The Skyland post. [volume] (West Jefferson, N.C.) 193?-1988, 1936-11-05
Caught
in the
Wild :
BY Robert
Ames Bennett
wNU Service
Copyright by
Robert Ames Bennett

Stl1 more WOOD TO Pile on the al
ready high heap of fuel. The engi-
neer went to lie down at his sleep
ing place on the lee side of the fire.
During the day he had gathered a
much thicker bed of spruce tips and
dry moss.
The long hours of twilight slowly
faded to the semi-dusk of midnight
nd as slowly frightened towards
<v day. Sunrise found the three
vi prs from the cities still asleep.
Alo with the tea and sugar, they
had gCrged on the muffle gelatine
and the tender lynx meat Garth did
not waken them. He looked specula-
4 lively at the smoke rack. All the
4lynx meat had been eaten. But the
wide spread of moose hindquarter
slices made great showing around
the two uncut moose forelegs. He de-
cided to let the tongues and remain
ing muffle keep on smoke curing.
Two hours or so later the crack of
moose bones under the blows of the
belt-ax Weakened Hubby. He sat up
to turn hungrily in the direction
from which came Savory odor.
Garth had drawn thigh bone from
the fire and was buttering a piece
of broiled meat with hot marrow.
The engineer came around and
laid one of the thigh bones on the
fire. Above it he slanted a steak on
a spit. Neither he nor Garth spoke.
He started to eat his steak and mar
row before either was more than
half cooked.
Garth finished his own breakfast
and began to sew moccasin. AS
soon as Hubby had bolted down his
food, he picked up the emptied gold
pan. Miss Ramill had sat up in the
front of the leanto to lace her boots.
Her father crept out past her.
Morning, VIVIAN" he greeted. 81
see you're going to set the pan on
the fire again. Good idea. That muf-
file aspic is all Garth told us it would
be-"
''No." Huxby's tone was almost
curt. We've lost too much time al
ready. I am going to make a COM
plete test of that placer deposit"
the rightful claimant of the placer.
Garth smiled. go to it. The more
you pan out, the more of my so per
cent I'll be able to jingle in my poe
ket."
That sent the engineer off with a
crease between his hard eyes. Mr..
Ramill studied Garth's amused face.
What is the idea?" he inquired.
''Do we infer you still stand by the
terms you offered?"
well, I may at least allow you
four-tenths of what your Man Fri
day sweats out of my placer. The
laborer is worthy of his hire-Pm
going for dip. You and Miss Ramill
nigh get your moose bones to roast
ing. The marrow goes well with the
steaks.Let me suggest that you build
large fire in the regular cook hole.
When it burns low, rake out the
Goals and lay in one of the forelegs,
thickly smeared with mud. Then
rake on dirt, embers and ashes, build
a small fire on top, and keep it going
four or five hours"
Miss Ramill looked down at her
slender hands. They were already
roughened and grimed, and two of
the highly manicured nails had been
broken. The large diamond of her
engagement ring flashed blue-white
fire up into her angrily flashing blue
eyes. She jerked her head up to
flare out at Garth. He was already
disappearing in the brush on his way
to the rock pool.
When he returned from his plunge,
a fire was flaming high in the cook
hole. Well away from it, the heiress
to millions was smearing one of the
moose legs with mud brought up
from the lake shore by her father in
his expensive soft hat.
Garth raked the thigh bones from
the smudge-fire and set back the
spits of the partly burnt steaks He
then dripped melting moose fat into
a small twist-cup of birchbark that
he had brought back with him. The
cup already held two or three gills
of spruce pitch.
The mud-dauberS washed their
hands in the rill and came for their
overlooked breakfast. While Mr..
Ramill cracked open the marrow
bones with the belt-ax, Garth stirred
his dope together with a twig. He
took off his hat before starting to
smear the dope on his face. Miss
Ramill gazed at him.
Garth offered his dope. "Best cos
metic in the North. You may as well
go the limit"
''I'll die first!"
Her father dipped his fingers in
the dope and smeared the stuff on
his face and neck as Garth had done.
Garth said: Eat you fill. Miss
Ramill will stay to tend the fires.
You and are to climb. You'll wear
Huxby's leather trousers outside
your own"
'sBut they're too small for me
around the belt"
They'll not be after few days.
n1c0H