The Glenwood post. (Glenwood Springs, Colo.) 1897-current, 1921-03-05
scious of his heavy pack. Never dl

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ing more or less than perfect express
sion of the iron-clad control that his
steel nerves had over his muscles.
Then. through the silence, he heard
the shout Of the PACK as the wolf had
leaped at Snowbird. he knew what 1t
meant. The wolves were attacking
then, and a great flood Of black, hating
bitterness poured over him at the
thought he had been too late. It had
all been In vain, and before the thought
could fully go home, he heard the dim,
far-off crack Of pistol.
Was that the first Of the three shots,
the one she might e1pend on the
wolves, or had the first two already
been spent and was she taking the last
gateway Of escape? Perhaps even now
Lennox was lying still on the sled, and
she was standing before the ruin of
her fire, praying that her soul might
have wings. He shouted with all the
power of his lungs across the snow.
But Snowbird only heard the soft
glide of the wolves in the snow. The
wind was blowing toward Dan; and
while he had heard the loud chorus of
the pack, one of the most far-carrying
cries, and the penetrating crack of
pistol. she couldn't hear his answering
shout. In fact the wilderness seemed
less. heavy with suspense, and she
stood, just as Dan had thought, be
tween the ruin of her FIRE and the sled,
and she looked with straight eyes to
the oncoming wolves.
Hurry, Snowbird," Lennon was
whispering. Give me the pistol-for
that last work. We have only a mo-
ment more"
He looked very calm and brave, half
raised as he was on the sled, and per-
haps half-smile fingered at his beard
ed lips. And the bravest thing of all
was that to spare her, he was willing
to take the little weapon from her
hand to use 1t in Ms last service. She
tried to smile at him, then crept over
to his side.
The strain was over. They knew
what they had to face. She put the
pistol in his steady hand.
His hand lowered to his side and he
sat waiting. The moments passed. The
wolves seemed to be waiting, too, for
the last Pickering tongue of the little
fire to die away. The last of her fuel
was ignited and burning out; they
were crouched and ready to spring if
she should venture forth after more.
The darkness closed down deeper, and
at last only n column of smoke re-
NAMED.
1t was nothing to be afraid of. The
great, gray leader of the pack, wolf
that weighed nearly 100 pounds, be-
gan slowly and deliberately to set his
muscles for the spring. 1t was the
same as when the great bull elk comes
to bay at the base of the cliffs; usual
ly some one wolf, often the great pack
leader, wishing to remind his followers
of his might, or else some full-grown
male proud In his strength, will attack
alone. Because this was the noblest
game that the pack had ever faced,
the leader chose to make the first leap
himself It was true that these two
nav iSiliSA suNAi hoiho hoi taEoA-
edged hoofs as the elk, yet they had
eyes that chilled his heart when he
tried to look at them. But one was
lying almost prone, and the fire was
out. Besides, the madness of starva-
ton, intensified ten times by their ter
rible realization of the wound at her
hip, was upon the pack as never be-
Tho piSpIac ht,nrha1 of hto
lean tanks.
But as Snowbird and her father
gazed at him in fascinated horror. the
great wolf suddenly smashed down in
the snow. She was aware of Its curl
Gus, utter collapse actually before the
1t had penetrated her consciousness.
1t was perfect shot at long range;
and for long instant her tortured
faculties refused to accept the truth.
Then the rife spoke again, and a Sec
ond VOLTA large male that crouched
ing in the snow. The pack had leaped
forward at the first death; but they
halted at the second. Apd then ter
ror came to them when the third wolf
suddenly opened its savage lips and
screamed in the dean, agony.
Up to this time, except for the re-
port of the rifle, the attack had been
made In utter silence. The reason was
Just that both breath and nervous
force are needed to shout; and Dan
Failing could afford to waste neither
of these vital forces. He had dropped
to his knee, and WAS firing again and
again, his gray eyes looking clear and
straight along the barrel, his fingers
without jerk or tremor pressing again
and again at the trigger. his hands
holding the rifle as in wise. Every
nerve and muscle were completely In
his command. The distance was far,
yet he shot with deadly, amazing ac-
curacy. The wolves were within few
feet of the girl, and fractions waver
in tho uup I'm rrpI might have Sppd hiS