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diff --git a/old/50431-0.txt b/old/50431-0.txt deleted file mode 100644 index 2a35eb2..0000000 --- a/old/50431-0.txt +++ /dev/null @@ -1,6244 +0,0 @@ -Project Gutenberg's Dick Kent with the Mounted Police, by Milton Richards - -This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United States and most -other parts of the world at no cost and with almost no restrictions -whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms of -the Project Gutenberg License included with this eBook or online at -www.gutenberg.org. If you are not located in the United States, you'll have -to check the laws of the country where you are located before using this ebook. - -Title: Dick Kent with the Mounted Police - -Author: Milton Richards - -Release Date: November 11, 2015 [EBook #50431] - -Language: English - -Character set encoding: UTF-8 - -*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK DICK KENT WITH THE MOUNTED POLICE *** - - - - -Produced by Stephen Hutcheson, Rod Crawford, Rick Morris -and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at -http://www.pgdp.net - - - - - - - - - - Dick Kent - with the Mounted Police - - - By MILTON RICHARDS - - - AUTHOR OF - “Dick Kent in the Far North” - “Dick Kent with the Eskimos” - “Dick Kent, Fur Trader” - “Dick Kent and the Malemute Mail” - - - THE SAALFIELD PUBLISHING COMPANY - Akron, Ohio New York - - Copyright MCMXXVII - THE SAALFIELD PUBLISHING COMPANY - _Made in the United States of America_ - - - - - Contents - - - CHAPTER PAGE - I The Scar Faced Indian 3 - II At Little Moose Portage 14 - III Dick Shoots the Rapids 27 - IV Through the Flames 39 - V MacKenzie’s Landing 47 - VI A Grizzly Shows Fight 55 - VII The Rifled Cache 65 - VIII Dick Drops a Moose 75 - IX Pierre Govereau 83 - X Toma and a Cold Snap 94 - XI Slush Ice 102 - XII The Blizzard 110 - XIII Dick Sees a Ghost 120 - XIV An Unwelcome Visitor 127 - XV Outwitting the Enemy 135 - XVI A Journey Through the Night 145 - XVII The Stolen Huskies 153 - XVIII A Hungry Pack 162 - XIX The Circle of Death 171 - XX Sandy Disappears 179 - XXI The Man From Crooked Stick River 184 - XXII A Skirmish in the Night 194 - XXIII Gray Goose Lake 200 - XXIV Chief Black Dog’s Scheme 209 - XXV The Attack on the Fort 216 - XXVI Lost Underground 222 - - - - - DICK KENT WITH THE MOUNTED POLICE - - - - - CHAPTER I - THE SCAR FACED INDIAN - - -Dick Kent tossed aside the wolf trap he had been trying to repair, and -turned to his chum, Sandy McClaren. - -“Let’s go back to your Uncle Walter’s at Fort Good Faith,” said Dick -restlessly. “It’s getting too quiet around here.” - -Sandy McClaren’s big blue eyes turned from the marten pelt he had been -scraping. “I’m with you, Dick. Uncle Walt needs us, too. He’s still -having a lot of trouble with that outlaw, Bear Henderson.” - -For a year after finishing school in the United States, Dick Kent and -Sandy McClaren had been pursuing adventure two hundred miles north of -Hay River Landing, Canada, where they had gone to visit Sandy’s uncle. -Lately they had come to Fort du Lac at the invitation of Martin MacLean, -the factor there. The savage northland already had woven its spell of -dangerous adventure about them, but Fort du Lac had proved dull after -the excitement of the more lawless trading post supervised by Sandy’s -uncle on the northern fringe of the Hudson’s Bay Company’s territory. - -Dick and Sandy had turned toward the big log store building where Martin -MacLean bartered for furs, when they stopped dead, looking northeast -along the trail that curved about a high headland of pine forest. - -“What’s that?” cried Dick suddenly. - -“Looks like an Indian runner!” Sandy exclaimed. - -“I’ll tell Mr. MacLean,” Dick stretched his athletic legs toward the -store. - -The fur trader came out on Dick’s heels a moment later, his broad, bony -frame and bearded face tense at the hint of trouble. - -“It’s a runner all right,” confirmed the trader, watching the distant -figure, which was rapidly approaching. - -Presently a swarthy faced Indian, his coarse black hair streaming about -his haggard features, fell almost exhausted into their arms. - -“Help me carry him in,” Martin MacLean commanded. “He’s tuckered out. -We’ve got to get him to talk. There’s trouble somewhere.” - -They tugged the limp body of the runner into the store and lay him on -several bales of fur. The trader hurried for stimulant, which he forced -between the Indian’s teeth. The runner soon opened his eyes. All three -bent over him as he spoke: - -“Him Bear Henderson take um post—from Mister McClaren,” gasped the -runner. “Tie um up. Kill all good Injuns!” - -Dick Kent’s face paled as he turned to Sandy. “Henderson has captured -your Uncle Walter!” - -“Well, he’ll get his when the mounted police get there,” flared Sandy, -his Scotch temper showing itself. - -The factor of the post turned to them. They fell silent. “Boys, I can’t -leave the post,” he said, “and I don’t trust any of the Indians around -the store. Can I depend on you to go down the river and get Malcolm -Mackenzie?” - -“Can you!” Dick and Sandy chorused, “I should smile.” - -“You know what this means,” the trader went on sternly. “Bear Henderson -is a powerful man. There isn’t a doubt this runner was followed here. -There may be men right here at Fort du Lac who are in sympathy with the -outlaw. Henderson is plotting against the whole northern frontier held -by Hudson’s Bay Company. It’s life or death.” - -“We’ll do it!” Dick cried eagerly. “Tell us what to do.” - -“All right then. You go by canoe down the river to Mackenzie’s Landing. -Tell Mackenzie I asked him to go with you to the mounted police post at -Fort Dunwoody. You know the trail that far. Malcolm knows it from the -landing on. There’s a grub cache he might have forgotten. In case he -has——” the boys followed MacLean behind the counter. From the strong box -the trader drew a map. “Now here is our post,” the trader continued, -indicating a dot on the rough map with a match end, while Dick and Sandy -followed him attentively; “There’s Little Moose Portage, and further -down Mackenzie’s Landing, the free trader’s post. Twenty miles further -the river swings north and you leave the water and go by land. Then -here’s where you strike the cache of food——” - -Dick’s sudden, startled cry interrupted. “What was that at the window!” - -“I didn’t see anything,” whispered Sandy. - -“Sure you weren’t imagining something?” said the trader. - -“I know I saw a face right there a moment ago,” Dick insisted, pointing -to a window in the rear of the long store. “It seemed to be an Indian’s -face which was covered with hideous scars.” - -MacLean walked back and pulled the curtains shut over the window. He -returned and went on explaining the location of the cache and the route -to be taken to Fort Dunwoody. - -Once started, Dick and Sandy were not long in preparing for the trip -down the river to Mackenzie’s Landing. They cleaned and oiled their -30.30 Ross rifles, packed a canoe with flour, beans, bacon, coffee, -salt, sugar and camp utensils, and saw that they were well supplied with -ammunition. - -On their last trip to the canoe from the storehouse, Sandy, too, had a -singular surprise. But he did not cry out. Instead, he called softly to -Dick, who was a little ahead of him. - -“I saw the same face you saw behind those boxes over there on the -landing,” Sandy said tensely. “Make believe we didn’t notice anything. -Then we’ll pick up our rifles and walk down the river till we get where -we can see behind the boxes.” - -“All right,” Dick replied cooly, his dark eyes gleaming as they always -did at the promise of excitement. - -“Don’t shoot. Capture him,” Dick added, as they deposited their packs -into the canoe, picked up their rifles and started off down the river -bank, their eyes bent to the left. - -When they had advanced far enough to see behind the boxes, they turned -and looked. The face was gone! There was no one behind the packing -boxes. - -Sandy scratched his head. “Blame it, I know I saw somebody watching us.” - -“Come on, we’ll look closer.” Dick led the way forward and they examined -all the boxes, but found each one empty. - -“Looks queer,” Dick admitted. - -“Those Indians can disappear mighty suddenly,” Sandy said. “Let’s tell -Mr. MacLean.” - -They hurried back to the store. The trader plainly was deeply concerned -over what they had to tell. “I tell you, boys, I hadn’t ought to let you -make this trip,” he said, pacing back and forth. “Henderson has men here -that I know nothing about. They say he has secret operatives all over -the northern frontier. Sandy’s uncle never would forgive me if anything -happened to you fellows. But I don’t see what else I can do. The mounted -police must be notified.” - -“Well, Sandy and I aren’t men,” Dick replied modestly, “but you know -we’ve been in the north country for a year now and so far we’ve taken -pretty good care of ourselves. Sandy’s Uncle Walter will tell you that.” - -The trader surveyed Dick Kent’s stalwart figure and Sandy’s more stocky -frame with a renewal of confidence. “Yes,” he concluded, “I believe you -fellows will come out all right. Shake.” - -Dick and Sandy gripped Martin MacLean’s hard hand. They felt a glow of -admiration for the big “sourdough” who had so complimented two -“chechakos,” or tenderfeet. The trader drew from his pocket a wallet of -money and thrust it into Dick’s hand, with the remark it might come in -handy for expenses. - -An hour later the boys were gliding down the river, Dick in the stern -steering, Sandy in front on the lookout for snags. The dark walls of -spruce forest on either side closed in on them with a mysterious -silence. They seemed to feel malevolent eyes watching them as they -sheered the oily surface of the stream. The strange face both had seen -at Fort du Lac remained in their memory and made them silent as they -forged along with the current. It was the last warm days of fall; -already a hint of winter was in the air, and with the threat of danger -hovering about was combined another feeling of dread, as if the very -atmosphere of the vast, lonely land heralded the approach of mercilessly -cold weather. - -“You watch the south bank, and I’ll watch the north,” Dick broke the -silence when the landing at Fort du Lac had faded from view around a -bend. “I think we’ll be followed by land if our suspicions are correct -and there’s really some one on our trail.” - -“They’ll have to follow by land for a ways anyway,” rejoined Sandy. “Mr. -MacLean will see them if they use one of the canoes at the landing. But -I suppose they have a canoe hidden somewhere along the river.” - -“That’s about it,” Dick agreed. “We’ll keep sharp watch and be ready to -duck if there’s any shooting.” - -They paddled on silently for a quarter of an hour, making good time and -keeping to the center of the stream. They were just passing a large heap -of driftwood, lodged in an eddy near the north shore, when Sandy called -Dick’s attention to something under the brush. - -“What do you make of that light brown object just the other side of the -little sand point sticking out into the river?” asked Sandy. - -“I was looking at it myself,” responded Dick. “I thought it was a log -with the bark off it at first, but it might be a canoe.” - -“It looks a lot like a canoe—as if they tried to hide it under some -brush but the brush sprung up after they left and exposed it.” - -“We’ll turn in and see,” Dick plied his paddle lustily, and the light -craft swerved toward the shore. - -“Aren’t we taking an awful risk?” Sandy was cautious. “Suppose they’re -close to us.” - -“We’ll take a chance,” Dick returned. “Better take a chance now than -have them catch up with us in that canoe. It’s plain they’re not here -yet.” - -Nerves keyed high at thought of the peril they might be floating into, -Dick and Sandy bore swiftly into the sand point, and presently the -bottom of the canoe grated on the gravel. Dick leaped out into the -shallow water and beached the canoe, Sandy following closely. - -“It’s a canoe sure enough!” Dick exclaimed when they reached the spot -where they had seen the suspicious object. - -“And they tried to hide it,” Sandy came back, as they drew nearer. “See -the tracks in the mud? Say! That canoe hasn’t been there a day, if -that!” - -“You’re right!” Dick cried, “and right here and now we’re going to see -that nobody chases us in this canoe.” - -“Be careful,” Sandy cautioned. - -“We’ll set her adrift,” Dick went on, unheeding Sandy’s precautions. -“Here, Sandy, you grab the bow and I’ll get around behind and push. Soon -as we get it out in the current it’ll float down where they can’t find -it. We might sink it, but we’d have to tow it into the river and we -haven’t time.” - -Sandy fell to work with a will. The canoe was lodged in the mud rather -securely and they strained for some minutes before it at last came loose -with a suck and splash that nearly tumbled Sandy over. An instant later -they had shoved the canoe out into the stream, where the current caught -it and carried it past the sand point. - -The young adventurers paused to gaze with satisfaction upon this blow -they felt they had dealt the enemy, when a sound from the shore drew -their startled attention. - -“Listen,” whispered Dick. - -They could hear a crashing among the trees. Looking toward the forest -they could see nothing at first. Then suddenly, into a small clearing -that led down to the river bank, burst three men, running and waving -their rifles menacingly. - -“Quick! The canoe!” cried Dick hoarsely. “Don’t stop to shoot. We’ve got -to get away. They’re after that canoe. It’s the Indian with the scarred -face!” - -Sandy tumbled into the stern of the canoe in one flying leap, and as -Dick shoved on the prow, he picked up his paddle and stroked backward. -The canoe left the beach with a lunge, and Dick was nearly precipitated -into the water as he leaped into his position in the bow. As they -crouched to paddle, three shots sounded and bullets cut the water about -them. - -“Downstream fast,” shouted Dick. “Stay low, Sandy.” - -Rifle balls were flying thick and fast as they rounded the sand point, -paddling frantically after the canoe they had set adrift. - -“Diable!” they could hear an enraged cry in French, as their pursuers -found the canoe gone and the boys escaping. - -Dick turned and looked back. All three of the men were kneeling with -rifles leveled. “Duck!” he shouted to Sandy just in time. - -The rifles cracked almost as one and two bullets ripped through the -bottom of the canoe, plowing up splinters in their wake. - -“We’ve sprung a leak,” called Sandy almost immediately. “Those shots -have put the canoe out of commission!” - -Dick glanced about at the bottom of the canoe. Sandy was right. The -bullets had struck below the waterline and the river was gurgling in -around the packs and blankets. - - - - - CHAPTER II - AT LITTLE MOOSE PORTAGE - - -Dick Kent thought swiftly. There was no time to lose. The canoe was -filling fast. Already it was growing perceptibly heavier. Ahead he could -see the canoe they had set adrift. It was a long chance, but it was the -only thing to be done, aside from swimming to the other shore and -abandoning all their packs and camp equipment. - -“Sandy!” - -“What?” panted his chum. - -“We’ve got to switch our packs into that empty canoe.” - -“Catch it first, I’ll say!” cried Sandy. - -They redoubled their efforts on the paddles. The drifting canoe was -spinning slowly in the stream. Waterlogged as they were, they yet were -slowly gaining on the empty craft. Out of rifle range from the sand -point, the bullets of their pursuers no longer endangered them as they -skipped across the water yards short of their mark. - -Slowly they overhauled the empty canoe, and at last Dick reached out and -grasped the prow, hauling it to the side of their own sinking craft. -Dropping their paddles then, they straddled the two gunwales and with -their legs held the canoes together while with all haste they -transferred their dunnage. Working grimly and silently they had almost -finished when the canoes began to whirl slowly in the current. Sandy -lost his balance and toppled into the water, his hoarse shout of -surprise muffled as the river closed over his head. - -Sandy came up from the cold bath. Dick shouted encouragement, extending -a paddle to his chum while he alone held the canoes together. In a -moment, spluttering and shivering, Sandy crawled back into the loaded -canoe. - -The leaking canoe was rolling on its side when the last blanket was -taken from it. The young men picked up their paddles and