The Challis messenger. (Challis, Idaho) 1912-current, 1924-02-20

hiding under the brush instantly
flushed. 1t seemed a. II the furry Of
his wings famed the whole woodl
alive. A fox squirrel bounced up ou(
Of the leaves and skurried away; q
chipmunk dived into his den; a pail
Of blue Jays set up their strident
screech; crow left the dead limb OF
an oak and went floundering along
over the tree-tops squawking the
news that the most dangerous ami
NAL In the world-a man-was loose
In the woods. t
With the heavy shotgun he carried
Ia present from the banker-Jack
covered the pheasant as 1t glanced
away until 1t blended with the dull
gray Of the trees and faded from
sight. He dropped the butt Of the
gun to the leaves and stood listening
to the beat Of the swift wings, grow
ing fainter, finally ending abruptly,
and he knew the bird had settled
again to the brush.
well, OIL drummer" he chuckled,
speaking half aloud-a habit the
woods teach men-and throwing the
shotgun lightly across his arm, "y'u
didn't need T. rush off without 81
much as sayin' good morning. 1 could
"a stopped yu If I'd ben a-mind to.
had y'u right on the end Of my
trigger finger"
Though Jack Warhope was consid-
cred a man Of clumsy tongue, he
could talk well enough to himself, or
to the creatures of the woods. He
even had a curiously sane and sensi-
Bile philosophy sort of romantic
idealism-that outcropped at such
times.
The woods-the true, the constant,
the steadfast woods-the first in
stinct of unspoiled men with a heart
ache-the vastness, the all suffi-
cheney; the immense Shekinah of the
solitudes. With the gun lying across
his arm he stepped cautiously to
where the pheasant had flushed and
peered about under the brush and
bushes.
AS his straining gaze searched with
extreme minuteness every leaf, or
glimpse of weed or bark or grass
blade, gradually a grayish-brown spot,
just, where the bush of a fallen limb
lay along the side of a crumbling
log, began to take shape. He shifted
his position for a better view-the
gray-brown spot was gone.
He located 1t again, and as he
looked, slowly there grew out Of the
blending colors Of the copse the figure
of a hen pheasant on the nest, so per-
fectly harmonizing with the leaves
and brush among which she lowered
that only the very keenest eye could
have spied her out at all. A moment
he gazed, and slipped away as noise
lessly as he had come.
LET 'er alone" he muttered when
at safe distance. Let 'er think l
couldn't find FER. She'll think If I
couldn't the fox can't, and he's her
greatest dread right now"
The trees were hardly leaved out
carelessly through them, or fully keep
back the sun from peeping down
through the thick tangle Of twigs and
coaxing forth flower and grass blade
from the quickening mold. The silver
sheath Of the hickory buds had al
ready burst and sprung wide apart,
the delicate green Of the crinkled,
newborn leaves appearing in sharp
contrast to the purple sheen lining |
the rent scales. The oaks had begun |
to thrust forth the tender tips of |
their new foliage, investing the wax
ing forest with a tint of faint gray
ish red, as if to the infant leaves
some trace of the birth blush still
chung.
Upon the floor Of the woods spring
had already spread carpet Of infinite
color and design, new and bright and
still unsoiled-here a fancy spangled
pattern of spring beauties; there a
pattern of solid green where the may
apples opened their umbrellas to the
light, in readiness to shield the
fragile flowers of white wax that were
soon to hover beneath their shelter
Ing folds; and, draped over all, a
silver haze, the gracious
Denediction Of the skies.
The man stopped before a crab
apple tree, the buds of which were
opened just enough to make one curl
)us to see more of the beautiful
mystery folded teasingly away within
he protecting scales. Already some
bees, pioneers of their tribe, fused
about the aromatic clusters of peep
ng color, gathering statistics on the
seasons honey crop.
breeze stirred the trees, as if
he woods were taking deeper
breath. Jack lifted his shoulders and
illed his lungs with the nectar-laden
ir. Warmed by the exuberance Of
ife that rustled and quivered and
hrilled around him there gushed up
within him the Jubilate of a man
vooed by the genial day into almost
primal cloSenesS to nature. He
lropped the butt of the gun to the
caves, leaned lightly upon it and
TODD listening to the dull droning of
I~