Middletown transcript., 1921-01-08

from his position, twenty feet behind.
he could not see. He tried to probe
the thickets. with his eyes.
Then Dan whispered. Ever so soft
q sound, but yet distinct in the ST.
lence. There's something living In
that thicket."
Then Lennox heard it. too. As they
stood still, the sound became ever
clearer and more pronounced. Some
living creature was advancing toward
them; and twigs were cracking be-
meath its feet. The sounds were rath-
er subdued, and yet, as the animal ap'
preached, both Of them instinet1veiy
knew that they were extremely lond
for the usual footsteps Of any OF the
wild creatures.
"What is it," Dan asked quietly.
Lennox was so intrigued by the
sounds that he was not even observ-
ant of the peculiar. subdued quality
in Dams voice. Otherwise. he would
have wondered at it. I'm free to
confess I don't know" he said. ITS
booming right toward us. like most
animals don't care to do. OF course
it may be human being. You must
watch out for that"
They waited. The sound ended
They stood straining for long mo-
ment without speech.
"That was the dumdest thing!
Lennox went on. "Of course it might
have been a bear-yOu never know
what they're going to do. 1t mlgn'
have got sight of us and turned off
But 1 can't believe that it was just a
deer"
But then his words chopped square
~ off in his throat. The plOddlnG ad-
vance commenced again. And the
next instant a gray form revealed it.
self at the edge of the thicket.
1t was Graycoat the coyote. half
blind with his madness, and des-
perate in his agony.
There was no more deadly thing In
all the hills than he. Even the bite
of rattlesnake would have been well
coined beside his. He stood a long
instant, and all his instincts and re-
tiexes that would have ordinarily
made him flee in abject terror we're
thwarted and twisted by the fever OF
his madness. He stared moment at
the two figures, and his red eyes could
not interpret them. They were simply
foes, for it was true that when this
racking agony was upon him, even
lifeless trees seemed foes sometimes.
He seemed eerie and unreal us he
gazed at them out of his burning eyes
and the white foam gathered at his
fangs. And then, wholly without
warning. he charged down at them.
He came with unbelievable speed.
The elder Lennox cried once in warn
ing and cursed himself for ventur-
ing forth on the ridge without gun.
He was fully twenty feet distant from
Dan; yet he saw in an instant his
only course. This was no time to
trust their lives to the craftsmanship
Of an amateur. He sprang toward
Dan, intending to wrench the weapon
from his hand.
But he didn't achieve his purpose.
At the first step his foot caught in a
projecting root, and he was shot to
his face on the trail. But long life
in the wilderness had developed Len
nox's reflexes to an abnormal degree ;
many crises had taught him muscle
and nerve control; and only for a
fraction of an instant. a period of
time that few instruments are fine
enough to measure, did he lie supinely
upon the ground. He rolled on, into
a position Of defense. But he knew
now he could not reach the younger
man before the mad coyote would be
upon them. The matter was out OF
his hands. Everything depended on
the aim and self-control OF the tender.
! foot.