struck out with -all speed. They feared their pursuers, since they no longer appeared on -the sand point, had run back into the forest and were coming along the -river bank into rifle range. - -“B-r-r-r, that sure was no warm bath,” chattered Sandy. - -“Keep paddling, and warm up,” Dick called over his shoulder. “We’ll go -ashore and dry your clothes when we’re sure we’ve got away from them.” - -No sooner were the words out of his mouth when a rifle shot sounded from -the shore some distance behind them. A bullet whined over their heads -and plunked into the river. - -“There they go again!” cried Dick. “Let’s bear toward the other shore -and see if we can’t get out of range.” - -Crouching over their paddles they swerved to the right and gradually -paddled out of range once more. - -Until late in the afternoon the boys kept up a killing pace with the -paddles. Sandy, warmed by the stiff exercise, would not permit Dick to -go in shore on his account, and so they drew into the swift current -above Little Moose Portage. - -The canoe was beached on the shore opposite the one where the enemy had -put in an appearance miles behind. It was an excellent camp site. They -were only about three hundred yards above the rapids, whose swift -current, filled with sharp stones, made it necessary to go on by land to -a point where the river was less dangerous. They could hear the sound of -the rushing water. - -“We’ll keep sharp watch while we make camp,” said Dick. “Those fellows -may have found another canoe and caught up with us.” - -“Even if they come on by land they can’t be so very far behind,” Sandy -added, shivering a little now that the warming work on the paddle was -discontinued. - -Dick and Sandy had paddled many miles that day and they were very tired. -A year before they could not have kept on that far. But the north -country had hardened their already healthy bodies, until they laughed at -the exertion that would have put a southland boy flat on his back. - -A campfire of pine cones and dead wood soon was crackling cheerily. Dick -set on the coffee pot and mixed up some flapjacks while Sandy took off -his moccasins and sox by the fire. By the time Sandy was fairly dry the -meal was ready, and the boys fell to ravenously. Now and again they were -startled by some sound from the forest, but each time the noise proved -to be only that made by a wild animal investigating their campfire. - -“We’ll take turns on watch tonight,” Dick said, sipping his last cup of -coffee. - -“Let’s draw straws for the first trick,” Sandy suggested. - -“No,” Dick objected, “that ducking you had gave you the hardest day. -I’ll take the first watch.” - -Sandy wanted it otherwise, but Dick insisted. - -“Well, if you’ll be sure to wake me up when my turn comes,” Sandy was -already yawning, “it’s all right with me.” - -Soon Sandy was rolled in his blankets, close by the fire, which was -welcome indeed in the chill of the autumn evening. - -Dick took a position in the shadow of a clump of willows where the -firelight would not reveal him to any prowlers of the night that might -investigate too closely. Here he squatted Indian fashion, his rifle -across his knees. Many thoughts passed through his mind as the time -slowly passed. That Sandy and he were on the most perilous mission of -their lives he knew. But contrary to being frightened by impending -danger, he was overjoyed. It was what he and Sandy had come north -for—adventure. And they were getting it. - -“We ought to get to Mackenzie’s Landing day after tomorrow,” he mused, -talking low to himself to keep from going to sleep. It was too dangerous -to walk about. “That means three or four more camps before we get a -guide. Gee, I wish we could go on by ourselves. If Sandy or I only knew -the country around Fort Dunwoody—but we’d get lost, and we can’t afford -to lose any time with Sandy’s uncle in Bear Henderson’s hands. Wonder——” - -Dick sat up suddenly, listening. It seemed to him that above the ripple -of the river water and the low rumble of the distant rapids he heard the -scrape of a canoe bottom on the gravel. His heart leaped and beat on -painfully. What if some one stole their canoe, or crept up and attacked -them! The thought galvanized him into action. - -He dropped to his hands and knees, his rifle clutched in his right -fingers. It was only a short distance to that part of the beach where -they had dragged the canoe up out of the water. Dick crawled quietly -along among the shadows to the fringe of undergrowth bordering the -beach. At first the glare of the firelight in his eyes made all appear -very dark by contrast, but gradually his vision was adjusted, and he -could make out the vague form of the canoe. - -“Wonder if it was only my imagination,” he mumbled, not seeing anything -amiss. “But——” he caught his breath. The canoe had moved! - -Sure enough, difficult as it was to see distinctly, he knew the canoe -had rocked from side to side. - -“What could it be?” he whispered, straining his eyes. - -It seemed now that he could see a darker blot of darkness moving above -the rim of the canoe, but he was not sure. There was but one thing to -do—crawl out of the sheltering bushes and across the sand to a point -from which he could ascertain just what was moving the canoe. - -The decision made, Dick did not hesitate a moment. Half way to the -canoe, he stopped and lay prone on his stomach, listening and watching. -What little breeze there was blew from the canoe toward him, so that an -animal would not easily detect his approach unless it heard him. -Faintly, Dick could hear a scratching sound, as if some sharp instrument -agitated the sand and gravel. He was more puzzled than ever. - -He moved on again, drawing one knee cautiously after the other, careful -that his rifle was ready for instant firing. Ten feet further and the -scratching sound ceased suddenly. Dick was now within a few feet of the -prow of the canoe. He stopped dead still, and, resting on his knees, -raised his rifle. - -“Who’s there?” he called sternly. - -A sudden commotion followed. Around the prow of the canoe flashed two -round glowing eyes, and a bearded, tuft-eared cat face. Dick’s rifle -crashed. There was an inhuman squall of pain; a ball of fur and fury -bounded high into the air and fell writhing, spitting and snarling -within three feet of Dick, who leaped to one side. - -“Hi! Hi! Dick, where are you?” It was Sandy calling from the campfire. -He had been awakened by the gun shot. - -“It’s all right, Sandy,” Dick called back, stooping over the animal he -had killed. “Only a lynx scratching around the canoe. Come and take a -look. Gosh! I must have hit him right between the eyes.” - -Sandy came running up, and bent over the dead lynx. When the cat’s last -struggles ceased, the boys hauled it into the firelight. - -“I was scared half to death,” Sandy grinned sheepishly. “I was dreaming -we were in Fort Good Faith with Uncle Walter and about a million wild -Indians were whooping and shooting at the stockade.” - -“You can bet your bottom dollar I didn’t feel so calm about the time -that lynx came around the canoe and looked me in the eye,” Dick -confessed. “I never took aim at all—just blazed away. Lucky shot I call -it. I thought it was some one trying to steal our canoe.” - -“What time is it?” Sandy inquired, getting up and stretching. - -Dick drew out a fine watch which had been a graduation present. “Only -ten o’clock,” he reported. “You can go back to bed, Sandy. My watch -isn’t half done.” - -The young adventurers talked a few minutes after Sandy was back in his -blankets. But Sandy soon fell asleep. In spite of the excitement brought -on by the killing of the lynx, Sandy was so tired that he went back to -sleep almost immediately. - -Dick looked down at the lynx. “He’s sure a beauty,” he whispered -proudly. “I kind of wish I hadn’t killed him now. It’s a shame to kill -animals when a fellow can’t use their fur or meat.” - -He returned to his position in the shadow of the willows and sat there -patiently until midnight, when it was time to awaken Sandy. The fire had -died down and he heaped more wood on it. He never felt more wide awake -in his life. Sandy was sleeping soundly. - -“Sandy, you’re pretty tired,” Dick murmured, looking down at his chum, -“and I feel just about as fresh as when we pitched camp. Guess I won’t -wake you up—just let you sleep until morning.” - -There was an affection like brotherhood between the two boys, who had -been neighbors and chums from infancy up. And since Dick was two years -older than Sandy, he often felt somewhat like an older brother would -feel toward a younger. Perhaps this induced Dick to resume his watch -without awakening Sandy. - -When Dick sat down again he was sure he could stay awake all night, but -the flicker of the firelight, the whispering silence of the forest, and -the ripple of the river were like a pleasant lullaby. Before he knew it -he was nodding, and presently he fell sound asleep. Head drooping over -his knees, Dick slept unknowing, while the fire died down and the deep -blackness of the northland night crept over the silent camp. - -Sandy awakened with a start at four o’clock. It still was dark, as the -days were shortening with the approach of winter. He did not know why -Dick had not awakened him, and he was at first fearful that something -had happened to his chum. - -“Dick, Dick,” he called softly, sitting up in his blankets, trying to -pierce the gloom with his eyes. - -There came no answer. Quietly Sandy reached out and one hand closed on -his rifle. The feel of the cold steel comforted him. He had begun to -learn what an encouraging companion a firearm can be in those lonely -climes where they are necessary if one would live long. - -Arising, Sandy began a search of the camp and quickly came upon Dick, -sound asleep a little way off. - -“Ho, ho,” laughed Sandy mischievously, “I’ve got one on you now, old -boy. Asleep on watch, huh. I’ll fix you.” - -His fears relieved, Sandy’s sense of humor cropped out. He could not -resist playing a good joke on his chum. - -Sandy thought a moment, then hit upon an idea, which he quickly put into -execution. The fire had gone out, and Sandy’s scheme was no other than -to rebuild it so close to Dick that it would sizzle the sleeping lad’s -chin. - -Soon Sandy had the fire crackling and snapping within two feet of Dick’s -face, as he lay on the pine needles where he had fallen over during the -night. - -Setting about breakfast, Sandy chuckled as he watched Dick begin to -squirm and mutter in his sleep as the heat reached him. - -At last Dick turned over, and flinging out one hand, almost plunged it -into the fire. Sandy cried out sharply, and jumped forward to keep -Dick’s hand out of the fire, when his chum leaped up wide awake. - -“What! How——” Dick stammered, blinking his eyes. - -Sandy doubled up with laughter. Dick soon saw the joke and joined Sandy -in a hearty laugh. Then he quickly grew serious. - -“That’s the worst thing I could have done,” Dick accused himself. -“Suppose Henderson’s men had crept up on us while I was asleep. Sandy, -I’ll never forgive myself for this. I can’t blame them for shooting -soldiers that sleep on guard duty—after tonight.” - -“Oh, never mind,” Sandy’s optimism came to the front. “What’s the -difference. We’re safe and sound, aren’t we?” - -“That doesn’t excuse me for neglecting my duty,” Dick insisted. But as -he reached for the tin plate of bacon and camp bread that Sandy handed -him, Dick cheered up. “What beats me,” he concluded, “is that I was -going to let you sleep till morning, Sandy. Guess I wasn’t as tough as I -thought I was.” - -“That’s just like you,” Sandy retorted. “Just because you’re a couple of -years older than I you think you ought to do all the heavy work.” - -“Well, I’ll see that you do your night watching after this,” Dick -promised. “And now we’d better get started. If those fellows kept on -after us they’ve had just about time enough to catch up.” - -It did not take the boys long to break camp. The trail that led along -the bank past the dangerous Little Moose Rapids to safe water was on the -other bank of the river, and Dick and Sandy prepared to paddle across. -Once on the trail, they planned to shoulder their packs and the canoe -for the jaunt over the portage. They shoved out the canoe without mishap -and were cutting across the swift current of the Big Smokey river above -the rapids, when on the other shore, at the point where they intended -landing, Dick thought he saw a wisp of smoke ascending, as from a -campfire recently extinguished. - -“Sandy, do you see any one over there?” Dick called. - -“I see a kind of smoke haze among those little spruce trees,” Sandy -replied. - -“You know what I think?” Dick went on, sturdily plying his paddle, “that -gang is waiting for us over there. They’re in ambush. As soon as we get -close in they’ll open fire. I’ll bet I’m right. If I am we don’t dare -try to land.” - -“Well, there’s no trail around the rapids on the side we camped,” Sandy -returned. “We’d have to detour about twelve miles that way to get back -to the Big Smokey.” - -They were slowly drawing closer to the opposite bank, the swift current -pulling them downstream a little in spite of their efforts. The boys -were silent as they drew closer, undecided which way to turn, almost -certain now that a warm reception awaited them on the portage trail -landing. Suddenly Dick spoke cooly, but tensely: - -“Backwater, Sandy. Don’t act excited. We don’t dare go on. I just saw -two rifle barrels thrust over a hump of moss on a fallen tree.” - -Sandy did not falter at the warning. He reversed his paddle, as Dick was -doing, and the canoe came almost to a standstill. - -“We’ll have to shoot the rapids!” Dick’s voice was like the snap of a -whip as he made known his daring resolve. - - - - - CHAPTER III - DICK SHOOTS THE RAPIDS - - -At Little Moose Rapids the Big Smokey river plunged through a gorge -nearly a half mile long before it finally came once more to a gentler -incline where canoeing was safe. Only the most daring of canoeists ever -risked piloting a frail craft through this treacherous stretch of water, -and many who had dared had been drowned. Dick’s last minute resolution -was one of desperation. Though he and Sandy were experts with the -paddle, yet they never would have considered attempting to shoot any -rapids had death or capture not threatened them. - -“We’ll never make it!” the optimistic Sandy was shaken from his -cheeriness by Dick’s desperate resolve. - -“We’ve got to!” shouted Dick, as with one strong stroke of his paddle he -swerved the canoe head on with the current, and they sped straight -toward the gorge. - -At the maneuver they heard an angry shout from the shore that had been -their destination. Even at that distance they could detect the menace in -that cry, and with added zeal they bent to their paddles. - -Then a rifle cracked and a ball whistled across the water behind them. -Another and another shot was fired while they sped on swifter and -swifter. - -“We’re getting out of range!” Dick cried. - -“I hope so,” panted Sandy. - -“They’re poor marksmen, anyhow,” Dick returned. - -They both fell silent as they left one danger behind, only to face one -almost as threatening. - -The river swiftly narrowed and deepened as they swept down between the -high walls of the gorge. A sullen roar of the water against the numerous -rocks and against the solid walls could be heard. The canoe seemed to -shoot ahead like a leaf on the wind. Louder and louder grew the sound of -rushing water. Then the boys saw the first wave of foam and spray where -the water whirled among several huge boulders. - -Sandy was in the bow, Dick in the stern when they struck the first angry -whirlpool. - -“Use your paddle to push off the rocks,” shouted Dick above the rumble -of the water. - -They scudded past a huge, wet boulder, seemed almost flung against -another, only to be whisked into a deep pool where it was all Dick and -Sandy could do to keep the canoe from turning clear around. Out of the -pool, they danced on once more. The rapids were clear of rocks for a -space, but they were moving so fast that it seemed no time before they -reached a giant buttress of stone that seemed to bar the way. - -“Push off,” cried Dick. “I’ll backwater. Heave now. Here we go!” - -They shaved the bluff so closely that the grind of the canoe upon the -rock could be heard. The dash of water against the cliff showered down -upon them, and the canoe took in a bucketful. - -“Dip the water out!” shouted Dick, while they spun into another deep -pool, the cliff behind them. - -Sandy began