cap matched the flushed cheeks and 1 laughingly 0ntaConizcd the bright sparkle in the fair blue eyes.
 1T am only answering the call of the wild" she laughed softly, "and seek Ing my lost romance" and the front door banged.
 Then Virginia was. sorry that she had so inSiStently refused the inTi- tation for the hike, for her work was already becoming tiresome. She watched her enthusiastic sister strap on her SnowShOeS and start gracefully | along. stopping only long enough 10 wave a bright mittcned hand at her.
 q shall go into the woods" she thought.
 r. was not long before the open highway was passed and the dusky woods lay before her With a deep sigh of contrntmcut, she passed into | their majestic quictncss. But as she wandered along her joyful Sri:irs he. gan to lower and her thoughts wan drrrd back Go other days. She was ! thinking uf the many happy times | passed in these woods with Tom.
 Some tiny tracks in the snow at- ] tractrd her attention.
 "Why not follow this rabbit traI!:' 1 she asked herself lightly. EloiSe wiped tue precipitation from 1 her forehead and smiled at her appar- cntly endless undertaking, mentally resolving To % to the end. She did 1 not notice how rapidly the woods were | getting dark. and that only the Ciu of | the sun could hc seen below the trees. i She was thinking only of following 1 the trail. Finally her search was rc wardrd, for her tracks ended at the stump 0f tree.
 She leaned against the tree to rest I herself. There was suddenly a rust ling in tue uudcrh~uSh. She stood ter rifrd and wondered if pcrchancc there were any wild animals there'
 The rruuchtng sound came nearer, and EloiSr could stand it no longer With a frantic cry she started 10 run, forgetting that her feet were encaSed ! in large Suuw>horS. Somehow the 1 SnowShoeS hrramn tangled in some ! haIf.CouCraIrd branches and, with an- other cry. she rrll headIong into q bank of snow She did not dare to ! move. for the sound was coming rap idly toward her It was upon her. If It were a bear. it would think that
 she We're dead, but she trembled at the thought.
 Cant you get up?" somebody was 1 asking pleasantly in her ear. It was fully a minute before she could extrir0tc herself from the snow 1 enough to see if the owner of the voice were truly Tom. And his sur. | prise was even greater when he found Out who this Marathon snowshoe run ner really was.
 |; "Why, Tom" she gasped weakly.
 "Why, EloiSc," he echoed happily.
 For a moment they eyed each other | silently. and then they laughed.
 "Why did you run?" he asked good, 1 uaturedly.
 T heard a rustic in the bushes" she 1 answered. Sheepishly. Listen, there it
 Is again"
 Tom listened. and as he rose to his
 feet with an impromptu club In his hand the gentle face of a COW peered