Vernon Parish Democrat., 1921-08-11
CHAPTER l-contlnued.

For when all thugs are said and
done, there were few bigger towards
in the whole wilderness world than
Whisperfoot. A good many people
think that Graycoat the coyote
could take lessons from him in this
respect. But others, knowing how a
hunter is brought in occasionally with
almOst all human resemblance gone
from him because a cougar charged in
his death agony, think this is unfair
TO the larger animal. And it is true
that a full-grOwn cougar will some
times attack horned. cattle, something
that, no American animal cares to do
unless he wants good fight on his
paws and Of which the very thought
would throw Graycoat into a spasm;
and there have been even stranger
stories, if one could quite believe
them. A certain measure Of respect
must be extended to any animal that
will hunt the great bull elk, for to
miss the stroke and get caught be-
meath the churning, lashing, slashing,
razor-edged front hoofs is simply
death, painful and without delay. But
the difficulty lies in the fact that these
things are not done in the ordinary,
rational blood of hunting. What an
animal does in its death agony, or to
protect its young, what great game 1t
follows in the starving times of win
ter. can be put to neither its debit
nor its credit A coyote will charge
when mao. A raccoon will put up
wicked fight when cOrnered. hen
will peck at the hand that robs her
nest. When hunting was fairly good,
Whisperfoot avoided the elk and steer
almost as punctiliously as he avoided
men. which is saying very much In
deed; and any kind Of terrier could
usually drive him straight up tree.
But he did like to pretend to be
very great and terrible among the
smaller forest creatures. And he was
Fear itself to the deer. A human
hunter who would kill two deer
week for fifty-twO weeks would be
called much ugller name than poach-
er; but yet this had been Whisper
foot's record, on and of, ever since
his second year. Many great buck
wore the scar Of the full stroke-att
er which Whisperfoot had lost his
hold. Many a fawn had crOuched
Danting with terror in the thickets al
just a tawny light on the gnarled limt
Of a pine. Many a doe would grow
great-eyed and terrified at just hi'
strange. pungent smell on the wind.
He yawned again, and his fang'
looked white and abnOrmally large II
the moonlight. His great, green eye'
were still clouded and languorou'
from sleep. Then ne began to stea
mn the ridge toward his hunting
grounds. II was a curious thing tina
he walked straight in the face OF tn
soft wind that came down from tn
snow fields, and yet there wasn't
weathercock to be seen anywhere. Ant
neither had the chipmunk seen hin
wet a paw and hold 1t up, after tn
approved fashion of holding up a nm
ger. He had a better way Of knowin
Ia chill at the end Of his whiskers'
The little, breathless night sound
In the brush around him seemed I
madden him. They made song t
him. a strange. wild melody that eve
such frontiersmen as Dan and LeT
nox could not experience. A thOusan
smells brushed down to him on Tn
wind. more potent than any wine
lust. He began to tremble all owe
with rapture and excitement. But VI
IKE Cranston's trembling, no Wildel
ness ear was keen enough to hear tn
leaves rustling beneath him.