The midland journal. (Rising Sun, Md.) 1885-1947, 1941-02-14

Sidney Lander. young mining engineer. Ian.
It was not, could see, o very
appealing abode. It looked, with its
sagging and snow-mattressed roof
and its time-weathered tifmbers,
about as inviting as a mausoleurn.
Nor did it add to my joy when !
saw Sock-Eye, kicking away the
snow, disclose the flattened-out body
of a dead coyote lying there, its
teeth grinning malevolently up from
the uncovered jawbones.
My companion, with a prompt
sweep of his foot, brushed the frozen
carcass to one side and swung open
the door. Doors in Alaska, / re-
membered, were very seldom
locked.
I had to shut my teeth tight so
the trembling Of my chin wouldn't
betray me. For about all that nusty-
smelling and deep-shadowed room
held was an untidy wall bunk,
table and two wooden chairs with
roughly spliced legs. I could see
where the smoke pipe had fallen from
a rust-stained stove and where ro-
dents had been attacking grub box
imperfectly armored with a Joseph's
coat of flattened-out tobacco tins.
Above it was a dish shelf with a
few rusty pans and showing Of
sadly Clipped crockery. At the foot
of the bunk lay the dead body of
parka-squirrel, half buried in a scat
tering of lint from a much-chewed
quilt. Along the wall directly above
the bunk were tackled, to remind me
Alaska was still a mans country, IT.
regular rows of equally irregular
movie-queens, interspersed with
dancing houris. Each and every one
of them, observed, was in an ar
resting state of dishabille.
But even more revolving was the
filth that covered the floor.
Sock-Eye's questioning glance
must have detected some shadow of
hopelessness on my face.
"You a-goin' t. stick it," he chal-
lenged.
"I've got to-" said. There's
no other way"
My companion, as he turned and
swept that room with a saturnine
eye, proclaimed that an old skinfint
like Sam Bryson should have two
inches of lead in his gizzard. But
since he's put you here, I'm a-goin'
t give you hand t. git planted"
I had thought of Sock-Eye as q
maundering old man. But as he
threw off his coat and got busy I
realized had altogether misjudged
both his skill and his strength.
His first act was to force open the
windows.
Then, granting with indignation,
he went at the place like a cyclone.
He tumbled the greasy table and
chairs out into the snow and scraped
the litter from the floor. Then he
left me alone with my worn-down
stub of a broom. He reappeared
with rusted axhead, into which he
fitted rough handle Of birch wood.
When he started to shovel the ashes
from the stove-box I told him to
save them, as they'd come in handy
for scrubbing.
BY the time he had fire going
and snowwater melting in our galva-
nized tub I'd unearthed shriveled
cake of yellow soap and lopsided
scrub brush. While / secured the
grease blackened table and chairs
with hot water and wood ashes he
dragged the bunk mattress out into
the snow, emptied it, pounded the
last of the dust from it, and refilled
it with wild hay which he comman-
deered from a pole-stack at the
back Of the clearing.
At last everything smelled clean,
and seemed different, and the sing
ing of the old iron kettle on the
drum stove was almost homelike.
But my spirits declined to rise as
they should.
Sock-Eye, after splitting into the
rusty stove front, reached for his
coat and crossed to the door.
"I'm a-goin' over u the village"
he offhandedly announced. We've
one-hoss store there. I'll see if
kin rustic pair o. blankets and
pack in mite O. grub for you"
When he returned, stood blinking
at the size of his sleigh load.
"Git in out o. the cold," he COM
manded. Il reckon I purity well
know what a cheechako needs"
] felt my throat tighten.
"You can't do this for me-" I
commended as Sock-Eye piled things
on the table end.
II amt a-doin' it for you," he
retorted. ''I'm a-doin' it for your
Of pappy. He rustled many mess
o. grub for me-"
That didn't take the lump from
my throat. ] watched him in silence
as he disinterred two candles from
his store supplies and lighted them.
"Evenin' pears to be comm on,
he said. II reckon I may as well
stay an have chow with you"
] ] started to thank him, but he
cut me short.
when you git settled" he said.