frantically bailing out the water with his hat, while Dick -desperately held the canoe bow against the current. - -The gorge was deeper now, almost shutting out the early morning -sunlight. All about spray flew in the air, like driving mist, and the -roar of rushing water was almost deafening. The canoe was holding up -well, yet its two occupants realized its frail shell would be shattered -to atoms if but once it was thrown upon one of the countless rocks they -seemed to miss by inches. - -“I hope we don’t hit a waterfall,” shouted Sandy as he ceased bailing -water and drew a long breath. - -“Let ’er come,” responded Dick daringly, swerving the canoe this way and -that with a lusty stroke of his paddle. - -“Look out, another rock!” - -Sandy turned from his bailing and grasped his paddle just in time. In a -crouch he met the boulder with the end of the paddle and pushed. The -canoe forged off to the left, dodged in between two other rocks, and -once more they reached a space comparatively straight and free from -obstructions. Like an arrow they shot onward. - -The noise of the foaming water was fast increasing in volume. Dick -feared a waterfall, and silently he nerved himself for it, and none too -soon. Dashing down a narrow channel and bobbing around a curve like a -cork on ocean waves, he saw ahead a mist of spray and the rumble of -falling water burst upon his ears. - -Sandy could not suppress a cry of terror, but white-lipped Dick managed -to hold his breath for what was to come. “Hold tight!” he shouted to his -chum. “I’ll hold her straight, and we’ll dive over. We’ve a chance. It’s -not high.” - -Straight toward the edge of the waterfall the canoe shot with terrific -speed. The rumble of the water was frightful. Then they went over. One -glimpse they had of the whirlpools boiling below the falls as the prow -of the canoe swept over and the light craft leaped into the misty air, -like a ski jumper. - -It was only a short drop of about five feet, but when the canoe struck -the churning water, it spun and spun about, wallowing in the foam. Dick -and Sandy were drenched to the skin in a moment. All they could do was -cling to the canoe, hoping against hope. - -“Hang to that rock ahead, if we go under!” Dick cried, above the thunder -of the falls. - -“I can’t see!” Sandy shouted back, rubbing the water from his eyes and -coughing. - -Then the canoe struck something submerged, and turned over on its side, -tipping Dick and Sandy into the boiling whirlpools. - -Dick clung to the side of the canoe as the water washed over him. For an -instant Sandy disappeared, then Dick saw him come up, also clinging to -the canoe, which had not entirely turned over, but had shipped so much -water that it was sinking. - -Presently, canoe and swimmers were whipped into a deep pool below the -falls, and Dick and Sandy began desperately flinging water out of their -craft. A little later they crawled back into their canoe, wet as half -drowned rats, and Dick pushed off into the center of the stream. - -The worst was over. Below the falls the gorge widened out slowly and the -current grew more sluggish. For a quarter of an hour they glided on -silently without need of their paddles, except to keep the craft in the -center of the stream. - -“Whew! I hope we don’t run into any more rapids,” Sandy breathed more -freely. - -Dick emphatically agreed. “Next time,” said he, “I’ll prefer facing the -bullets, I think. Gee, if the fellows back in the U. S. A. knew what -we’d just gone through they’d have a fit.” - -“They’ll never believe it,” Sandy opined. - -“We’ll make ’em believe it if we live to tell it,” vowed Dick, pulling -extra hard on his paddle and making the canoe leap forward like a live -thing. “But, to change the subject, I guess we left the enemy behind -this time.” - -“I’ll say so,” Sandy came back, “but two duckings in two days isn’t -fair. Where can I stop off and get dry?” - -“I think we’d better keep moving till noon,” Dick advised. “Then we can -kill two birds with one stone—eat and dry off too.” - -Sandy saw the wisdom of this and fell silent, bending his energies to -the paddle. They made good time until about noon, when they espied a -sandy shoal ahead of them that promised plenty of dry firewood for a -campfire. They drew in, beached the canoe and made camp. An hour later, -dry again and in good spirits, they pushed off and went on down the -river. - -“Seems as if I smell burning wood in the air,” Dick remarked a couple of -miles further on. - -“I do too,” Sandy replied, “——must be a forest fire somewhere near.” - -“Hope it’s not too near,” said Dick, “a forest fire would hold us up a -while even if we are on the river. I’ve heard my father tell about the -fires they used to have in Oregon. They’re no joke.” - -Sandy was about to add what he knew of forest fires when they both -sighted another canoe toiling upstream. At that distance they could not -at first distinguish whether there was more than one in the canoe. -However, they held any stranger they might meet a possible enemy, since -Martin MacLean had told them how far-reaching was the hand of Bear -Henderson, and so they prepared for hostility. - -Slowly the two canoes drew together. Sandy quietly picked up his rifle, -while Dick continued paddling. They could now see there was but one man -in the canoe. - -“Hello there,” Dick hailed. - -The stranger waved a hand, ceased paddling, except to hold his canoe -against the current, and waited for the boys to glide up. He was a tall -man, with long, dark hair and a leathery face. - -“Where you goin’?” he asked as the canoe prows touched. - -“Mackenzie’s Landing,” Dick replied, seeing nothing hostile in the -other’s demeanor, and seeing no reason why he should not reveal his -destination, if not his errand. - -“I got my grub stole back river a piece,” the stranger said, pointing -over his shoulder with one thumb. “Have you fellers got plenty of grub?” - -“Sure,” Dick answered. “Want to eat with us? Our grub’s a little wet, -but it swallows all right.” - -“I’d be obliged,” the stranger returned, “but mebbe you wasn’t figgerin’ -to stop jest now.” - -“We just had a snack,” Dick admitted, “but if you’re hungry we’ll split -what we have.” - -“I jest need enough to get me to Fort du Lac.” - -“Fort du Lac!” Dick and Sandy chorused. “We just came from there!” - -“So? Wal, it’ll be nigh three days canoein’ up river, an’ I’ll need -grub. No time to hunt. You fellers didn’t happen to run across an Injun -with a heap of scars on his face?” the man asked, searching their faces. - -“A scar faced Indian!” Sandy exclaimed. “Why——” - -“Well, yes,” Dick broke in with a warning look at his chum. “We noticed -a fellow of that description at the fort. Didn’t think much about him,” -Dick was cautious. - -“You fellers needn’t be afraid to tell me all you know,” the stranger -had noticed Dick’s reserve and his interruption of Sandy. “I ain’t -publishin’ my business but my name’s Slade.” - -“Not Malemute Slade, the scout for the mounted!” Dick exclaimed, for the -man’s reputation as a scout was a fable in the north country, and many -times he had heard it spoken with awe and admiration. - -“There’s them call me Malemute Slade,” admitted the tall man cooly, “but -what was that about this here scar faced Indian?” - -Dick then related the queer experiences at the fort. - -The canoes were permitted to drift on down the river while they talked. -Malemute Slade listened attentively. - -“His name’s Many-Scar Jackson,” Slade told them when they had finished -with their story. “He’s wanted for murder down the river a piece. But -that’s nothin’ to this Henderson breakin’ loose. That’s news to me, an’ -it’ll be news for the mounted maybe. I’ve heard rumors f’r a long time, -but didn’t think much of it. A tough customer, Henderson. You fellers -wants to watch y’r step. If I seen any of the gang that was foller’n you -I’ll square up with ’em.” - -In the keen eyes and the lean jaw of the far-famed Malemute Slade the -boys saw that which made them confident that Slade could “square up” -with most any one or any number. - -“Tell the factor you saw us and that we’re all right—only got a ducking -when we shot Little Moose Rapids,” Dick said. - -Malemute Slade’s eyes lighted up. He looked with new respect at Dick’s -wiry figure. “So you fellers shot the Little Moose an’ come through -alive—wal, I swan. You must have toted a dozen rabbit’s feet.” - -“Not a one,” Dick replied modestly, while Sandy grinned with pride. - -“Y’r apt to have somethin’ worse on your hands afore you get to -Mackenzie’s,” Malemute surprised them. “There’s a forest fire whoopin’ -it up back a piece, an’ it’ll maybe hit the river afore you pass it. -There’s a bit of smoke in the air now. Hey!” - -Dick and Sandy started up and looked where Slade pointed. - -Nearly four hundred yards down the river a stag had come down to drink -and was standing half in and half out of the water. The canoes were -slowly drifting down upon it. - -“You fellers want a fresh haunch o’ venison f’r tonight?” queried -Malemute. - -“You bet!” Dick and Sandy chimed, “but the deer’s seen us and we can’t -get close enough for a shot.” - -“Reckon I can drop him from here,” Malemute Slade replied cooly. - -“What!” Dick exclaimed incredulously. - -Malemute’s only reply was slowly to raise his 45.70 lever action rifle -to his shoulder. Dick and Sandy watched breathlessly. Motionless as a -statue, the big man took aim before his rifle crashed. As the echo of -the shot sounded in the silent forest, the stag leaped upward and fell -into the river with a soundless splash. - -“Now you fellers split your grub with me, an’ I’ll be goin’ on. If I had -time I’d paddle down an’ cut a hunk off that deer. But I’ll have to be -moochin’.” - -Malemute Slade thought nothing of the wonderful exhibition of -markmanship he had just made, and Dick and Sandy were awed to silence as -they undid their packs and transferred half their food into the scout’s -canoe. - -Malemute Slade paid them in king’s coin for the provisions. - -“You’ll probably see me again afore this Henderson business is over, but -it’s hard tellin’,” was Malemute’s parting prophecy. “Au revoir.” - -“Au revoir,” the boys sang out the French “so long,” and started on to -where the stag had fallen. - -Late that evening, making camp at a point they judged somewhere within -fifty miles of Mackenzie’s Landing, the smoke of the forest fire was so -strong it made them cough. They had paddled a little way up a small -creek for the night, thinking to make themselves more secure from a -possible night attack from Henderson’s men, who seemed so determined -they should not get to the mounted police. - -“I’m afraid we’re in for it,” Dick shook his head concernedly. - -“It sure feels as if we were close to a fire,” Sandy agreed dubiously. - -“Well, we’ll need all the sleep we can get at any rate,” Dick concluded, -as he rolled into his blankets, and Sandy prepared for the first watch. - - - - - CHAPTER IV - THROUGH THE FLAMES - - -That night Dick slept fitfully. The place where they had camped was in a -deep coulee, unwooded except for a few clumps of red willow. Straight -above them, at the top of an almost perpendicular wall of red shale and -crumbling sandstone, was a dark fringe, which marked the beginning of a -mighty forest of spruce and jack pine. Moaning in his sleep, Dick sat up -and commenced rubbing his eyes. Then he paused to stare in open-mouthed -wonder. - -The coulee was full of smoke. It floated around them in a ever -thickening cloud, while above, plainly visible in the glare of the -conflagration, sweeping down from the north, he beheld a thick, dense -column of smoke, which seemed to span the coulee like a black bridge. - -Ten feet away, Sandy, on sentinel duty, coughed and dug at his eyes. In -alarm, Dick threw aside his blankets and crawled hurriedly forward to -consult with his chum. - -“Sandy!” he shouted, “the fire is all around us. We’ll die like rats in -a trap if we stay here. Why didn’t you awaken me before? Let’s hurry -back to the river and our canoe.” - -“Can’t,” said Sandy laconically, “I’ve been watching that. There’s a -belt of fire between us and the river. We should never have camped so -far away from it.” - -“Well, you know we thought we’d be safer from Henderson’s men up here,” -Dick replied. - -The boys could hear plainly the howling of the wind and the distant, -thunderous roar of the fire. Accustomed as he had become to danger since -his sojourn in the north, Dick could not overcome a sudden feeling of -fear and apprehension. - -“Where will we go?” shivered Sandy. “It seems to be all around us.” - -“We’ve got to go through it somehow,” Dick answered, not altogether -sure, himself, what ought to be done. “It’s dangerous to remain here any -longer. What do you think is best?” - -Sandy, eyes running water, scratched his head in perplexity. - -“If we could get to the river,” he said, “we’d be safe. I don’t see any -other way.” - -A few moments later, two disconsolate figures clambered up the side of -the coulee and struck off hurriedly at right angles with the fire. With -a catch in his throat, Dick perceived the huge walls of flames bearing -down upon them. For several miles, at least, they were cut off from the -river. Even the sky glowed dully like a large orange disk through a -thick blanket of smoke. - -“What’s that!” exclaimed Sandy, suddenly starting back. - -Something had shot past them through the underbrush—a heavy body, -hurtling along in mute terror. Almost immediately came other bodies, -small and large—rabbits scurrying almost between their legs; deer, -jumping past in a wild stampede; bear and moose, crashing their way -forward in a cumbersome, heart-stirring panic, as they ran from the -fire. - -“If they’re afraid, it’s about time we were,” Sandy declared grimly, -through set teeth. “If this smoke gets any worse we’ll be suffocated in -another ten minutes. My throat feels as if I had been drinking liquid -fire for a week.” - -Twenty feet away a flying ember settled down on the dry grass and -immediately burst into flames. With the ever increasing velocity of the -wind, similar patches of fire sprang up around them on every side. - -“I’m afraid,” said Dick, fighting bravely against mounting despair, -“that we’ll never make it. I never saw such a wind.” - -Sandy did not reply. With handkerchiefs pressed to their noses and -mouths, the boys struggled forward for another quarter of a mile. - -By this time the heat had become terrific. Dick’s face felt as if it had -been washed in a bucket of lye. Sandy’s cheeks were streaked with tears, -not tears of grief, but tears of misery from smoke-tortured, bloodshot -eyes. - -“No use,” choked Sandy, plunging down a short embankment with Dick at -his heels. “I’m about ready to quit. You see,” he explained, struggling -with the lump in his throat, “I’m getting dizzier and dizzier every -minute. This heat and smoke is getting me.” - -Dick put out his hand with an assurance he did not feel, and patted his -chum on the shoulder. - -“Buck up,” Dick encouraged, “we’ll get out of this somehow. I tell you, -Sandy, we’ve got to do it. Maybe this——” - -Dick never finished what he was about to say. His foot slipped, and with -a startled exclamation, he pitched forward, completely upsetting Sandy. -In a moment both boys had rolled and slid down a steep bank. It seemed -there was no end to the fall, and Dick’s heart almost failed him as he -thought of what fate might meet them below. Perhaps they were rolling -toward the brink of a cliff hundreds of feet high, perhaps they would -fall into some rock cluttered canyon, or again, they might be drowned in -some deep lake at the bottom of the bank. - -Then they reached the bottom with a jarring impact that shook the breath -from their bodies. When they recovered enough to look each other over, -Dick was sitting upright, astride of Sandy, who lay in a crumpled, -groaning heap under him. Dick heard, or thought he heard, the trickle of -running water. His right foot felt pleasantly cool. When he put out his -hand to investigate his fingers encountered water. - -Sandy was half submerged in a tiny pool, and was sinking fast, before -Dick could pull him back to safety. Dazed from the fall, Sandy sputtered -a moment, then inquired excitedly: - -“Have we got to the bottom?” - -“I guess so,” replied Dick. “At any rate there seems to be a sort of -creek running along here. Are you all right, Sandy?” - -“Well, if I’m not, I soon will be,” answered Sandy, more cheerfully. -“Wait till I get a drink of this water. Boy, I’m dry. Do you think we’ll -be safe here?” - -By way of answer, Dick pointed