New Mexico state record. (Santa Fe, N.M.) 1914-19??, 1921-04-29
The Voice of the Pack
By EDISON MARSHALL
Copyright. 1890. by Little. Brown & Co.

! 1t is hardly a human quality. and a
spectator would have found a rather
CHASTITY fascination in watching the
1.-THE motions, the p~assiOnless face, the
hands that didn't shake at all. But
there were no spectatOrs-unieSs the
little band of wolves, s~tragglers from
the pack that had gathered on tie hills
behind-watched with lighted eyes.
ia went down at full length upon
the snow and softly removed his snow
shoes. They would be only an iDpedi-
ment in the close work that was sure
TO follow. He slid along the snow
crust, clear to the mouth of the lean 10.
The moonlight poured through am
showed the interior with rather re-
markable %plainness. CranstOn was
%sprawled. half-sitting, h~alf-lying on a
%tree-bough pallet near the rear wall.
There was not the slightest doubt Of
the mans wakefulness. Dan heard
him stir, and Once-as if at the MEM
DRY of his deed of the day befOre-he
cursed in Il savage whisper. Although
he was facing the opening of the lean
TO, he was wholly unaware of Dams
presence. The latter had thrust his
head at the side of the opening, and
ii was in shadow. CranSton seemed
to be watching the great, white snow
fields that lay in front, and for a mo-
ment Dan was at loss to explain this
seeming vigil. Then he understood.
The white field before him was part
of the long ridge that the three Of
them would pass on their way to the
valleys. Cranston had evidently an
ticipated that the strl and the man
would attempt to march out-eyen If
he hadn't guessed they would try to
take the helpless LennoX with them
and he wished to be prepared for
emergencies. There might be sport TO
have with Dan, unarmed AS he was.
And his eyes were full of strange con
lectures in regard to Snowbird. Both
would he exhausted o and helpless
Dams eyes encompassed the room:
the piles of provisions heaped against
the wall, the snow shoes beside the
pallet, but most of all he wished to
locate Cranston's rifle. Success OF
failure hung on that. He couldn't
find it at first. Then he saw the gilt
ter of its barrel in the moonlight
leaning against II grub box possibly
six feet from Cranston and 10 from
himself.
His heart leaped. The best he had
hoped for-for the sake of ~Snowbird,
not himself-was that he would be
nearer to the gun than Cranston and
would be able to seize 1t first. But
conditions could be greatly worse than
they were. If Cranston had actually
had the weapon in his hands, the odds
of battle would have been frigh'fully
against Dan. II takes IA certain length
of time to seize, swing, and aim a RI
fie; and Dan felt that while he would
he unable Ia reach it himself, Gram
ston could not procure it either, with
out giving Dan an opportunity to leap
upon him. In all his dreams, through
the months of preparation, he had pic
tured it thus. 1t was the test at last.
The gun might be loaded, and still
in these days of safety deyices-un
ready to fire; and the loss of a frac-
ton of a second might enable Gran
ston to reach his knife. Thus Dan
felt justified in ignoring the gun alto
and t~rustlng-as he had most
lesired-to n battle of hands. And he
both hands free when he made
attack.
If Dan had been erect upon his feet,
course would have been an imme-
leap on the shoulders of his adj
versary. running the risk of Cranston
reaching his hunting knife in time.
But the second that he would require
10 get to his feet would entirely Offset
his advantage. Cranston could spring
up, too. SO he did the next most dis
thing.
lie sprang up and strobe into the
ITO BE CONTINUED