The Monmouth inquirer., 1921-04-21


course, he had no idea Of getting
rid of the child by letting it die Of
hunger in the woods
That would have been altogether
too dangerous. Scarface would talk
eventually, and Ameou would hear
of Curran's share in the plot
Curran had no mind to have a
sheath-knife planted between his
shoulders some day by a revengeful
woman. When the time came to get
rid of the infant few drops of a
drug in the medicine-box would suf
flee. That was too easy to worry
about.
After all; it was most unlikely
that Ameou and Mashkaugan would
find the brat. They would probably
continue on the Tshemuak River in
stead of turning to the right into the
Nukumeshu
Even if they chose the latter, there
was no likelihood chat, once N Many
Beaver Lake, they would find the
place where the infant was con-
cealed.
Curran got his canoe ready in leis-
urely fashion after he had sent some
parties on wiid-goose chases of his
contriving, SO that all shoald know
how diligently he had conducted the
search.
He would have his breakfast first,
after which he would quietly travel
down-river When he had made GER
tain that he was not observed he
would go straight to the place of
concealment and bring the child
back, and like conquering hero,
claim the fulflment of the girls
promise
She had proffered all she had in
the world. He would claim herself,
and incidentally, all that money in
England.
The mans eyes narrowed down
and his teeth showed between his
thin lips. He was thinking of that
drug. The baby would not awaken
and-and then back to civilization as.
quickly as he could travel, where that
short will of Lorimer's would permit
him to have very fine time Ameou,
after she had signed few papers,
would not be very much in his way.
In the mean time the lightly laden
canoe was making great speed dowp
the river.
hunchback rose like the pistons of
an engine and swept backward with
a force to which the frail ship re-
sponded like horse under the lash,
Ameou toiled with an energy that
soon would exhaust her; probably
better for her to expend some of the
fierce ener of her despair in this
way than in harassing anguish of
mind
Had any one asked Mashkaugan
what his purpose was in accompany
ing the girl he might have found it
hard to give an answer.
1t had been an impulse TO which
he had yielded bliGdly. At bottom
there probably lay an unexpressed
desire to make some small atonement
for the foul deed which was tortur-
ing his conscience.
At this time, however, he only
thought of the quest. While never
interrupting his padding, his head
constantly turned from side to side,
noting every stick and stone, every
shrub and branch, every track of
mrskrat on the banks of the river.
After an hour of such going, dur
ing which not word had passed be-
Ameou seized the rifle and then
followed the trail for about hun
dred yards. On wide bed of moss
under tree there was faint de-
preston in the soft surface, as if a
weight had been upon it for some
time.
"But who is the other man."
asked Mashkaugan.
"What other man." asked Ameou,
startled.
She had not been locking at
l1x ho1
directed ahead in hope of seeing her
child
Another man came after Scarface
had gone. See how his tracks over
lie the others in places. The man
bore a load and was very weary, and
his shoepacks were torn. Look at
these marks! The man certainly
took that which was lying ON the
moss"
Then followed the second trail. 1t
was very plain to both, although in
many places none but a tried hunter
of the wilderness could possibly have
followed it.
Mashkaugan stopped again, puz-
zled.
81 had thought this man came
after Scarface," he said. "Yet~they
must certainly have met and the
Nascaupee gave him strong drink in
plenty.
.See for thyself that he walks Ike
drunken man, swaying from side to
side. And here is fiat stone, con-
venient to put foot upon, yet the
track is IN deep mud near it.
"And here is another sign that the
man was drunk, for he has fallen
on his knees and arisen again, with
the sinking also of one hand deep in
the muck"
1t so happened, of course, that
Mashkaugan was mistaken, yet no
follower of trails could have come to
better conclusion from the marks
so plainly imprinted before him.
The two walked on for some dis
tance until they were delayed by a
great rocky ledge, on which the trail
was utterly lost.
This, however, was but tempo
rary check. Mashkaugan carefully
followed the edges of the great fiat
rock. In another moment he had
found the tracks again and called