up to the wide belt of fire. “It’s closer -than it was before. We’re protected down here from the heat and smoke, -but that won’t last long. In two hours this place will be as hot as a -stove. Our only chance is to keep on moving.” - -“I hate to leave this water,” said Sandy, gulping large mouthfuls of it. - -“I don’t intend leaving the water,” Dick assured him. “It’s just -occurred to me that our best plan will be to follow this little creek. -It’s probably fed from a spring and will eventually run either into a -lake or river. Once we get into more water we’ll be pretty safe.” - -Sandy thought Dick was right, and a few minutes later, greatly -refreshed, they set out again, following the creek downstream. - -Two miles further on the creek ran into a larger stream, and a little -later as they hurried around a curve, Sandy, who was in the lead, gave -vent to an exclamation of despair. - -“Look at that!” he shouted. “The fire has cut in ahead of us.” - -Sandy was right. Not more than a quarter mile downstream, the fire was -raging on both sides of the creek, and even as they looked, a large jack -pine, flaming to the top of its highest branches, swayed suddenly in the -wind and went crashing forward in a shower of sparks and burning embers. - -Sick at heart, the two young adventurers stood for a short time, -scarcely daring to think of their predicament. Apparently there was -little chance of escape, the main body of the fire behind them, another -fire sweeping ahead. - -“We’ve got to get through,” Dick muttered. “We’ll have to take a chance, -Sandy. The fire ahead hasn’t been burning long and it’s not as far -through it—maybe not more than a hundred yards. Somehow, I feel certain -that this creek will take us straight on to the Big Smokey where we left -the canoe.” - -Sandy’s face brightened a little. “I believe you’re right, Dick. If a -burning tree or branch doesn’t fall on us, we can make it. We’ll have to -wade right down through the center of the stream. If it gets too hot we -can dive under the water. I’m going to take off my shirt, soak it in -water and breathe with it around my head.” - -“A good idea,” approved Dick. “I’ll do it too.” - -A half hour later, two boys emerged, wet and blackened, from a cloud of -smoke and flame and advanced painfully along the creek to a point where -it emptied into the Big Smokey river. Behind them thundered the terrible -conflagration, getting closer every moment. Moose, deer and caribou -stood trembling at the river’s edge, or struck boldly out into the -stream. The boys turned north and followed the river for a mile before -they discovered the object they sought. It was daylight now, though the -smoke made it difficult to see far. Yet the light, graceful Peterboro -canoe, loaded with supplies, did not miss their searching eyes. As they -pushed it into the river and climbed in, Dick Kent gave voice to a -fervent exclamation. - -“We made it, Sandy!” he exulted, as he dipped his paddle once more into -the bosom of the Big Smokey. - -Sandy was about to share Dick’s rejoicing, when the movements of a huge -brown bear, which had splashed into the water behind them, attracted his -attention. The bear was swimming straight for the canoe. - -“Shove out quick!” cried Sandy suddenly, but too late. - -The brown bear, blinded by smoke, and thinking the canoe some log to -cling to, clawed at the rim of the frail craft and pulled down. The -canoe went over, spilling its contents into the river, while the bear, -finding the craft unstable, swam on out into the river. - - - - - CHAPTER V - MACKENZIE’S LANDING - - -The plunge into the river revived both Dick and Sandy. Gasping, they -came up for air, only to breathe the choking smoke and gases of the -burning forest. They knew that the canoe was upside down and that their -packs were in the bottom of the river. The bear was nowhere to be seen. - -“Are you all right, Sandy?” called Dick, hoarsely. - -“You bet,” Sandy replied, a bit faintly. - -Among the burning brands sizzling in the water, and the flying sparks, -they struggled with the canoe. In a few minutes they had righted it, -though it was half full of water. The paddles, they could see, had gone -with the packs. - -“Look for a paddle!” shouted Dick. “They must be floating around -somewhere.” - -“There! I see one,” Sandy dived off as he spoke, and swam back quickly -with a paddle in one hand. - -But look as they did they could not locate the other paddle. - -“We can’t look any longer. We’ll have to change off with one paddle,” -Dick called a little later. - -Dick paddling, they started on. The heat still was stifling, but they -felt that the air was growing cooler. The wind seemed in their faces, -which would tend to bear the fire back along the river. Wild animals of -all kinds still could be seen in the water, wallowing along the shore or -swimming the stream. But they had no more dangerous encounters with the -frightened beasts. - -Two hours of paddling, shifting the paddle back and forth between them -as soon as one grew tired, and they came to a comparatively clear -stretch of water. Here the fire was deeper in the forest, and had not -eaten out to the bank yet. In greedy gasps, Dick and Sandy drew in the -gusts of cool, pure air that were wafted over them. - -“Look back, Sandy,” Dick called. - -The whole sky was a mass of red flames behind them, and an ocean of -smoke was rolling ceaselessly upward. - -“Mackenzie’s Landing can’t be much further,” Sandy said when they had -looked their last upon the great fire. - -“No, we ought to make it by night. We’ll have to make it or camp without -grub or blankets. I prefer going on,” Dick stated. - -“So do I,” Sandy rejoined. - -Some distance further on, as they rounded a huge bend in the stream, -they could not suppress a cheer. In the distance they could see the -shoulder of a high, barren bluff which was the ten-mile landmark on the -trip to Mackenzie’s Landing. - -It was late in the afternoon when in the distance they at last viewed -the stockade and roofs of Malcolm Mackenzie’s trading post. Blackened -and disheveled, nearly exhausted, they guided their canoe to the pier, -where three half-breeds were watching them curiously. The half-breeds -helped them secure their canoe, and listened without comment to some of -their story of the eventful journey. - -“Malcolm Mackenzie, he sick,” one of the half-breeds told them. “No can -go. Him burned bad when fight with fire.” - -“Did you hear that?” Dick turned to Sandy. - -“Yes—just our luck. Now what?” Sandy returned, a little disheartened, as -the half-breeds led the way into the stockade. - -“We can talk to Mr. Mackenzie, can’t we?” Dick asked one of the men, as -they entered the post. - -“Yah, I guess.” - -Presently, they were ushered into a room smelling of liniment and -arnica. On a bunk lay Malcolm Mackenzie, his head and one arm swathed in -bandages. Evidently he was suffering considerably from serious burns. He -turned his head as the boys came in. - -“Bear Henderson has captured Fort Good Faith,” Dick blurted out. “My -friend’s uncle has been imprisoned. Mr. MacLean sent us to you. He said -you would lead us to the mounted police post at Fort Dunwoody.” - -“I’ve feared this,” Malcolm Mackenzie’s eyes narrowed, “but you see how -it is with me, boys. I can’t travel. Got some bad burns while fighting -that forest fire. But I can send an Indian who knows the trail.” He -turned to one of the half-breeds, who was standing behind Dick and -Sandy. “Send in Little John Toma,” he commanded. - -A little later Dick and Sandy saw a young Indian enter. He was handsome -in a dark, inscrutable way, and though not very tall, was powerfully -built. He stood respectfully at attention, seeming more intelligent than -many of his kind. - -“Toma,” Mackenzie spoke, “I want you to lead these young men to Fort -Dunwoody as fast as you can. Travel light. You ought to make it in four -days if everything goes right.” He turned back to the boys. “Did MacLean -say anything about a cache of grub along the way?” - -“Yes,” Dick reached into his pocket and drew out the map the trader had -drawn indicating the position of the cache of food on the trail to Fort -Dunwoody. - -Mackenzie took the map, glanced at it and handed it to Toma. “It’s on -Limping Dog Creek,” said Mackenzie, “just where that gorge you follow -intersects the stream. You know the place.” To Dick and Sandy: -“Introduce yourselves and get acquainted. Toma will get everything ready -for you to go on. Take a rest as soon as you eat. Oh, Calico, Calico!” -he called to some one. - -As the boys and Little John Toma passed out, a large, waddling Indian -woman came in. They heard Mackenzie instructing her to get a meal ready -for his visitors before the bear-skin curtain dropped behind them and -they found themselves in the spacious living room of the post. - -Dick and Sandy awkwardly introduced themselves to the young Indian who -was to be their guide. - -“Glad to meet,” Toma surprised them by saying, his teeth flashing -whitely in a smile. - -Dick and Sandy quickly felt that they were going to like Toma. - -“I’ll bet he’s the son of a chief,” Sandy said to Dick, when the young -Indian had gone, and they were busy at the wash bench, scrubbing off -some of the smoke and ashes of the forest fire. - -The boys ate heartily of the food the Indian woman placed before them on -the rough board table. As soon as they were through they were shown to a -comfortable bunk behind moose-hide curtains. Scarcely had they lay down -when they fell into sound slumber. - -It seemed to Dick Kent that he had only been asleep a moment when a -hand, gently shaking his shoulder, awakened him. He looked up into the -smiling face of Toma, the young guide. - -“Time to go,” said Toma. “You wake up other fella.” - -As the curtains fell, and Toma disappeared, Dick turned and shook Sandy. - -An hour later they bid goodbye to Malcolm Mackenzie and wished him -speedy recovery from his burns. The canoe lay ready packed with -provisions at the landing when they arrived there. Toma was starting to -push off. Dick and Sandy hopped in, and Toma sprang lightly into the -bow. - -“Now for Fort Dunwoody,” Dick breathed a sigh of relief. - -“If I wasn’t an optimist,” Sandy added, “I’d say we aren’t there yet by -a long shot.” - -Toma silently sculled the craft into the center of the river, and they -were once more floating down the stream. The boys marveled at Toma’s -deftness with the paddle, though they themselves were experts. The young -Indian seemed able to make the canoe fly with his quick, powerful -strokes. - -A half hour of paddling and the roofs of Mackenzie’s Landing had -disappeared in the haze of the morning, and once more the walls of the -silent spruce forest closed in on either side of them. - -Late that night they camped some twenty miles from the trading post, in -a little clearing at the river’s edge. Toma mentioned “bear sign,” and -so they hung up their flour and bacon on a tree bough for fear a bear -might get it. - -Sandy kept first watch while Toma and Dick slept. - -It was a dark night. Only the stars were out, and when the fire died -down Sandy scarcely could see a dozen paces from the camp. Occasionally -he glanced into the shadows, listening to the mysterious sounds of the -forest, and starting up at each crackle of a twig or rustle of -undergrowth. - -Sandy wondered if the men on their trail had been thrown off, and -imagined what he would do if they would suddenly attack. As he thought -of the dangers threatening Dick and him, his hand tightened on his -rifle. - -It was nearly eleven o’clock, the time he was to call Toma for the -second watch, when Sandy became conscious of some sinister presence. -Before he really saw or heard anything, he shivered and looked fearfully -about into the gloom of the forest. - -A scratching and grunting noise attracted his attention to the tree -where they had hung up the flour and bacon. It seemed he could hear the -shuffle of heavy feet and the wheeze of giant lungs as he listened -intently. - -“I won’t call Dick and Toma,” thought Sandy. “It may be only my -imagination. I’ll go see what it is.” - -Heart beating wildly, Sandy commenced to creep toward the point he had -heard the noises. He could see nothing in the dark, yet as he strained -his eyes it seemed to him that one portion of the blackness was blacker -than the rest. - -Suddenly, he heard the crashing of a splintered tree bough. A low, -vibrating growl followed, and Sandy dropped upon his stomach. There came -a slapping, thumping sound, then an angry growling and tussling. The -dark blot lurched downward. Sandy raised his rifle and blazed away at -the shape. A rambling roar rose in the night. - -“Dick! Toma!” cried Sandy, as he turned about and fled, hearing behind -him the rush of a heavy body pursuing him. - - - - - CHAPTER VI - A GRIZZLY SHOWS FIGHT - - -Toma and Dick were already on their feet when Sandy rushed toward them -out of the gloom. - -“It’s a bear, a giant bear!” cried Sandy. “Run! I’ve wounded him!” - -The angry roar behind Sandy was all that was needed for Dick and Toma to -take to their heels with alacrity. - -“Get up tree, get up tree!” Toma called to them. - -Faster than they ever before had climbed a tree, Dick and Sandy shinned -up one in the dark. The bear charged beneath them in the underbrush. The -huge beast wheeled on finding his prey had taken to the trees and -circled the trunk which supported Dick and Sandy. Toma’s calm voice came -through the gloom from a near-by tree: - -“Him grizzly all right,” Toma told them. “You stay in tree. I get down -to rifle pretty quick.” - -“You surely must have wounded the bear,” Dick whispered to Sandy. “I’ve -heard they won’t attack unless they’re wounded.” - -“I don’t know what I did,” Sandy came back breathlessly. “I just blazed -away and ran. Believe me, I don’t want to go down there again while that -monster is wandering around looking for me. He’d chew us up in about two -bites and a half.” - -Dick knew that Sandy’s caution bump was working again, and he smiled in -the dark. He did not intend to let Toma go down after the bear alone. -Yet he believed the young Indian would protest if he revealed his -intentions. - -“Got your rifle?” Dick called to Toma, not intimating his resolution. - -“I got gun,” Toma called back. - -“I wish I’d thought to bring mine along,” Dick muttered, “but then it -takes an Indian to shin up a tree with a heavy rifle in his hand I -suppose. Anyway I have my knife.” - -“Don’t go down, Dick,” whispered Sandy, as the bear crashed about in the -brush below them. - -“Nonsense, Sandy, I’ve got as much chance as Toma. We can’t let that -bear wreck our camp. That’s what he’s up to.” - -“Then I’ll go down too,” Sandy stubbornly decided. - -They could not hear Toma’s movements with the bear making so much noise, -but Dick suspected the guide already had slipped down from his tree and -was stalking the wounded grizzly, perhaps close enough to get in a fatal -shot. - -Presently, they could hear the bear make off into the gloom toward the -campfire. When Dick and Sandy dropped down out of the tree, the bear -seemed to be on the other side of the campfire, clawing and mouthing -over their dunnage. - -“You better stay up in the tree,” Dick said. - -“Not on your tintype,” Sandy snapped. “If you go, I go.” - -“Well, then, we’ve got to get our guns,” said Dick. “Mine’s right where -I got out of my blankets.” - -“Seems to me I dropped mine just before I started climbing the tree,” -Sandy was feeling around in the dark. “Yes, here it is,” was his -triumphant call. - -Toma seemingly had vanished. Since his last words, they had heard -nothing more from him. Dick judged the guide was stalking the bear from -some other direction. At any moment he expected to hear the report of -the Indian’s rifle, and see the flash of it in the gloom. - -Sandy alone armed, save for Dick’s hunting knife, the boys began a -stealthy advance toward the camp where they could hear the bear slashing -and groveling about, evidently in some pain, for they were sure now that -Sandy’s shot had taken effect. - -The coals of the campfire shed a faint glow. As the boys drew nearer, on -hands and knees, they could see the bulk of the grizzly outlined. He -seemed a mammoth of his kind, and indeed was a fearful beast to meet in -the forest. - -“I’ll bet he’s wrecked our camp outfit,” Dick muttered. “Careful, Sandy, -don’t get too close. Let’s wait till he gets away from the fire a little -further, then I can get my rifle.” - -Scarcely were the words out of his mouth, when Toma’s rifle crashed in -the dark on the left, and Dick and Sandy saw a streak of