Evening star., 1924-08-09

Dashing at top speed around a tepee
he ran full tilt into kiche lying at
the end OF his stick. He gave one
yelp of CONSERVATION. and then her
Furnishing jaws closed upon him. She
was tied, but he could not get away
from her easily. She rolled him off
his legs so that he could not run.
while she repeatedly ripped and
slashed him with her fangs.
When at last ne succeeded in roll
ing clear of her, he crawled TO his
feet, badly disheveled. hurt both in
body and in spirit. His hair waS
standing out all over him in tufts
where her teeth had mauled Iif.
stood where he had arisen. opened his
mouth. and broke out the long, heart
broken puppy wall. But even this he
was not allowed to complete. In the
middle of IL. White Fang, rushing in,
sank his teeth into Lip-lips hind leg.
There was no fight left in Lip-lip,
and he ran away shamelessiy. his vic
tim hot on his heels and worrying
him all the way back to his own te
pee. Here the squaWs came to his
aid. and White Fang, transformed
into raging demon, was finally driv
en- off only by fusiliade of stones.
Came the day when Gray Beaver,
deciding that the liability of her run
ming away was past. released kiche.
White Fang was delighted with his
mothers freedom. He accompanied
her joyfully about the camp; and. so
long as he remained close by her
side, Lip-lip kept a respectful dis
tance. White Fang even bristled UP
to him and walked stiff legged, but
Lip-lip ignored the challenge He
was no fool himself. and whatever
vengeance he desired TO wreak, he
could wait until he caught White
Fang alone.
Later on that day Kiche and White
Fang strayed into the edge of the
tn q lE6
his mother there, step by step. and
now. when she stopped, he tried to in
veigle her farther. The stream, the
lair. and the quiet woods were call
ing to him. and he wanted her to
come. He ran on a few steps. stop
ped and looked back She had not
moved. He whined pleadngly, and
scurried plaYfully in and out of the
underbrush. He ran back to her,
licked her face. and ran on again,
And still she did not move. He stop
ped and regarded her, all of an in
tentness and eagerness. physically
expressed. that slowly faded out Of
him as she turned her head and gazed
back at the camp
There was something calling to him
out there in the open. His mother
heard IL, too. But she heard also that
other and louder call. the call of the
FIRE and of mau-the call which il has
been given alone of all animals to
the WOII TO answer. 10 Ine NOlI anu
the wild dog, who are brothers.
kiche turned and slowly trotted
back toward camp. Stronger than
the physical restraint of the stick was
the clutch of the camp upon her. I'm
seen and occuitly. the gods still grip
ped with their power and would not
let her go. White Fang sat down in
the shadow of birch and whimpered
softly. There was a strong smell of
pine. and subtle woods fragrances
filled the air, reminding him of his
old life of freedom before the days OF
his bondage. But ne was still only
part-grown puppy, and stronger than
the call either of man or of the wild
was the call of his mother. All the
hours of his short life he had depend
ed upon her. The time was yet to
come for independe So he arose
and trotted forlornly back to camp.
pausing once and twice to sit down
and whimper and to listen TO the call
that still sounded in the depths OF
the forest
In the wild the time of a mother
with her young is short; but under
the dominion of man il is sometimes
even shorter. Thus it was with
White Fang. Gray Beaver was in
Eagles was going away on a trip Up
the Mackenzie to the Great Slave
Lake. A strip of scarlet cloth. a
bearskin, 20 cartridges, and kiche.
went to pay the debt. White Fang
saw his mother taken aboard Three
Eagles canoe. and tried to follow
her. a blow from Three Eagles
knocked him backward to the land.
The canoe showed off. He sprang into
the water and swan after it, deaf TO
the sharp cries of Gray Beaver to re-
turn. Even a man animal, god.
White Fang ignored. such was the
terror he was in of losing his mother
But gods are accustomed to being
obeyed. and Gray Beaver wrathfully
launched a canoe in pursuit When
he overlook White Fang he reached
down and by the nape or the neck
lifted him clear of the water. He
did not deposit him at once in tbs
bottom of the canoe. Holding him
suspended with one hand. with the
other hand he proceeded to give him
beating. And it was a beating.
His hand was heavy. Every blow
was shrewd to hurt; and he de-
livered a multitude of blows
Impelled by the blows that rained
upon him, now from this side, now
from that, White Fang swung back
and forth like an erratic and jerky
pendulum. Varying were the emo
tions that surged through him. At
first he had known surprise. Then
came a momentary fear, when he
yelped several times to the impact of
the hand. But this was quickly fol.
lowed by anger. His free nature as
serted itself, and he showed his teeth
and snarled fearle ssiy in the face Of
the wrathful god This but served
to make the god more wrathful.
The blows came faster, heavier, more
Shrewd to hurt.
IContipue6 IN Top,orrou,'s Ct.-O