Worcester Democrat and the ledger-enterprise. (Pocomoke City, Md.) 1921-1953, 1937-08-20
CHAPTER 4

Then / got here ana foun0 ne nao Cak-
en- enough to last until doomsday. So
I've got that extra team"
eyes, know" the girl said. They
had begun to walk again. 81 saw it
over at Siwash Jim's."
"Siwashes may not be pretty or
clean, but they know dogs"
cts a good-looking team. Except
for the leader"
"Had to take what I could get.
Say" he asked quickly, "what do you
know about dogs?"
81 come from dog country" the girl
said simply.
"Where?"
She hesitated. Then, "Is that es-
sential?"
"I'm sorry" More than once in this
conversation. Hammond had caught
a hint of background; good use of
English, meditation in tones as tho
she possessed a sense of values. Too,
he had found lack of brazeness, yet
a quality of deep determination, al
most of desperation. The causes he
could only guess. At last he said,
"Then you can drive dogs?"
"I used to drive them lot-until
year or so ago."
They were nearing the more popu-
lous regions of the camp. Hammond
turned to her.
"Let's be frank. You want me to
get you past Sergeant Terry. Is that
it,"
"That-was in my mind"
"In other words, take that extra
dog team of mine, and the supplies I
had intended to leave behind, and say
they're your OWN"
"It was just desperate idea. To
ask you to let me pretend to the SER
geant that these things were mine,
drive them through and then turn
them back to YOU"
"After that?" asked Hammond.
She shrugged her shoulders.
Il spent almost my whole life in
the North-until short time ago. If
the world has to come to an end"
She halted, as though she had said too
much. Hammond was silent. They
reached a fork of the icy trail; one
led to Hammond's tent. "Good night"
she said.
A sudden wave of impulsiveness
shot thru Hammond. His mittened
hand touched her shoulder.
you've given me an idea," he an
nounced. "Get up early tomorrow.
I'll have the dogs and that sled full
of stuff at the restaurant little be-
fore daylight.
He hurried on, with her grasp of
gratitude family following him. The
next morning, in the dull gray of a
snow clouded dawn, Hammond walk
ed to the all-but dismantled camp with
Sergeant Terry. Toboggans were
packed; already team after team of
dogs, squatted in their harness, were
spotted about the lake, the upper
reaches of which led to the valley of
the Caribou. There was shouting and
hurried preparations.
"I see that girls supplies came in
all right last night" the sergeant said.
ooh, yes" Hammond's voice was
casual.
"Nice hitch of dogs she's got" The
sergeant grinned broadly. "Well, I
guess if owned river bed full of
gold, I'd be doing the same fool things
myself" Diminishing the subject, he
shouted, "Hey, Annie, all set?"
More and more men-and women
with pack sacks, more dog teams,
more sleds and toboggans assembled
on the lake, until the foreground was
black with humans. Hammond invol-
UNFAIRLY looked about for Jeanne Tow
ers. She was there, and the man saw
from the way she handled her dogs
that she had told him no falsehood.
At last the sergeant raised his gun.
The barking reverberation of the long
barreled revolver broke crisply a
gainst the sharp morning. A cheer
came from prospector's throat, to be
taken up by other men and punctuated
by the high cries of women. A trap
per remembered that he too had a gun,
and fired it into the air. Immediately
a dozen others joined him; the cries
and shouts and booming of fire arms
rose to a laundering peak. Then as
quickly came dead silence, as if these
people had remembered the gaunt,
cruel journey before them. Ham,
mond's voice sounded crisply.