flame, and -heard the roar of the bear, plainly hard hit. The grizzly rose upon his -hind legs and turned toward the spot he believed his enemy was hidden. -Then Sandy leveled his rifle and fired, drawing bead as best he could -just under the huge beast’s forelegs. - -At this second shot, the bear seemed undecided just which way to charge. -He stopped, his head turning from side to side, growling horribly, not -hit hard enough to fall. - -Toma shot again, then Sandy. The grizzly dropped to all fours, and began -clawing at his breast. Toma shot again from another position. The bear -rose up again with a roar of pain and rage and started for Dick and -Sandy, who turned to flee. Then the big beast, without any apparent -reason whatsoever, wheeled about and made off into the forest in the -opposite direction. - -“He’s hit hard!” cried Dick, hurrying forward. - -Toma came out of the gloom like a shadow. “He go off die,” said the -Indian. “Be careful he no come back. I go see where he go.” Toma -disappeared after cautioning the boys to stay where they were until he -returned. - -The minutes passed slowly while Dick and Sandy waited the return of -Toma. Finally Dick grew impatient and was about to go on to the campfire -for his rifle, when Toma appeared again, as if he had risen out of the -earth. - -“She all right,” Toma reported. “Him keep going. Him die somewhere.” - -Relieved, Dick and Sandy approached the campfire. Toma already was -heaping on more wood. As the flames leaped upward, and the light chased -away some of the surrounding shadows, Dick and Sandy breathed freely -once more. However, sleep was far from them after the narrow escape from -being clawed by the wounded bear. They ventured about to see what damage -the big grizzly had effected. - -They found Dick’s and Toma’s blankets torn to shreds. The coffee pot was -crushed flat and the sugar sack broken open, its contents scattered. - -Dick hurried to the bough where they had hung the flour and bacon. “Hey, -look here—Sandy, Toma!” - -They joined Dick. The bough had been broken down; the flour was -scattered about as if the sack had exploded; the bacon was gone. -Searching about in the gloom they found hunks of chewed rind among the -pine needles. Only one small chunk of bacon was left, and this they -preserved in one of their knapsacks. - -“Him no hungry,” Toma grunted, “him play. Him chew bacon up, spit him -out.” - -“Well, he did us plenty of damage all right,” Dick said ruefully. - -“Looks like we were in for a hungry spell,” Sandy added, resignedly. - -“Humph! We have bear steak for breakfast,” Toma exclaimed significantly. - -“That’s what I call justice,” Dick laughed. - -All three went back to the campfire then and squatted around the -crackling flames. The excitement had loosened Toma’s tongue, it seemed, -and he began telling stories of other bears he had known, and whom his -father had known. Dick and Sandy listened with rapt interest to the -simple tales of the young Indian. - -Almost the balance of the night passed with Toma’s droning voice -relating thrilling adventures among the tribes in the far north. Toward -dawn Sandy turned in for an hour or so of rest, but Toma and Dick -remained awake. - -The sun had scarcely topped the distant forest skyline when Dick and -Toma awakened Sandy, and all three gathered up what they could of the -wreckage remaining of their provisions. - -“Now we gettum bear steak,” Toma said. - -In single file they followed the gliding figure of the guide, as he set -off on the trail of the grizzly. - -“See that track!” Dick exclaimed presently, pointing with his rifle at a -spot of soft leaf-mold. - -“It’s a bear track, all right,” conceded Sandy, “—and look! There’s -blood on that bush.” - -“We sure hit him a lot of times—I mean you and Toma,” Dick corrected. He -felt disappointed that he had not actually been in on the killing of the -bear, since he had had no rifle. But the thrill of trailing a wounded -grizzly made him forget. - -Toma seemed to follow the trail as if by instinct. Where Sandy and Dick -could see no sign whatever, Toma went unerringly forward, always with -that gliding, noiseless, pigeon-toed pace, that seemed tireless, though -it was kept up with an ease and speed that made Dick and Sandy run. - -For a half mile they wound among the trees, beginning to come upon spots -where the bear had dropped down to rest. At these points the blood was -drying in large clots. Finally, approaching a fallen tree, they came -upon the grizzly, stone dead! - -Dick and Sandy were about to cheer, yet the actual sight of the bear -made them a little sad. The great monarch of the forest never again -would proudly tread the forest aisles. Yet the boys felt a certain -satisfaction in having won in a battle with such a powerful foe. - -Toma immediately began skinning one haunch of the great bear. “Him old -and tough,” grunted Toma, “but we cook um long time. That make um -tender.” - -Dick laughed. “The old boy will make stringy eating.” - -“I wish we could take his hide,” Sandy sighed. - -“It sure would knock the eyes out of the fellows back home,” Dick said. - -“No time to skin,” Toma interrupted. “Hide too heavy carry. Mister -Mackenzie say mus’ travel light.” - -“Yes, it’s impossible for us to have the old fellow’s hide, but that’s -no reason why we can’t have his scalp.” Suiting his action to his words, -Dick drew his sharp hunting knife and stooped over the head of the -wilderness king. With Sandy’s help they took the old grizzly’s scalp, -ears and all, as a trophy. - -“It’s yours and Toma’s,” Dick smiled, when they had finished. He held -the scalp out to Sandy. - -Sandy’s eyes lightened. “Let Toma have the scalp. I’ll take the claws.” - -Dick’s hunting knife once more came into play. The bear’s claws measured -as long as five inches, and Sandy was exceedingly proud as he at last -pushed them into a side pocket of his leather coat. - -Toma was waiting when they had finished. The guide had his knapsack -filled with the tenderest steaks he could cut. - -At a jog trot they set out for the river and their campsite, and soon -they were grilling bear steaks over the fire. - -When they broke camp they had provisions for two scanty meals, including -some of the bear steaks which they saved from breakfast. The canoe -packed, they once more set out down the river. - -“We make um grub cache tomorrow,” Toma encouraged them. “Get um plenty -grub there.” - -Late that afternoon, without mishap they reached a point where Toma said -they must abandon their canoe and go on by land, since the river swung -off in another direction. They carefully hid their canoe in some -underbrush along with two others left by a party that had recently gone -on ahead of them, and started out on foot. - -Dick and Sandy were very tired long before Toma showed signs of slowing -up, but they gamely stuck to the pace without complaint. - -They were angling down the side of a long ravine, toward a spring, which -Toma muttered would be a good place to camp, when of a sudden, the guide -stopped dead. - -“Hide quick!” Toma whispered, with a significant gesture of one sinewy -brown hand. - -Dick and Sandy crouched. - -“Think um bad fellas ahead,” Toma explained. “You stay here. I go ahead; -look um over.” - -Dick and Sandy were glad to sink down and rest their weary legs. But the -warning in Toma’s voice did not escape them. They were keyed to sharp -watchfulness as Toma dropped to his hands and knees and disappeared -silently among the bushes. - - - - - CHAPTER VII - THE RIFLED CACHE - - -Dick and Sandy had crouched in hiding for upwards of a half hour before -Toma returned. He came as he had gone, silently, like a ghost almost, so -stealthy were his movements, so clever his woodcraft. - -“What did you find?” whispered Dick, anxiously. - -“Two, t’ree—five bad fellas,” Toma counted on his fingers. “One Pierre -Govereau lead um. They got um spring for tonight. We go round um. Got -to. Them fellas friends Bear Henderson. They watch um trail for police. -’Fraid police go to Fort Good Faith.” - -Dick and Sandy exchanged glances. Their weariness was temporarily -forgotten in this new peril. They began to understand the far-reaching -power of the man who had captured Sandy’s uncle and had taken possession -of Fort Good Faith on the edge of the northern wilderness. - -“We go,” Toma urged, his only excitement revealed by the swift movements -of his eyes as they roved this way and that. - -Silently the Indian guide melted into the underbrush, Dick immediately -behind him, Sandy in the rear. For nearly two hundred yards they went -onward, almost at snail’s pace. It was twilight now. Long shadows of -tree and bush stretched everywhere. - -At last Toma signaled for them to stop. Dick and Sandy dropped flat. Not -more than three hundred feet ahead a campfire twinkled through the -trees, and, motionless, between them and the fire, stood a silent -figure, with rifle on his shoulder. It was a guard. Dick divined the -figure, so like the tree trunk against which it stood, had even escaped -the sharp eyes of Toma at first. - -Four men were sitting around the campfire, and they could hear the -mutter of gruff voices. Once or twice a louder than usual exclamation in -French arose above the other sounds. It seemed the leader of the party -was haranguing his men, or disciplining one of them. - -Suddenly Dick started and clutched Sandy’s arm. - -“That guard!” he exclaimed under his breath. “It’s the scar faced -Indian!” - -Sandy paled a little. It seemed almost impossible that the Indian could -have gotten ahead of them. His appearance was as mysterious as had been -their glimpses of him at Fort du Lac and along the Big Smokey river. - -Toma was motioning for them to bear to the right. They crawled off after -the guide in that direction. - -Neither Dick nor Sandy knew which of them made too much noise, or -revealed some part of his body, yet they had crawled no further than a -dozen paces when the guard moved, turned and looked straight at them. -Toma, watching over his shoulder, fell flat, Dick and Sandy following -his example. Had they been seen? - -The guard, his rifle ready for use, started slowly toward them. Tensely, -Dick and Sandy watched Toma for a sign as to what course to take. They -saw Toma slowly turn to his side. The guide swung his rifle to his -shoulder as he lay. - -Just as the guard cried out, Toma fired. - -The scar faced Indian whirled, dropped his rifle and fell to his knees, -clutching at one shoulder. Dick and Sandy got a glimpse of the men at -the fire leaping up and snatching their rifles, as they took to their -heels after Toma. - -For several minutes they sprinted in the wake of the young Indian’s -flying heels, hearing behind the crash of their pursuers through the -underbrush, and their cries to one another. - -Then, before a hollow tree, half covered by the dead branches of a -lightning-blasted pine tree, Toma halted suddenly. He motioned to them -to follow and disappeared into the half-obscured hole in the tree. Dick -and Sandy slipped in after him. There was barely enough room in the tree -for three to stand upright, but they managed to crowd in, while Toma -quickly arranged the dead branches over the hole until their hiding -place was entirely covered from view. - -The distant shouts grew louder, as the men beat the brush looking for -them. Two came closer and closer, until at last they stopped before the -hollow tree, so near that the three hidden feared their heavy breathing -might be heard. - -“I thought I saw ’em go this way,” one said, in a harsh voice. - -“Mebbe so,” the other, apparently an Indian, answered. “It look like -they jump in air an’ fly away.” - -“Pierre sure will give us the devil if we let ’em get away,” said the -first. “Can’t blame him. Henderson will skin him alive if these trails -aren’t kept clean of Hudson’s Bay men and mounties.” - -“I see bush move over d’er!” the Indian ejaculated. - -The two men moved off in another direction, and the boys in the hollow -tree breathed easier. - -“No go yet,” Toma advised. “Wait till all quiet.” - -The minutes passed slowly while they waited in their cramped position. -The shouts of the searchers grew fainter as they apparently abandoned -the chase. Presently all was still. Toma peeped out through the branches -covering the entrance to the hollow tree. After looking carefully about, -the guide pushed back the branches and stepped out. Dick and Sandy -followed. They were learning lessons in woodcraft every hour from this -child of the forest. - -“I think we ought to go back to the camp, steal up close and see if we -can’t learn something of your Uncle Walter, Sandy,” Dick announced. - -“Is it worth the risk?” Sandy came back. “Can’t we do better by hurrying -on to Fort Dunwoody?” - -“It’s true we can’t do much without the aid of the mounted police,” Dick -studied. “Yet I’d like to know, if it’s possible, just what has been -done with your uncle—how they’re treating him.” - -Dick asked Toma what he thought of trying to learn something by -eavesdropping. “If you think um best thing do,” Toma replied. “That scar -face got best ears of all. He wounded now. Not much good; what say I -try?” - -“No, you’ve done plenty of this already, Toma,” Dick was firm. “I’ll go -this time. You wait here where you can cover me with your guns if I am -detected.” - -Toma, assured Dick was determined to go, grunted his assent, and a -moment later Dick disappeared into the bushes on his perilous venture. -Sandy and Toma crawled back to within gunshot of the camp, where the men -had gathered again, gesticulating to one another, plainly undecided what -to do. - -When Dick left his chum and the guide he realized the danger he faced. -Yet he knew any information he might gain would be more than valuable to -the police when once he got in touch with them. Govereau’s men were -talking so loudly that he had little trouble in overhearing them. The -leader’s heavy voice broke out in French, which disappointed Dick, for -he knew very little French. Then Govereau changed to broken English, -evidently for the benefit of a member of his band who did not understand -French. - -“We go on queeck, ketch them,” Govereau was saying. “Sure t’ing them -fella are zee ver’ ones come from Fort du Lac. That devil Many-Scar an’ -them others—they let zem get through Little Moose, I bat. We go.” - -The four began breaking camp hurriedly. The scar faced Indian was -reclining with one arm in a crude sling. He arose with the others and -rolled up his blanket with one hand, as if nothing were wrong with him. - -Dick was disappointed in not hearing anything regarding the situation at -Fort Good Faith. But, as he could think of nothing to do about it, he -edged about and crept back to Sandy and Toma. - -“They’re breaking camp,” he told his companions. “They think we’ve gone -on ahead. Suppose we fool them and camp right here after they leave.” - -Toma’s face lighted up and Sandy was jubilant at the chance to rest his -weary legs. A few minutes later, hidden in the bushes, they watched -Govereau and his four men string out on the trail and quietly disappear -into the forest. They got a close look at the leader of the band as he -passed, and Dick and Sandy could not suppress a shiver of dread. The man -had an exceedingly evil and cruel face. - -Dick hid his disappointment in learning nothing of Henderson’s movements -and of Sandy’s uncle in his elation at this opportunity to camp where -Toma had planned. They would be fresh for a long hike next day, which -would take them to the hidden cache of provisions. - -Toma said little while they prepared their scanty meal, which was for -the most part, bear steak. Every now and then the guide looked up at the -sky and sniffed the air. - -“Storm pretty soon. Winter come. Heap big blizzard few days,” he finally -confided to Dick and Sandy. - -“That means we’ve got to make a raise of a dog team,” Dick said, tearing -off a huge hunk of cold bear meat. - -“Good thing Mr. MacLean gave you that money,” Sandy observed. - -Dick agreed with his chum, stifling a yawn. Already his eyes were -closing. Toma consented to take the first watch, and in a few moments -Dick and Sandy were sound asleep in their blankets. - -The night passed without incident, Dick and Sandy taking their turns on -watch. At dawn they were on the trail again, leaving camp hungry. They -hesitated to shoot at any small game for fear Govereau’s men might be -near. Toward noon, however, Dick’s gnawing stomach got the better of his -caution, and he knocked over a partridge. They made a short stop, -broiled the partridge and divided it. - -Appetites a little appeased, they