Owingsville outlook. [volume] (Owingsville, Ky.) 1879-192?, 1921-05-05
CHAPTER I-Continued.

SHOES. Al lf~l lntIt WIZ l'Aia''
ankles and endless flnundcriug in III"
drifts. hut between the fall of fresh
snow and the thaws that Snftrned the
crust. he slowly mastered IN" art.
Snowhird-i,nd Dan never realized IN
full Significance Of her name Atil ne
saw her hyiug with incredible Srac"
over the Snow-la laughed al him nj FIRST
and ran him races that would usually
end In his falling headtirst into ten
foot snowrank She taught him how
20 ski and more than once she would
stop i'm the middle Of m earnest hi
of pedagogy Ia find that he wasn't lis
tcning at all. lie would seem {" Ice
fairly drvcuring her with his eyes de
lighting in The play of soft pinkS and
reds in her checks. and drinking. aS
man drinks wine. the amazing change
of Light ami shadow in her eyes.
She seemed To blossom under his
gaze. Not one Of those short winter
DAYS went ny without the discovery
of some new trait or little vanity Ia
nstouiSh or delight him-SometimeS
an mlookcd-for tenderness toward the
weak, often sweet. untaincd phil"s-
ophy Of life. or perhaps Just lower
ing Of her cNclidS in which her eyes
would show iuStrnuS through the
lashrs. or some sweeping. cNuborant
gesture Startlincly graceful.
Lennon Weakened one morning with
the realization that this was ont Of
the hardest winters Of his experience.
He began 10 be very glad of the alum
dant stores of provisions that over
crowded mis- pantry-SaNury hams ana
haconS. dried vcniSon. sacks of pota-
toes and evaporated vegetables. and,
Of course. canned goods past count
ing. With the high fire roaring In tie
CRATE. the season held no ills .or them.
! But sometimes. when the bitter cold
came down at twilight. and the moon
looked like thing Of ice itself over The
snow. he began To wonder how the
wild creatures who wintered on the
| Divide were farinC. Of courSe-most
I of them were gone. Nnnf. long since.
/ had crunted and mumhled his way
! into winter lair. Hut the wolves re-
/ manned, strange gray shadows on the
snow. and possibly few of the
harder smaller creatures.
More than once in those long win
/ ter nights their talk was chopped off
/ short 10y the song of the pack on some
distant ridge. Sometime. when the
I t0rld is old. possibly man will he
I born that can continue To talk and
I keep his mind on his words while the
| wolf pack sings. But he Is certainly
an unknown quantity today. The cry
sets in vibration curious memory
e. ordS. and for a moment the listener
:, eS in his minds eye his ancient
I hume i'm an ancient world-DarkneSS
/ ~ Fear and Eyes shining about the
/ GIVE. II carries him back, and he
: knows the wilderness as IL really is F;
/ and TO have such know ledge dries up
all inclination to talk. as a sponge
/ dries water. OF course the picture
isn't entirely plain. II is more a thing
guessed at. a photograph in some dark
part Of an under-consciouSness that
has constantly grown more dim as the
centuries have passed. Possibly some
time il will fade out altogether: and
then a man may continue to discuss
the weather while the Song from the
ridge shudders I'm at the windows. But
the world will he quite cold by then
and no longer particularly interesting
And possibly even the wolves them
selves will then he tanned TO play dead
and speak pieceS-which means IN,
wilderness itself will he tanned Fol
as long as the wild lasts. the pack vii
run through IL in the winter. The!
were here in the beginning. and In
spite Of constant war and constant
hatred on the part Of men. they vii
be here in the end. The reason is jus
that they are the symbol % the vii
derneSs Itself. and the idea Of II con
tinuing 10 exist without them Il
stranger than that of naticn withOu
flag.
Ii wasn't quite the same song tina
Dan had listened TO IN the frst day
of fail. II had been triumphant then
and proud with the wilderness pride
OF course il had been sad then. toe
but il was more sad now. And IL WA
stranger, too, and crept farihP- int,
the souls Ct its listeners. II was m
song of strength that cOuld1't avail
against the snow, possibly Of crlld an,
the despair and courage of starvation
These thrc" that heard il were inure
70 the wilderness; but a mOIlChl wa
always needed after its last note ha
died to REGAIN their gayety.
They're getting lean and thoy'r
getting savage" Lennox said on
night. stretched on his divan bcfor
the fireplace. lie was still Unahle {
walk; but the fractures were knittin
slGwly and the doctor had -Iromise
that the summer would find ! in wei
"If we had a dog. I wouldn't Offe
much for his life. One Of these lay
well find 'em i'm big circlr aruun
the hOuse-and then wen have {
open up with the rifles"
But this picture appalled, either {
his two young listeners. No wolf pac
can stand against three nariSmel
armed with rifles and behind oake
walls.
Christmas came and passed. an
January brought clear DAYS and &
ineffective sun shining on the snOy
These were the best days Of all. Ever
afternoon Dan and Snowbird woul
go out on their skis or on snOwshOe
unarmed except for the pistol TIN
SnOwbird carried in the deep pOck'
of her mackinaw. "But why nOtI" Da
replied 10 LennoX's objection. Isl
|. could kill five wolves with five shot
or pretty near il, and you know we
enough that that would hold 'em ii
we got home. They'd stop 10 eat u
five. ! have hard enough time kee
ing up with her as II is, without carr
tpg " rifle" And LennoX was cOnteT
nnIITrn mo n'I-C.C ACrIMtT'