Western news and the Libby times. [volume] (Libby, Mont.) 1920-1933, 1930-12-25

Behind lsr hpstlA6 1pd boz QetA-
crime had been thinking Of Tonteur
and Of his wife, the aristocratic Hen
fiette. For long time che had known
q Madame Tonteur,s hatred but It
lhas' not until this afternoon that the
gthf 3dnec4ery htd come to her. for.
3 spite OF his most heroic efforts.
Tontevr had betrayed himself when
suddPly 1hs Aed>csn<ht htp loseiA{
At h{f. Catherine had seen the shad
~ q biz socret-like 4 ghost swiftly
disappearing. Up over the Hill she had
added many twos and twos together,
until, In the sure way Of 4 woman,
she knew what Tonteur was thinking
and did not fear or dlstrust him for 1t.
And Madame TonteuY hated her.
Disbslievtng whatever good might have
been said of Catherine. she hated her
frst a Z deadly enemy OF her race,
and hated her then because she dared
hold her head a. proudly as 4 baron's
lady, and hated her last Of all because.
nothing more than the wife Of worth
less backwoodsman like Henri Bulain.
she was impudent enough to be the
prettiest woman anywhere near the
Tonteurs seigneurie.
And. 10 fur as II was In her power,
she had planted and nurtnred this
hatred to growth In the heart and
mind OF her proud daughter, Marie
Antoinette. until Tonteur. blind to the
feline xubtlety OF woman In such
matters, wondered why It was that his
girl whom he worshiped above all
other thines on earth. should 30 openly
display unfriendliness and dislike
whenever Jeems came to Tonteur
manor.
OF this same thing Jeems had been
thinking as he walked ahead OF his
father and mother. His mind, at pres
ent, was busy with the stress OF fight
Ing. Mentally. and physically In
way. he WAS experiencing the thrill OF
sanguinary battle Half dozen times
since beginning the long climb over
Tonteur's hill he had choked and
beaten Paul Tache. and In every mo-
ment OF these mental triumphs Marie
Antoinette looked on with wonder and
horror as. be nltilefsly assailed and
vanqnished her handsome young
cousin from the big city Of Quebec.
Even In the heat of these vivid
imaginings, Jeems was sick Mt heart,
and II was the shadow OF this sick
ness which Odd caught when he
looked up into his masters eyes.
From the day Jeems had first seen
Marie Antoinette. when she was seven
and he was nine he had dreamed OF
her. and had anticipated through
weeks and months the journeys which
his father permitted him to make with
him to Tonteur manor On these rare
occasions he had gazed with childish
alteration at the little princess OF the
seigneurie and had made her presents
OF flowers and feathers and nuts and
maple sugar and queer treasures
which he brought from the forests.
These tokens OF his homage had never
served to build a bridge across the
abyss which lay between them.
He had stood this hurt and still kept
Marie Antoinette In his thoughts, for
there was no other child to help fill
her place. But since last autumn,
when Madame Tonteur's sister and
her son Paul had come to the seig-
neurie, his dreams had grown more
clouded until on this Thursday after
noon. they were replaced by grim and /,
mercilcss visions OF q future venge-
apce on the young man who laughed
At him and humiliated him, and who,
without any grace whatever that hs
could zee, basked warmly In the smiles
and graciousness OF Marie Antoinette's
favor.
He was glad when his mother and
father paused to rest on the edge OF
4 great rock near the trail, for this In
terval gave him opportunity to 20 on
alone, and when he was alone he could
tear and thrash Toinette's cousin In 4
much more admirable way than when
the others were tramping close at his
heels Suddenly Odd stopped 30 that
his gaunt body made a barrier against
Jeems' knees They stood at the edge
Of 4 flower-strewn open among the
chestnut trees. 1t was a hundred
yards across this sun-filled playground
Of the wild, and on the far side Of 1t,
In the bushes, Jeems knew
there was game of some kind.
He dropped to the earth and drew
himself behind the decaylng mass Of
: monster log that had fallen a hun
1red years before. Odd crouched at
ais side with his muzzle level with the
OPP Of the log. Thus a minute passed,
md after that another, and more on
'op Of them, yet Odd gave no sign Of
nor did Jeems. He
watched, the far side Of the clearing
in ! line ~ stratxht as die with the
pointing OF Odds nose.
Another minute Of this rustling still |
less, and 4 magnificent turkey cock
trutted majesticsliy ont into the sun
AZ weighed twenty pounds X an ounce. |
bought JcemA proud and inmacu-
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