were off again, hoping to make the -cache of provisions on Limping Dog Creek by nightfall. Late in the -afternoon they trudged down into the canyon designated by MacLean on the -map. - -It was twilight when the canyon walls widened and grew less precipitous. -Toma said they were nearing Limping Dog Creek. Sandy was hobbling from a -slight sprain received when he tripped over a root, and Dick was far -from fresh. - -“Flapjacks will sure taste good,” Dick murmured. - -“Amen,” Sandy groaned in answer. - -When at last they came in sight of the creek, Toma stopped to compare -landmarks with the map. - -“There um three trees,” Toma pointed to some huge balmagiliad trees that -stood out from the smaller jack pines like giants. - -They hurried forward. Martin MacLean had said the cache was in the third -of the three big trees nearest the creek. They speedily reached the tree -and Toma climbed it. He was gone for some time, Dick and Sandy straining -their eyes upward through the dark foliage. - -Toma came down much slower than he had gone up. As he dropped to the -turf, Dick and Sandy awaited anxiously his report. - -“Him gone,” said Toma briefly. “Cache not there!” - -Dick’s eyes narrowed, and Sandy’s countenance grew glum indeed. - -“Maybe this isn’t the tree,” Dick ventured. - -“Him right tree,” Toma was certain. - -“It must have been Govereau’s men,” Dick spoke, after a short silence. - -“Mebbe so,” Toma grunted. - - - - - CHAPTER VIII - DICK DROPS A MOOSE - - -The loss of the cache, more than anything else, had cast its shadow of -gloom over the spirits of Dick and Sandy. Toma, however, who had made -the discovery, seemed not so deeply concerned. - -“We catch um meat,” Toma attempted to cheer the boys. “Mebbe bye an’ bye -we eat.” - -“I’m not so sure about that,” declared Sandy, thinking of the lonely -strip of bacon and the one handful of flour, which were all that -remained of the provisions the grizzly had destroyed. “To tell you the -truth, I haven’t seen very much game lately. Have you, Dick?” - -Dick shook his head, forced to acknowledge the truth of Sandy’s -statement. - -“When a fellow’s hungry,” Sandy complained, rubbing his lame ankle, -“he’s hungry, that’s all, and a mouthful of bacon is about as much good -to him as a drop of fresh water in the ocean.” - -“Me no eat one time for whole week.” Toma reminded them. - -Both boys looked up in astonishment. - -“A whole week!” gasped Dick, “great guns! I hope we don’t come to that.” - -“Mebbe set snare for rabbit tonight,” encouraged Toma. “Toma good ketch -um rabbit.” - -“I could eat two or three rabbits,” Sandy grumbled, taking up the slack -in his belt. - -As they made their way onward, Dick seriously considered their plight. -Thoughts of the ruthless, cold-hearted rifling of the cache by Bear -Henderson’s men filled him with an anger that was difficult to suppress. -But anger or resentment could not help them now. The thing to do was to -abandon any attempt at further progress that day and put in a few good -hours hunting while it was yet daylight. - -“Boys,” he decided, “we’d better pitch camp here for a while, until we -can bag some game. My suggestion is that each of us start off in a -different direction. We must keep track of the time and be sure to get -back to camp by dark. The chances are that at least one of us will be -successful.” - -“It’s hunt or starve,” agreed Sandy. “Which way do you want me to go?” - -“Toma had better try his luck here in the creek valley,” said Dick, -“because game is apt to be more plentiful here and he’s the best hunter. -You and I can make our way into the hills, keeping about half a mile -apart. Shoot anything at all that has meat on its bones,” and he winked -slyly at Toma. - -“I could eat a skunk and like it,” groaned Sandy. “By the way, before we -start don’t you think we’d better divide that bacon?” - -With a queer, inexplicable feeling, Dick produced the last morsels of -food from their packs and divided them carefully. If he gave Sandy a -little more than an equal portion, no one, with the possible exception -of a tiny sparrow perched on a branch overhead, could have noticed it. -They ate in silence, and in silence they arose immediately after their -inadequate meal and started off for the hunt. - -“I don’t think I’ll ever see anything,” Dick muttered to himself, “or if -I do the chances are that the pesky thing will get away. Hang it all, -why did Govereau, or whoever it was, have to find that cache?” - -Dick’s mood brightened a few minutes later as he came up through the -autumn sunshine to the foot of a slope, thickly covered with stunted -pine. It looked like a very good hiding place for ptarmigan, or possibly -even deer. He unslung his rifle and went forward as cautiously as he -could, one finger hovering close to the trigger of his gun. - -But, after an hour’s slow progress, Dick had begun to lose hope. He had -seen nothing. Apparently the forest was as devoid of all animal life as -a city street. Except for a hawk, circling lazily about high overhead, -there was neither bird nor beast anywhere in that lonely stretch of -wilderness. - -Mopping his perspiring brow, the young hunter finally sat down for a -moment’s rest, before continuing his course to the top of a high ridge. - -Then an abrupt, totally unexpected crackling in the heavy Saskatoon -thicket ahead caused him to start—almost in wonderment. His breath came -quickly. He half rose, then fearing, that even his slightest sound might -spoil everything, he sank down again, his left hand nursing the cold, -blue barrel of his Ross rifle. - -More crackling, a sudden parting of the bushes, and Dick’s heart almost -stood still. A large bull moose, majestic in his stature, crashed into -view. - -By this time Dick was fairly trembling with excitement. Twice he -endeavored to raise his rifle to his shoulder. His arm shook so much -that he knew it would be worse than useless to attempt a shot while his -nerves were in such a condition. - -“I can’t do it,” thought Dick, then across his mind flashed the mental -picture of a cache, broken into and robbed, and the sneering face of -Pierre Govereau mocking him. Then his rifle went to his shoulder, and -two loud reports rang out in quick succession. The moose stumbled, but -did not fall. Dick heard quite plainly its sudden snort of alarm and the -crash of underbrush as it struck off at terrific speed directly down the -slope in the direction from which he had but recently come. - -The moose was wounded, he knew, but he also was well aware from previous -experience that a wounded moose will often travel for miles before it -falls. Galvanized into action, Dick was off, following the blood-stained -trail, hoping against hope that either Sandy or Toma might intercept the -animal before it had become lost in the intricate tangle of brush and -woodland that lay to the south. - -Sliding down a particularly treacherous part of the trail, Dick’s foot -caught in an exposed root and he fell heavily. As he bounded to his feet -again, he thought he heard a distant shout—but he was not entirely sure. - -For twenty minutes more, he pushed forward rapidly, sometimes almost -losing the trail of the moose. Then finally he did lose it altogether. -Search as he would, the telltale tracks had disappeared as magically and -as unaccountably as if the animal had leaped into the air and flown away -to a place of safety. - -“It’s the most unusual thing I ever heard of,” Dick commented aloud, -racing about in a vain effort to discover some sign that would point out -again the trail that had so suddenly vanished. - -In despair his eyes fell upon a level formation of rock not more than -thirty feet away. Could it be that the moose had passed that -way—scrambled over the level rock floor in its mad race with death? If -so, it would explain the mysterious disappearance of the tracks; but -there must be blood-stains somewhere. - -“Whoop-ee!” he shouted as his quick eyes made out the signs he -sought—small splotches of red scattered across the smooth surface of -sandstone. And shortly thereafter, he hurried on again, like a young -bloodhound finding fresh scent along the path ahead. - -“I’ll be more careful next time,” he assured himself. “It would be a -pity if this moose got away. I’d have been ashamed to show my face in -camp.” - -Two miles further on he almost forgot about the moose. Through a screen -of willows, skirting a small creek, he caught the faint movement of some -living thing—something that stood concealed and which watched him -furtively as he made his way along through the dead and matted grass of -the little valley. - -Dick felt instinctively that some danger threatened. What this was he -had no way of finding out, yet the feeling persisted that he was being -watched, spied upon by an enemy more terrible than any wild denizen of -the forest. As he advanced swiftly on his way, he was conscious of a -strange tingling of nerves, as if he half expected at any moment to be -pounced upon and overcome by an unknown assailant. - -“I’ve never felt so queer about anything in my life,” he confided to the -silent trees, as he hurried quickly along. “I’m sure that I saw -something move there in the bushes, and I’m positive that it wasn’t an -animal that walks on four legs.” - -Just then, an object lying on the ground, immediately ahead, drove every -other thought from his mind. With a glad cry he sprang forward, and, a -short time later, stood looking down at the prostrate body of the bull -moose, majestic even in death. - -A lump arose in Dick’s throat as he stood there silently regarding it. -“Poor old fellow,” he breathed, “it was a shame to do this. But perhaps -you saved us from starving. Maybe——” - -A shout close at hand roused Dick from his musings. Wheeling about his -eyes lighted with pride and happiness, as he espied the approaching -figures of Sandy and Toma. - -“Good for you!” Sandy exclaimed, as he strode up to where his chum was -standing. “I just knew you’d do it. Say, I believe it’s the biggest -moose I ever saw.” - -“You ketch um big fella,” complimented Toma. “It is good.” - -Together the three young adventurers stood admiring the moose. So -interested had they become that not one of them caught the sound of -stealthy footsteps until a heavy, threatening form, followed by three -others, pushed its way within the circle of admiring eyes. - -With a cry of warning, Dick sprang back, clutching his rifle tightly. -Then he looked at the man. - -It was Pierre Govereau! - - - - - CHAPTER IX - PIERRE GOVEREAU - - -Govereau advanced menacingly. Backed by the rifles of the three -villainous looking men with him, the three boys could do nothing. - -“What you do wiz my moose?” Govereau snarled. - -“Do you mean to say you shot that moose!” Dick exclaimed angrily. - -“It iss so,” Govereau avowed brazenly. - -“You lie!” Dick exclaimed hotly. “I shot that moose. I can prove it. -What do you mean by holding us up this way. We have done you no harm.” - -“It iss Henderson bizness—zat.” Govereau turned and signaled his men to -bind the three young men. - -“You’ll sweat for this,” Dick gritted. - -“Not so much as you,” Govereau taunted. “Young fellas like you should -stay home wiz zee mamma.” - -Dick gritted his teeth again, but resolved to keep his mouth shut. He -must save his breath to get Sandy and Toma out of the mess. It must have -been Govereau’s men watching him when he had felt so queer on the trail -of the wounded moose. - -Dick did not resist the moose-hide thongs as they were bound mercilessly -tight about his wrists. Sandy and Toma followed his example. There were -other ways of getting the better of Govereau, and it might be easier if -they submitted, or seemed to submit, mildly to capture. - -They could see one of the men slicing steaks from the moose haunch -before, at a guttural command, they were started off into the woods, -northward along Limping Dog Creek. - -An hour’s tramping brought them to Govereau’s camp, four miles up the -creek. The scar faced Indian was there to greet them. He leered at the -captives hatefully. Dick felt that the Indian knew one of them had shot -him at the camp forty miles away, and that the savage would do anything -in his power to wreak vengeance. - -Govereau had made his headquarters in an old cabin, deserted by some -trapper. There were two rooms, and the three young captives were shoved -into the smaller of them, their hands still bound behind them. Probably -their captors realized they would soon untie themselves, but since with -the huge oaken bolt shot on the door, there was no way of getting out of -the room, they did not bother themselves about it. - -“Well?” Dick turned to Toma and Sandy, when at last they were left -alone. - -Toma’s face was as stolid as ever. Sandy had nothing to say. He sat down -on the bunk at one side of the room. - -“I guess we’re in a pickle, all right,” Sandy said at last. - -Dick paced back and forth twice, then stopped before the door, which he -carefully inspected. The door seemed heavy enough to repel the attack of -a battering ram, say nothing of three boys. Dick turned back to Sandy -and Toma. “Govereau will question us now, I suppose,” Dick spoke -rapidly. “And he’ll probably take us out separately to see if our -stories are the same. He’ll want to know just how much we know of -Henderson’s movements and what we are trying to do against him.” - -“What shall we say?” Sandy scratched his head. Toma said nothing. The -young Indian seemed to feel that the situation was beyond his ability to -handle. - -“We’ll tell Govereau that we have been visiting the factor at Fort du -Lac—spending our vacation there, and that we were on our way south—to -return home. How’s that?” - -“That sounds all right,” Sandy responded, a little dubiously. - -“No go so far east if go south from Fort du Lac,” Toma’s dark eyes -blinked rapidly. - -Dick thought a minute. “Then suppose we have some one at Fort Dunwoody -that we want to see before we leave for home—a cousin.” - -“That’s the trick,” Sandy agreed enthusiastically. - -“Then we all understand what we’re to tell,” Dick resumed. “Toma, how -about it?” - -“I tell um,” was the taciturn reply. - -“If Govereau believes our story he may let us go,” Dick concluded. “If -he learns the truth he may do something worse than just hold us behind a -locked door.” - -All three were silent for a time while Dick paced back and forth. Upon -his shoulders he realized was now the bulk of responsibility. Toma might -excel him on the trail, where native woodcraft and instinctive stealth -was the chief requirement, but in the present situation Toma was at best -only a willing servant. And it was Sandy’s nature to depend upon his -chum, himself only offering what suggestions occurred to his lower mind. - -“I’ve a plan to escape, if this first scheme fails!” Dick suddenly -stopped his pacing and looked about him. - -Sandy jumped as if shot, so sudden was Dick’s exclamation. “Let’s hear -it,” the young Scotch lad cried eagerly. Toma brightened. - -Dick turned to Toma. “Sandy or I would be glad to do this,” he addressed -the young guide, “but it’s just about impossible for us. Can I depend on -your support, Toma?” - -“I do my best; what you say I do?” Toma promised sincerely. - -“My plan is this: when Govereau questions you, Toma, you are to express -a desire to join him—to turn against us. See? With you on the outside -there’s much more chance of escaping than with all three of us in here. -Can you do it, Toma?” - -“I try.” - -“Then I’ll leave everything to you once you get outside. Of course, -Govereau may get wise to what you are up to. But, again, he’s no doubt -pretty anxious to get more men in his band.” - -As Dick concluded his instructions, there came a noise at the door, and -the bolt was shot back. A sharp, rat-like face, that of a half-breed, -was pushed in. “You come,” said the man, indicating Dick. - -Dick and Sandy both realized that a crisis was at hand. If they revealed -their real mission to Govereau they would without doubt never reach the -mounted police. Perhaps they would not reach them anyway, yet there was -a good chance that Govereau might let them go if they convinced him of -their ignorance of any of Henderson’s business. - -“Good luck, Dick,” Sandy’s voice was a little husky. - -“Never mind, old boy, I’ll make out,” Dick cheered him. - -Toma was visibly affected, and Dick reassured him also. Short as the -time had been that Toma had been with them, there seemed already a -strong bond of friendship between the young Indian and the two young -adventurers. - -Dick squared his shoulders and followed the rat-faced half-breed into -the other