The Wolf Point herald. (Wolf Point, Mont.) 1913-1940, 1925-01-01

severed within a few inches of hel
head, for there was more than three
feet OF them in view. trailing along the
ground.
He tugged at them to detach them
but 1t was q matter Of considerable
EFFORT, and he only succeeded in re
leasing them strand by strand. Al
last, however, he managed TO detact
them, and, after a moments hesita'
ton, he thrust them into the bosom OF
his shirt.
And her Of q sudden he understood
: what had happened, and mis- heart
gave a bound. The girl had not been
flung into the water.
She must somehow have become
after her fall ii had CONE near roll
ing on her, and her hair had been
cut off to effect her quick release.
She was not dead. She had been
carried off by the two ruffians.
It was nearly dark when Lee
crossed the pass a second time. And
he went ON, under the light of the
moon, scanning the trail ahead of him
and the river bank for the kidnapers'
encampment. But hours went by, and
he did not come upon 1t, and only the
dark river, with its twisted, desolate
banks, and the eternal forest dis
closed themselves.
In the small hours the wind veered,
bringing with it a storm of icy, pelting
rain, which changed to a driving sleet.
The whistling pellets stung and
whipped his face, and all through the
storm Lee continued to struggle on
ward.
1t was a superb exhibition of the
force of will. Hour after hour he
went on, until, in the beginning Of that
hour before the dawn when everything
grows still, when the first falntness of
the dawn begins to mingle with the
darkness, he became conscious that
the river had widened into a lake, one
arm of which. thrust out before him,
barred his course. On either side Of
this lake the forests had given place
to reedy swamp.
And, lifting up his eyes, he saw,
upon a low elevation in front of him,
the log huts of the Free Traders
camp.
Then he knew that the long chase
had come to an end.
And with that the man shook the
fatigue from him, knowing that he
must hold on to all his strength and
wit for an hour or two longer, and
that what he had TO do he must dc
quickly, craftily, boldly.
He did not know how many men
were in the Free Traders headquar-
tiers, but he must save the girl, get her
away.
The arm of the lake that was thrust
out between the elevation and the end
of the trail was no more thar two hun
bred yards, II as much, in width.
Satisfying himself hat there was nc
way of approach except by water, I'M
less there existed some trail across the
swamps, which there was no time to
find, Lee waded into the lake, then
swan.
The current ran strong; the SHOCK
of the icy water at first numbed, Their
invigorated him. IT cleared the doubts
and fears of night from his brain
d~iagonally against the cur
rent, in a few minutes Lee had reached
promontory.
He waded ashore, shaking himself
like a dog. On the terrain were heaped
great mounds of waste and garbage
the encampment above; piles of
1~isintegrating cans rotting cases, in
Vulnerable bottles partly covered with
The silt and protruding from it the
accumulation of a long period.
Looking through the mist, Lee per
ceived a small York boat, of the kind
used universally between Hudson's bay
the Mackenzie, riding moored
against the rocky edge of the promon-
-ory some distance away.
The elevation, long, low, and fiat,
'ormed an ideal fortress; with the
,nly approach apparently by water, it
vas evident that it would be a formid-
lble proposition for any body of the
police to attack, in the event of de-
Lee began to make his way across
he terrain, keeping under the shelter
# the cliff to escape observation from
he huts above. 1t was growing light
and he could see the surround
ngs clearly. He reached the end of
he patch of ground without coming
Ipon any place by which it might be
to. ascend to the summit of
he %promontory.
He hurried back, doubling on his
racks, examining the cliff in the other
ERECTION. He reached the other side
f the flat terrain, only to find that the
presented the same insur-
lountable flank to him everywhere.
But then Of a sudden he realized
hat the York boat must be drawn up
t the point of entrance. And it was
nth this that he must make his flight