Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1921-02-06

inc ROAD look tneW py trout
house. and old Dan, Proutts hound.
came out to bark at them. and saw
Proutt. and tried to get into the
| buggy. Proutt babe him back to the
house; then. as an afterthought. got
out and shut the hound indoors.
| Saladine's eyes were narrow with
thought, but he made no comment,
and they moved on their way.
! That part of Maine in which Fra
| ternity lies is 4 curious study for
| biologists. A good many centuries
ago. when the great glaciers grared
this land. they slid down from north
to south into the sea. and in their
sliding plowed deep burrows. so that
the country is cut up by ridges. run
| ming almost true north and south,
and ending in peninsulas with bays
between. Thus the coast line is jag
F., ged as saw.
These ridges run far up into the
state; and the Sheepscot ridge Is as
bold as any one of them. There IS
no break in 1t. and 1t herds the little
waterways down into Sheepscot river:
and guides the river itself south till
! it meets the sea. There are trout in
Sheepscot, and thirty years ago the
valley was full Of farms and mills:
| but these farms are for the most part
deserted now. and the mills are gone,
| leaving only shattered dams to mark
the spots where they stood The
valley is tangle of second-groWth
timber. broken here and there ~
[ brooks meander Here dwells every
wild thing that the region knows.
| proutt's old buggy climbed the
| long road up the eastern slope OF
the ridge. and the somber beauty OF
the countryside lay outspread behind
| them. The sun was falling lower.
the shadows were lengthenins and
| a cold wind blew across the land.
+! Across Georges valley and tieorCss
lake lay the lower hills. the Appleton
ridge beyond and nc ,ae and sns
the Camden hills. The bay itself
could not be seen. but the dark top
of Blue hill showed. twenty miles
beyond the bay. and Mount Desert.
ten miles farther still
beauties. They rode in silence.
watching the road ahead. And they
passed. through Liberty, and past
Macs corner. and so up to top the
ridge at last. Paused there TO
breathe Proutts horse.
Back at proutt's home. about the
time they were in Liberty. some one
had opened the door of the shed in
which old Dan was locked: End the
hound. watching his chance. scuttled
out into the open. What well founded
habit prompted him can only be
guessed; certain it is that he wheeled.
never needing the calls from behind
| him. and took the road by which
Proutt had gone, hard on his master
trail.
| If the dog trainer had known this
matters might have turned out diner
The roads from Sheepscot Ridge
down into Sheepscot valley are for
the most part rough and little used.
An occasional farmer comes this way;
an occasional fisherman drops from
the steep descent to the bridge. But
1.-the frost has thrown powders up
across the road: and grass grows be-
tween the ruts, and the young hard
| wood crowds close on either side.
Down this road, at Saladine's direc-
| ton, Proutt turned, and the westering
sun shone through the leaf1ess
before the feet of the horse.
| Hallway down the hill Saladine
spoke. Let's light out" he said.
Wen find something up along this
SLOPE"
horse. They got out. and Reck danced
about their feet. Proutt tied the horse
to a sapling beside the road. and they
| climbed the ruined stone wall and
turned into the wood. Wesley alone
| had a gun; the others were unarmed.
| Inc course SaIdulUc Scl Aok euehi
was straight along the slope. moving
neither up nor down. and the three
men, accustomed to the woods. went
quickly. Wesley spoke to Reck now
and then. His only word was the
hunters command. Get in there" he
ranged forward. and up. and down,
covering a front of half a dozen rods
az they advanced Wesley was in
the middle, Saladine was below.
Proutt above the other two.
Wesley had suggested putting his
negatived that with caustic word;
He'd know. then you wanted
birds" he said And, anyway. it'd
scare the deer" So they followed the
dog by sight or by the stirring of his
feet among the leaves, and at times
he was well ahead of them. and at
times when he moved more slowly
they were close upon his heels. At
such moments Wesley held them
back till Reck should work ahead.
( Whether Reck had any knowledge
of what was in their minds no man
). can say. There were moments when en-
they saw he was uncertain. when ne
turned to look inquiringly back at
them. But for the most part he
worked steadily back and forth as
a good dog will. quartering the ground
by inches. And always he progressed
ed him. And Saladine. down the SLOPE
watched Proutt as they move on.
! No man spoke, save that Wesley
urged Reck softly on when the dog
turned back to look at them. And at
the last. when they saw that Reck
had found game, 1t needed no Woro
to bring the three together, two or
three rods behind the dog.
lDEcK. as the gunners say, was
IN marking game" Nose down, he
moved forward, foot by foot; and
now and then he stopped for long
seconds. motionless, as though at
point; but always he moved for
ward again. And Wesley felt the
cold sweat upon his forehead; and
he looked at Proutt and saw the
dog trainer licking his tight lips.
Only saladine kept steady eye upon
the dog and searched the thickets
ahead.
After a rod or two Reck stopped.
and this time he did not move. And
Wesley whispered to the others:
Walk it up, whatever it Is. Move
| in" So the men went slowly for
ward, eyes aching with the strain OF
staring into the shadows of the wood.
| When Reck took his point he was
well ahead of them. He held it while
they came up beside him; and then,
as they passed where the dog stood.
something plunged in the brush
ahead, and they all saw the swift
! flash Of brown and the bobbing white
! tail az a buck deer drove straight
|away from them along the slope.