room. Dick now faced Pierre Govereau. The Frenchman was seated -at a board table across from the door which just had been closed after -Dick. At one side of the room a huge fireplace roared and crackled. The -rat-faced half-breed went over and squatted before the fire, picking up -a red-hot iron in a pair of tongs. Dick Kent shivered as he saw what the -man was doing. But he met Govereau’s eyes unflinchingly. - -“What iss zee bizness you bean on when you make for zee Fort Dunwoody?” -Govereau came straight to the point. - -“My friend and I are visiting in Canada,” replied Dick cooly. “The -factor at Fort du Lac was an old friend of my chum’s father. I have a -cousin in Fort Dunwoody that we wanted to call on before we went home.” - -“I zink you lie,” growled Govereau. He sat silent for a moment, glaring -at Dick as if he would hypnotize the young man with his snake-like eyes. -But Dick’s gaze did not falter. - -“Why you fear my men?” Govereau’s voice cracked like a whip. - -Dick hesitated a moment. Sandy’s uncle’s welfare might depend upon his -misleading the villainous Govereau. “We had been told there were bandits -along the trail to the fort,” Dick replied in a clear voice. - -“Haw!” scoffed Henderson’s lieutenant, and wheeled to the half-breed at -the fireplace. “Napio, zee iron now. We make zee young upstart talk -right.” - -Dick recoiled slightly as the Indian arose and came forward with a short -piece of iron, red hot and smoking in the tongs. Govereau came out from -behind the table. Dick’s hands were still tied behind him. The Frenchman -seized Dick in an iron grasp and tore away his shirt front. - -“You tell zee truth now,” Govereau hissed. “Queeck, Napio!” - -The iron was pushed close to Dick’s naked breast. He could feel the heat -of it already searing his skin. - -Then the door opened and the half-breed hesitated. Govereau turned, -snarling at the interruption. An Indian stood in the door. - -“Men all go way,” said the intruder. “They drink firewater. M’sieu -Govereau, you come bring them back.” - -“Throw him back in. We finish wiz him tonight,” Govereau ordered the -half-breed. “Bring zee young white one. I come soon,” he waved away the -Indian at the door. - -Dick reeled into Sandy’s arms a minute later as he was roughly pushed -into the back room. “He’ll call you next, Sandy,” Dick gasped a little -weakly. “If he asks you why you feared his men, say you thought they -were bandits.” - -Sandy pressed Dick’s arm to signify he understood and followed the -rat-faced half-breed out into the front room. Dick and Toma waited only -a few minutes before the door opened and Sandy was pushed in once more. -Govereau had not attempted to torture Sandy. He seemed in a hurry to go -after his men. They could hear him cursing through even those thick, log -walls, for Sandy’s story had tallied with Dick’s. - -It was Toma’s turn next, and Dick talked earnestly with the guide as to -the method he was to use in convincing Govereau of his desires to be a -traitor to his white friends. Dick was now certain that Govereau would -not believe their story. Toma was their last chance. - -They waited for some time before Toma was called. Then the half-breed -came again, and beckoned to the guide. In high suspense Dick and Sandy -watched him disappear through the door. - -In a half hour they took courage. Toma had not come back. They waited an -hour and still Toma was not thrown back among them. Their spirits rose. -Toma had then convinced Govereau of his sincerity. - -It was growing dark now, and at any moment Dick expected Govereau to -call for him again. The Frenchman seemed to have a personal enmity for -Dick, perhaps because of the young man’s refusal to be cowed by -browbeating. - -“What if Toma really does turn traitor?” Sandy broke a long silence. “I -heard Uncle Walter say these Indians couldn’t be trusted too far.” - -“I don’t know why, but I trust Toma absolutely,” Dick replied -confidently, “that Indian is smarter than we think. If Govereau really -is convinced that Toma is going in with him we’ll soon be out of here. -When I think what your uncle may be going through up there, I can’t sit -still.” - -“Well, he couldn’t get much worse than we have already,” Sandy returned -grimly. “Gee, I never thought we’d come to this when we left Fort du -Lac.” - -“I could stand it better if I wasn’t so hungry and thirsty,” Dick -declared. - -“You said it,” Sandy heartily sanctioned. “I guess they’re going to -starve us too.” - -“Do you notice it’s growing colder?” Dick asked presently. - -“I thought maybe it was because we didn’t have any fire.” - -“I remember Toma said we were due for a blizzard,” Dick recalled. - -“Funny why Govereau doesn’t call one of us out again,” Sandy mused. - -“He’s after his men I expect. An Indian reported they were drinking -while I was being questioned. The fellow saved me from being tortured.” - -Engaging in a wandering conversation, Dick and Sandy whiled away two -more long hours, in which they managed to untie each other’s wrists, and -kept warm by walking back and forth and swinging their arms. They were -almost certain now that Govereau had gone. If so, then if Toma hadn’t -been forced to go with the Frenchman, he would be more able to help -them. - -It was along toward morning when Dick started up out of a doze to hear -the sound of a blow and the muffled fall of a body in the front room. -There was a sharp stifled cry. Then Dick shook Sandy to wakefulness. - -“What is it?” whispered Sandy, leaping to his feet. - -“S-s-sh,” Dick cautioned. - -Through the darkness in the room they could hear the heavy wooden bolt -on the door of their prison sliding backward. - - - - - CHAPTER X - TOMA AND A COLD SNAP - - -With bated breath Dick and Sandy awaited some sign of the identity of -the person who was entering so stealthily. Was it the scar faced Indian -coming for vengeance, or was it—the warmth from the other room was -rushing in. It was Toma’s voice that came to them. - -“Quick! Come! Govereau gone long way.” - -Hearts leaping with joy, Dick and Sandy joined the young guide in the -darkness. He led them out into the larger room, picking his way with a -certainty that revealed he could see in the dark. - -“Watch for one fella on floor. I hit him on head with rifle,” Toma -whispered. “Govereau’s men all go to post ten miles south where they -drink fire-water. Govereau heap mad. Him after them. They come back -anytime. He take me long with um. I run away. He know what I do now. You -bet he know.” - -Toma swung open the cabin door, and Dick and Sandy followed him out. It -was so cold their teeth commenced chattering almost immediately. They -buttoned up their jackets and hurried off into the night. - -“We’ll make Fort Dunwoody yet,” Dick shivered, almost gladly. - -“I’ll say we will,” Sandy came back. - -Then they fell silent as they took Toma’s tireless, jogging pace, -beneath a cloudy sky. Again the Indian’s trail wisdom came in like a -God-send. Dick and Sandy did not know where they were going, but they -had a feeling that Toma certainly did. - -How long they ran they did not know when they began to feel damp spots -on their cheeks and hands. - -“It’s snowing,” Dick panted over his shoulder. - -“I know it,” wheezed Sandy. - -“Ought to cover our trail,” Dick came back. - -“I guess so, but I can’t talk. I’ve got to save my wind. You must be -made of iron.” - -Dick said no more, and presently Toma slowed down. It was snowing -heavily now, and with the going getting harder underfoot, Dick and Sandy -were grateful for the slackening of the pace. Yet they sensed something -unusual ahead had been the cause of it, and were not perfectly at ease -by any means. - -Finally Toma came to a dead stop at the edge of a clearing. Peering -ahead through the gloom and the falling snow, they could see the lights -of a cabin twinkling. - -“You stay here; I go on,” Toma instructed in a low voice. “My brother -live here. Him give us warm clothes. I see if all right first. Wait for -me.” - -Dick and Sandy hovered in the undergrowth and watched Toma’s figure melt -away into the gloom in the direction of the cabin. - -“I hope he gets some clothes for us,” Sandy chattered. - -“And I’m glad Govereau didn’t take my wallet,” said Dick. “We can pay -for what we get now.” - -“The Frenchman didn’t think we had any money, I suppose,” Sandy opined. - -They fell silent then, for against the lighted window they could see a -head silhouetted through the falling snow. Toma was peering in at the -window. For an instant the guide’s head was outlined there, then it -disappeared. Presently a shaft of light shot out over the snow as the -door opened and closed. A moment later the door opened again, though the -boys could not see who entered. - -Dick and Sandy expected Toma to come back for them almost immediately, -or at least signal that all was right. But the minutes passed and the -guide did not return nor make a sign. The boys began to worry. - -“What do you suppose is keeping him?” Dick wondered. - -“I don’t know,” Sandy replied, “but I do know I can’t stand still in -this cold much longer.” - -“We’ll circle around the cabin and come in closer,” Dick directed. “If -something has happened we want to be sure we don’t get into trouble, -too. Toma’s brother may have been killed by Henderson’s men. The country -seems to be alive with the villains.” - -Silently they started around the cabin. Half way around, Dick stumbled -and fell over something in the snow. Sandy stopped dead and a gasp of -horror came from his lips. - -“Dick!” he exclaimed. “You’ve fallen over a dead man!” - -Dick got up, more shaken by the identity of the thing he had fallen over -than by the fall. - -Covered by the light film of snow that had fallen, and which was -steadily growing heavier, was the body of a man. In the gloom they could -not distinguish his features, but they were put on their guard. Armed -only with their hunting knives, they felt that the utmost caution must -be exercised in further advances. - -“Toma’s in trouble. I know it now!” Dick ejaculated. - -“Well, it’s up to us to get him out,” Sandy retorted. - -Drawing their knives they started stealthily for the cabin. They could -hear no sound of life, and the knowledge of what was lying behind them -under the snow made the atmosphere doubly fearsome. - -At last they reached the single window through which they had seen Toma -look into the cabin. Dick cautiously raised his eyes over the sill. He -looked only an instant, then he quickly ducked downward. - -“It’s the scar faced Indian!” he made the astounding disclosure to -Sandy. “And there’s another with him. They have Toma bound. He’s lying -on the bunk. I could see his eyes. They’re playing cards and talking. -How in the world did they ever catch Toma?” - -“That Indian again,” muttered Sandy. “How the deuce did he get here -anyway. We saw him last at Govereau’s camp. It’s ghostly the way that -fellow shows up everywhere.” - -“Govereau must have sent him here on some dirty business,” Dick decided. -“Perhaps Toma’s brother had valuable furs stored here.” - - -With mutual consent they crawled away from the cabin and hid in the -trees at the edge of the clearing, where they tried to decide on a plan -by which to rescue Toma. That they had a good chance of success they -were sure. The scar-faced Indian had the use of but one arm since the -wound Toma had given him, so they had but one real man to deal with. -Still they were as well as unarmed. What could they do? - -“I’ll tell you what,” Dick was speaking fast. “You go out into the woods -and begin calling for help, anything to get one of them out of the -cabin. Then I’ll slip in and see if I can’t take care of the other one -and get hold of a rifle. The Indian will probably stay inside, and -wounded as he is I’m sure I can handle him.” - -“Gee! That’s a ghostly job you have for me to do,” Sandy whispered -ruefully. - -“We’ve got to do it, Sandy,” urged Dick. “It won’t hurt to try. You keep -hidden, and when one of them comes out to see what’s wrong, keep quiet. -I’ll do the rest.” - -Dick and Sandy gripped hands, then parted. Dick crept around to a point -opposite the door of the cabin, waiting tensely until Sandy began his -part of the ruse. He did not have to wait long. Presently, from afar in -the forest, a shriek as of some one in mortal agony, arose. Sandy was -doing well. - -“H-e-l-p, oh, h-e-l-p,” his voice rang out, high and shrill. - -Sandy repeated his call several times, then the cabin door opened, and -as Dick had hoped, the scar faced Indian’s companion came out. He had a -rifle in his hands. - -Again Sandy’s cry rang out from a little further off. The man hesitated -no longer, but stepped from the cabin door and walked across the -clearing into the trees to investigate. He disappeared in the direction -of Sandy’s unearthly wailing. - -Dick ran forward across the clearing, his moccasins making no noise in -the snow. He remembered that the scar faced Indian had been sitting at -the table facing the window. Therefore, if he had not changed his -position, his back would be to the door. - -Pausing before the door, Dick found it open a crack. Cautiously he -pushed it open a little more and peered in. The Indian still was sitting -with his back to the door. He was idly shuffling the cards. Against the -bunk where Toma lay bound, Dick could see a rifle leaning. One leap -across the floor and he would have this rifle. It was a desperate -chance, but he must make the best of it. - -Swift as a panther, Dick threw open the door and leaped in. The -astonished Indian was scarcely half out of his chair when Dick had the -rifle in his hands. - -“Hands up!” he cried. - -Whether the Indian understood English or not, Dick did not know, but his -words had the required effect. Slowly the scar-faced Indian turned his -ugly face upon his captor, his mouth twisted into an evil, smirking -grin. Dick stepped forward and drew the revolver from his captive’s belt -and tossed it into a corner. Then he backed toward the bunk with the -rifle still trained on the Indian. Quickly, he drew his knife and -slashed Toma’s bonds. - -“Ha! Now we got um!” Toma tore the gag from his mouth, leaned up and -picked up the revolver Dick had thrown away. In a trice, then, Toma had -lashed the scar-faced Indian to his chair. - -Dick already was expecting the return of the Indian’s companion. With -the Indian secured, both Toma and he turned their attention to the door. -With bated breath they waited and listened for approaching footfalls. - - - - - CHAPTER XI - SLUSH ICE - - -Toma and Dick no longer could hear Sandy hallooing, and Dick judged that -his chum was safely in hiding. Yet, as they waited, guns trained on the -door, a rifle shot shattered the silence. It came from the direction -taken by the man who had gone to investigate the calls for help. Dick’s -face paled. What did it mean? Had poor Sandy fallen? Had the man found -him? - -“I’m going out,” Dick said tensely to Toma a moment later. - -Whatever Toma’s reply was Dick did not hear it, for with an impatient -leap he flung open the door and disappeared. Toma remained behind, not -sure that his young white friend’s move had been wise, yet believing he -could do more to help if he stayed in the cabin. - -When Dick left the cabin he made straight for the point from which he -thought the rifle shot had come. It was growing lighter. In the east a -faint gray fan of light showed over the forest—dawn. He ran on for a -little way, then he came upon tracks. Pursuing these at a run, he came -in sight of the man who had left the cabin an hour before. The meeting -was a surprise for both. - -Dick dodged behind a tree as the other fired from his hip. The ball -whizzed harmlessly over Dick’s head, and he shot hastily. His shot also -went wild, but the other took to his heels. Dick did not pursue him, but -began calling for Sandy. Presently he was rewarded by a distant shout -and in a few minutes the chums were reunited. - -“Did he shoot at you?” Dick queried anxiously. - -“No, I don’t know what he shot at. Maybe he thought it was me,” Sandy -replied. “I’m half frozen. Gosh, it seemed hours out here.” - -“Let’s hurry back to the cabin,” Dick hastened. “Toma is there, and -we’ve captured the scar faced Indian.” - -Sandy was too cold to care how many Indians had been captured, and he -hobbled along after Dick like a stiff, old man. - -“I hope Toma is all right,” Dick said anxiously as they neared the -cabin. - -On the threshold of the cabin they stood a moment later in stark -amazement. Toma lay bleeding and silent on the floor, and the scar faced -Indian was gone! - -“Well, if that doesn’t beat anything!” Dick