Williams news., 1922-12-01
CHAPTER XIII

Miles farther than Linda'S- cabin, clear beyond the end of the trail that Duncan took, past even the highest ridge of Trails End and in the region where the little rivers that run into the Umpqua have their starting place, is a certain land of Used to BeA It isn't a land of the Present Time at all. It Is place that has never grown old. When a man passes the last outpost of civilization, and the shadows of the unbroken woods drop over him, he is likely to forget that the year Is nine teen hundred and twenty, and that the day before yesterday he had seen an airplane passing over his house. The world seems to have kicked off its thousand-thousand years as warm man at night kicks off covers; and all things are just as they used to be. It is the Young World-a world Of beasts rather than men, world where the hand of man has not yet been felt.
 On this particular riy-September day, the age-Old drama of the wilder ness was in progress. It was drama of untamed passions and bioodshed. strife and carnage and lust and rap- inc; and 1t didn't, unfortunately, have a particularly happy ending. The players were beasts, not men. The only human being anywhere in the near vicinity was the old trapper. Hudson following down his trap line on the creek margin on the way to his camp It Is true that two other men, with rather astounding sinli- larity of purpose. were at present con- Ing down two of the long trails that led to the region; but as yet the drama was hidden from their eyes. One of the two was Bruce, coming from Linda's cabin. One was Dave Turner. approaching from the direc- ton of the Ross estates. Turner was much the nearer. Curiously. both had business with the trapper Hudson.
 The action of the play was calm at first Mostly the forest creatures were still in their afternoon sleep. The does and their little spotted lawns were sleeping; the blacktail deer had not yet sought the feeding grounds on the ridges. The. cougar yawned in his lair. the wolf dozed in his covert, even the poison people lay like long shadows on the hot rocks An old raccoon wakened from his place on high limb, stretched him. self, scratched at his fur, then began to steal down the limb. He had a long way to go before dark. Hunting was getting poor in this part of the woods. He believed he would wander down toward Hudson's camp and look for crayfish in the water. A coyote is usually listed among the larger forest creatures, but early though the hour was-early, that is, for hunters to be out-he was stalking a fawn in a covert.
 All the hunts were progressing fla mously when there came a curious in terruption. It was a peculiar growl, quite low at first It lasted long time, then died away. There was no opposition to it. The forest creatures had paused in their tracks at it's first note, and now they stood as if the winter had come down upon them sud denly and frozen them solid. All the other sounds of the forest-the little whispering noises of gliding bodies and fiuttering feet, and perhaps a birds call in a shrub-were suddenly stilled. There was a moment of breathless suspense. Then the sound commenced again.
 7. wes l.,.aer ths. tty.as. -1t-rcsc- cn1