The Emmett index. [volume] (Emmett, Idaho) 1893-1925, 1923-10-18

In the nrst gray Of morning. Dave
Turner started back toward his home
sru 70 with you to the forks In the
trail" Hudson told him Il want to
take a look at some OF my traps, any
how"
Al the same hour-as soon as II was
light enough to see-Bruce was nnish-
ing his breakfast in preparation for
the last lap of his Journey. He had
passed the night by q spring on long
ridHe almost In eye range of Hudson 3
camp. Now he was preparing TO dip
down Into the Killers glen
Turner and Hudson followed up the
little creek.
The frs, Of Hudson's sets proved
empty. The second was about turn
In the creek, and a wall Of brush made
II Impossible for him TO tell at dis
lance whether or not he had made
catch. But when still quarter OF a
mile distant. Hudson heard sound
that he thought he recognized Ii was
q high, sharp, agonized bark that
dfmned Into a low whine, Il believe
I've got a coyote or q wolf up there,
he said They FASTENED their steps
The whole picture doomed suddenly
before their eyes There was no wolf
in the trap. The steel had sprung.
certainly, but only hideous fragment
Of a foot remained between the jaws.
The bone had been broken sharply
OF, as a man might break match In
his fingers There was no living wolf,
Life had gone out Of the gray body
many minutes before. The two men
saw all these things as background
onIy-dIm details about the central
figure But the thing that froze them
In their tracks with terror Was the
great. gray form Of the Killer. not
twenty feet distant. beside the man
Eled body Of the wolf
The events that followed thereafter
came in such quick succession as TO
seem simultaneous For one fraction
Of an instant all three figures stood
motionless, the two men staring. the
Ryixziy haif-leaning over his prey. his
head turned. his little red eyes full OF
hatred. He uttered one hoarse, say
age note, a sound In which all his
hatred and his fury and his savage
power were made manifest, whiried
with Incredible speed, and charged
Hudson did not even have time to
turn There was no defense; his gun
was strapped on his back, and even
II II had been In his hands, its bullet
would not have mattered the sting Of
4 bee in honey-robbing- The only
possible chance Of breaking that dead
" charge lay In the thirty-thirty deer
ride In Dawes arms: but the craven
who held II did not even IRE. He was
standing Just below the outstretched
limb Of a tree. and the weapon fell
from his hands as he swung up into
the limb. The fact that Hudson stood
weaponless. ten feet away In the clear
Ing. did not deter him in the least.
No human flesh could stand against
that charge The vast paw fell with
resis,Iess force; and no need arose for
. second blow. The trapper's body
was struck down as II felled by
meteor, and the power Of the Impact
forced II deep Into the carpet of pine
needles. The savage creature turned.
the white fangs caught the light In the
open mouth The head lunged toward
the mans shoulder.
No man may say what agony Hud-
son would have endured in the last
few seconds Of his life II the Killer
had been given time and opportunity.
His usual way was to linger long.
sharp fangs closing again and again
until all living likeness was destroyed.
The blood lust was upon him: there
would have been no mercy to the dy-
ing creature In the pine needles. Yet
II transpired that Hudson's flesh was
not to know those rending fangs a
second time.
On the hillside above. a stranger to
this land had dropped to his knee In
the shrubbery. his fife lifted To the
level Of his eyes. II was Bruce. vino
had come In time to see the charge
through a rift In the trees.
The bear was on Hudson, and the
man had gone down. before Bruce
even interpreted him Then ii was
just a gray patch. q full three hundred
yards away. His instinct was TO throw
the gun to his shoulder and FIRE with
out aiming; yet he conquered 1t with
an iron Will. But he did move quickly.
He dropped to his knee the very sec
ond that the gun leaped to his Shout
der. lie seemed to know that from a
lower position the target would be
more clearly revealed The finger
pressed back against the trigger
The distance was far; Bruce was
not practiced rifle shot, and It bor-
dered ON the miraculous that his lead
went anywhere near the bears body.
And II was true that the bullet did
not reach vital place. 1t stung like
wasp at the Killers flank, however.
cutting Z shallow flesh wound. But 1t
was enough to take his dreadful atten-
ton from the mor,aily wounded trap
per In the pine needles.