Twin city review. [volume] (Champaign, Ill.) 19??-1929, 1921-06-17
Copyright. 1920. by LIttle. brown & c.

| 1t had been all the evidence that was
needed. at the meeting of the ring the
night before, to adjudge Hildreth
merciless and immediate end. Hi
dreth would have preferred to walt In
the hills and possibly to write another
letter, but chill that kept growing
| at his finger tips forbade IL. And all
| these things combined to stretch his
nerves almost to the breaking point
as he stole along the moonllt trail un-
| der the pines.
A moment before the rush and whir
of the grouse flock had dried the roof
of his mouth with terror. The tall
trees appalled, him, the shadows fell
upon his spirit. And when he heard
this final sound. when he saw the
CLINT that might so easily have been
gun-barrei, his nerves and muscles re-
acted ut once. Not even a fraction of
second intervened. His gun flashed
up and little angry cylinder of
flame darted. as a snakes head darts,
from the muzzle.
Hildreth didn't take aim. There
wasn't time. The report roared in the
darkness; the bullet sang harmlessly
and thudded into the earth: and both
of them were the last things in the
world that Cranston had expect
ed. And they were not moment too
soon. Even at that instant, his finger
Hildreth standing clear and revealed
| through the sights. The nervous re-
| Spouse that few men in the world
| would be self-dlsclplined enough TO
prevent occurred at the same instant
that he pressed the trigger. His own
| fire answered, so near to the other
| that both of them sounded rs one re-
port.
Most hunters can usually TELL even
| IL they cannot see their game fall,
| whether they have hit or missed. This
was one of the few times In his life
| that Cranston could not have told. He
knew that as his finger pressed he had
held as accurate bead" as at any
time in his life. He did not know still
| another circumstance-that In the
moonlight he had overestimated the
distance to the clearing. and instead
| of one hundred yards 1t was scarcely
fifty. He had held rather high. And
had succeeded or whether he was face
to face with the prospect of . duel
to the death In the darkness.
And all he saw was Hildreth, rock
ing back and forth in the moonlight
strange picture that he was never
J entirely to forget. 1t was motion
that ne man could pretend. And he
knew he had not missed.
He waited till he saw the form of
| his enemy rock down, face half-buried
in the pine needles. 1t never even oc-
| Cured to him TO approach to see IL he
F, had made clean kill. He had held
on the breast and he had world OF
confidence in his great, shocking. big
game rifle. Besides, the rifle fire might
attract some hunter In the hills: and
there would be time In the morning
TO return to the body and make GER
/ tain little Investigations that he had
| in mind. And running hack down the
trail, he missed the sight of Hildreth
dragging his wounded body, like an
injured hare. into the shelter of the
thickets.
Whisperfoot, that great coward,
came out of his brush-covert when the
moon rose. 1t was not his usual rising
time. Ordinarily he found his best
| In th., AAv.fn ltfrhf 90 he
light hour; but for certain reasons,
his knowledge of which would be ex-
tremely difficult TO explain. he let this
time go by in slumber. Whisperfoot
had slept almost since dawn. II Is a
significant quality In the felines that
they simply cannot keep in condition
without hours and hours of sleep. In
this matter of sleeping, they are in a
direct contrast to the wolves, who
seemingly never sleep at all. unless ii
Is with one eve open. and in still
greater contrast to the king of all
beasts, the elephant, who is said TO
slumber less per night than that great
electrical wizard whom all men know
and praise.
Inc great cat came out yawning, as
graceful a thing as treads upon the
earth. He was almost nine feet long
from the tip of his nose TO the end OF
his tail, and be weighed ms much as
many full-grown man. He stood and
yawned insolently. for all the forest
world to see. He rather hoped that
the chipmunk, staring with beady eyes
from his doorway, did see him. He
would just as soon that Woof's little
son. the bear cub, should see him too
But he wasn't so particular about
Woof himself or the wolf pack whose
song had Just Weakened him. And
above all things he wanted to keep
out OF the sight of men,