ejaculated, rushing to Toma. - -The young guide came to at the application of a little water. His head -had been struck with something; an overturned chair revealed what the -escaped Indian had probably used. - -“He slip out ropes some way,” Toma explained when he could sit up once -more. “I watch door when him jump on me. That all I know.” - -“I’m glad you’re alive—that’s all I can say,” Dick said thankfully. - -“Hello, what’s this?” Sandy hurried from the fireplace where he had been -warming himself to the crude wooden table. A slip of paper with writing -on it lay among the scattered playing cards. Dick also hastened forward -and read the roughly scrawled words: - - Pierre Govereau: - - Send Many-Scar Jackson and Swede to Big John Toma’s cabin. We want the - black fox fur he has hidden there. - - BEAR HENDERSON. - -Dick and Sandy read it aloud to Toma. - -“This my big brother’s cabin,” Toma explained simply. “Last night I see -no one when look in window. I go in. That Many-Scar and other fella come -in, ketch me. I not know where Big John is. They not find um black fox. -Big John sell um black fox t’ree weeks go by.” - -Dick and Sandy dropped their eyes. They now felt sure who the man was -that Dick had fallen over—the dead man. How could they tell Toma? At -last Dick took the guide’s arm. Silently they went out, Sandy following. - -Toma showed no emotion as they showed him the body partly covered with -snow. He might have been a wooden image as he said quietly: - -“Him Big John Toma; I know before I see. I feel he dead. That -Many-Scar——” something choked off his voice. His dark eyes suddenly -flashed and glowed like coals of fire. - -“I wouldn’t give ten cents for Many-Scar’s life, slick as that Indian -is,” Sandy whispered. - -Dick nodded. - -Though all felt they had no time to lose, since Govereau’s men might be -expected to follow them, they could not leave Toma’s brother without -burial. - -All three set to work under the spruce trees, hacking through the frozen -soil with axes. In a half hour they had dug a shallow grave. Wrapped in -blankets, they gently lowered the body of Big John Toma to its last -resting place. - -Dick fashioned a rude cross from two saplings, which he showed to Toma. -The young Indian nodded. “Good; him Christian—me too,” said the guide. - -When they had placed the last sod on the mound, Dick and Sandy left -their friend alone by the grave and went to the cabin to prepare for -continuing their journey. They found much pemmican and dried fish, upon -which Big John Toma had existed, but nowhere any flour or coffee. By the -time they had arranged shoulder packs and had donned whatever warm -clothes they had found, Toma had joined them. He seemed his old self -once more, though Dick and Sandy knew that behind his mask of -indifference was deep sorrow and a mighty resolve for the redskin’s -revenge upon the murderer of his brother. The guide refused to take the -money Dick offered him for the food and clothing they had taken from Big -John’s cabin. - -“We three days from Fort Dunwoody now,” Toma told them when they were -ready for the trail. “Not sure we make um three days. Big blizzard come -pretty soon now. Mebbe tomorrow. We get um dog sled then. Need um bad.” - -All that day Toma led them due southeast, across higher ground, where -vegetation was sparse. They crossed one shallow valley where there were -no trees at all, and upon a ridge at the other side made camp. It was an -advantageous spot from which to watch the back trail, and before they -started on they were disturbed by the sight of three tiny figures. The -men were undoubtedly on their trail. Straight across the valley they -toiled and they were coming fast. - -“I’ll bet it’s Govereau!” Dick exclaimed in alarm. - -“Yes, and it looks as if we were only about three miles ahead of him,” -Sandy declared. “Let’s get a move on. I don’t want to get mixed up with -him again.” - -“Neither do I,” Dick heartily agreed. - -Toma was of the same mind, and they all set off at a fast pace when once -more they took to the trail. They felt confident they could lengthen the -lead on their pursuers, but two hours after noon, when they paused to -rest on a high ridge, they looked back and were astounded to see the -three men not more than a mile behind them. - -“Them best trail men Govereau got,” Toma protected his own prowess on -finding that he had been outpaced. - -They started on again, doubling their former speed. A half hour more -brought them to the banks of a river. - -“Him Saskatoon River,” Toma told them. “Him full slush ice. We make um -raft in hurry; get over, then we safe from Govereau.” - -Dick and Sandy looked off across the sullen expanse of the Saskatoon. As -Toma had said, it was filled with a slow-moving mass of slush, formed by -night freezes and day thaws. - -They fell to work like Trojans on a raft, lashing dead logs together -with tiny saplings and tough vines. It was a cumbersome raft that they -at last shoved out into the icy stream. With poles to propel the -unwieldy craft, they began the perilous trip across the river. The delay -caused by the building of the raft had given their pursuers time to -overtake them, and at any moment they expected to hear a shout or rifle -shots from the shore they were slowly leaving behind. - -One side of the raft was heavier than the other, and out in the current -they came near being spilled off, before they followed Toma’s example -and balanced the logs by shifting their weight from side to side. - -Pushing on desperately, they reached midstream, when their pursuers -reached the river. But the few shots that were fired fell short. The -boys had poled the raft out of range. Waving their hands to the -chagrined men they reached the other shore and, abandoning their raft, -hastened on. - -Once more snow was spitting out of the gray heavens, and it was growing -steadily colder. They hiked for three miles, then Toma advised a halt -The guide began immediately throwing up a shelter of boughs. Dick and -Sandy helped with a will, and they finished none too soon. With the fall -of night the blizzard Toma had prophesied swept down upon them like a -thousand, shrieking demons. - - - - - CHAPTER XII - THE BLIZZARD - - -When the boys awoke on the following morning, numb and stiff from cold -in spite of the protection of their crudely constructed shelter, a full -six inches of snow covered the surface of their blankets. - -“Snow make um much warmer to sleep,” Toma explained to them, as he -crawled out of his bed, very much as a husky gets out of a snowdrift. - -Dick turned his eyes towards the open door of the shelter and shivered. -Contrary to his expectations the storm had not abated during the night. -A shining, white wall of snow almost shut out any view of their camp -surroundings, while the wind continued to howl furiously. - -To all appearances, the boys were shut in by the high, white walls of a -snow prison. Snow sifted in the door of their shelter and through the -numerous cracks in the walls. - -“I’m not crazy about getting up,” Sandy observed, with a seriousness -that brought a laugh from Dick and Toma. “Anyhow, nobody can get -anywhere in a storm like this.” - -“The wind, she blow from northwest,” Toma cut in. “No get lost when wind -blow hard like that. Keep wind on left side. No like—but better than -stay here.” - -The young guide counted slowly on his fingers, and went on: - -“Me know place where young Indian live. Him called Raoul Testawich. Got -um cabin nice and warm, an’ mebbe we ketch um good dog team there.” - -“Fine!” exclaimed Dick, “we’ll make a try for it. Sure you won’t get -lost?” - -Toma shook his head. - -“No,” said the guide, with assurance. “I find way all right. Best thing -we go.” - -Somewhere in the back of Dick’s mind there was some doubt as to the -advisability of facing such a storm, yet he had implicit faith in the -prowess of Toma, and he did not question the young Indian’s ability. - -“It’ll be great to get near a warm fireplace again,” said Dick. “What do -you say, Sandy?” - -Sandy’s answer was to spring up out of his blankets and commence -immediate preparations for breakfast. A fire was started with -considerable difficulty, and less than an hour later the three boys were -on the trail again, walking Indian file with Toma in the lead. - -But the storm was worse even than they had anticipated. It was fury -unleashed, it sucked the very breath out of their mouths and blew -through their mackinaws as if they had been cheesecloth. Dick imagined -that the weight of the snow-laden air alone was sufficient to prevent -any long continued trek across that blinding field of white. - -Taking turns breaking trail, they proceeded at a slow pace, puffing with -exertion. And always they kept the wind on their left, Toma calling out -encouragement from time to time to keep up the spirits of his -less-hardened and less-experienced comrades. - -Moisture froze on their coat collars, formed by the warmth of their -breath against the freezing wind. Breathing became more and more -difficult, and Sandy, the weaker physically of the three, began to -complain of aching muscles and finally stopped short, panting heavily. - -“I’m tired out,” he gasped, “——all in. Dick, I don’t believe I can go a -step further. Can’t we sit down and rest?” - -Dick was on the point of acceding to Sandy’s request, when Toma, several -paces in the lead, came back, crying out his disapproval. - -“No! No!” shouted the guide above the howling of the wind. “No do that; -get um legs all stiffened up. Bye an’ bye can’t move. Mebbe we better go -slower, but no sit down.” - -“I’ll try to go on,” declared Sandy bravely, “but you fellows better -stop now and then to give me a chance to breathe. I tell you I’m all -in.” - -And so they went on, bracing themselves against the fury of the wind, -shuffling forward through mounting drifts, in places piled waist high, -as if to block their progress. On several occasions, so violent was the -storm that it was impossible to see anything. Once, fighting their way -through a smothering fog of white, Toma shouted out a warning. - -They were traveling down a sharp incline at the time, attempting to -reach a river bottom, where towering cliffs would protect them somewhat -from the force of the wind. Toma shouted to them. His keen ears had -detected a sound other than that made by the blizzard. It was a -different sound, and he had heard it before—a queer rumbling, followed -by a mighty roar. - -With a quickness born of desperation, the guide seized Dick and Sandy by -the arms and pulled them out of the path of an almost certain death. - -As the boys stood trembling and appalled at the deafening tumult about -them, what seemed at first a vast mountain of snow, went shooting past, -carrying everything before it. The snowslide left in its wake nothing -but a wide belt of barren ground—even huge rocks had been torn away from -the earth and hurtled on into the storm. - -“That was close enough to suit me,” declared Sandy in a tragic whisper, -as the boys continued their descent. “I’ve never seen a snowslide -before, and I don’t wish to see another one. Do you feel shaky, Dick?” - -“Yes, I do,” admitted Dick, his cheeks slightly pale. “I thought the -entire upper part of the valley wall was falling in on us.” He turned to -Toma. “Do you suppose,” he inquired, “that it’ll be safe to go down?” - -The Indian lad shook his head thoughtfully. - -“Me no can tell. Mebbe more snowslide after while. We take chance—that’s -all.” - -Dick and Sandy hesitated. - -“Perhaps we’d better not go down to the river,” said Dick. “It may be a -wiser plan to keep up above, where there isn’t the danger from these -avalanches. No use to risk our lives needlessly,” he pointed out. - -Their guide grunted something under his breath, then looked up, his -sober, dark eyes twinkling. - -“Snowslide catch us in the valley,” he pronounced. “Big blizzard catch -us on top. Which way you like die best?” - -At any other time the two boys would have seen the humor in the -situation, but at that particular moment neither Sandy nor Dick felt -that there was anything funny about it. For a brief interval they stood, -deep in thought, their two youthful faces clouded with apprehension. - -“It makes no difference to me which way I die,” declared Sandy at -length, kicking disconsolately at the trunk of a small tree, which had -been uprooted by the force of the snowslide. “We’re more than half way -down to the river now, so what’s the use of turning back. My choice is -the valley. At least, we can travel faster down there, with more -protection from the storm.” - -“You’re right,” agreed Dick, “I choose the valley, too. Do you think we -can reach your friend Raoul’s place before dark?” - -“Best we can do it take three hours from here,” replied Toma, “an’ night -come early. One hour more mebbe an’ then we no see at all. Dark all -’round. Travel very slow then. Raoul him live on top of river bank ten, -fifteen miles from here.” - -Without further word, the three boys made their way quickly down to the -floor of the valley and proceeded on their way. Beneath their feet was -the frozen course of the Bad Heart River, winding forth through a white -world of weird, irregular cliffs, now deeply mantled with snow. - -“This is better,” Sandy growled, looking up to where the storm broke -above their heads. “I never would have thought it would make so much -difference being down here. You can actually see a little and hardly -feel the wind at all.” - -“Fine!” answered Dick. “But save your breath, Sandy. You’ll need it.” - -Monotonously, heavily, the moccasined feet of the three snow-covered -figures crunched along the unbroken trail. In the lead, Toma glided -ahead with an untiring energy that filled Dick with admiration. He -wondered what the young half-breed was thinking about. Was he, too, -secretly fearful of some new impending danger lurking in their path? - -He noticed presently that the shadows, flung across the floor of the -valley, were gradually becoming darker and darker, a heavy dusk had -settled around them. Toma, barely four feet away, was a vague, -indistinct blur, completely shutting off his view of the trail in front -of him. - -That the fury of the blizzard had not abated, was easily apparent. He -could still hear the wind howling above their heads, and feel the snow -as it sifted quietly down. At every step his feet sunk into the soft, -yielding surface, and his heart pounded like a trip-hammer from the -continuous, never-ending exertion. - -“How much farther?” Sandy demanded, a note of despair in his voice. “How -much farther, Toma?” - -“No can tell.” - -Sandy mumbled and complained to himself. He came stumbling and panting -behind Dick, keeping up an incessant babbling or muttering that filled -his friend with alarm. - -“How much farther?” he asked again. - -Toma grunted. - -“No can tell.” - -A snort of fury seized upon Sandy. With a strangled, despairing cry, he -sprang forward past Dick and seized Toma by the shoulder. - -“Listen to me you, you—Indian. I’ve got a right to know how far we’ve -gone. Come on, now—out with it!” - -Toma turned as if to brush off the detaining hand, when Sandy struck out -with all the force of his right arm. It was an unexpected blow which -sent the young Indian guide staggering to his knees. Aghast, scarcely -believing his senses, Dick stood in bewilderment for a moment unable to -move. With incredible speed, his companion had sprung forward again, his -fumbling, eager hands encircling Toma’s throat. - -“Stop it!” shrieked Dick. - -A shrill, unearthly shout, terrible in that utter desolation, seemed to -freeze Dick’s blood. Toma and Sandy were at grips, struggling, rolling—a -dark, almost indistinguishable ball against the gray background of -billowing drifts. - -“Stop it!” roared Dick again, and, jumping in, endeavored to separate -them. He was still somewhat dazed over the sudden, unexpected turn -events had taken. What had happened to Sandy? What was the meaning of -that unwarranted attack upon the kindly young Indian guide? Had the -hardship and severe nervous strain of the past few days, proved too much -for his friend? Desperately he tugged and pulled at the two combatants, -finally breathing a sigh of thankfulness as Toma rolled on top, -successfully pinning the arms of his assailant. - -“Fight all gone,” declared the victor between gasps of exhaustion, -raising one hand to wipe away the blood trickling from a cut over his -left eye. “Hm, poor fellow go sleep bye an bye. Trail too much. Worry -too much. All make him mad like grizzly caught in trap, an’ fight like -grizzly till strength all gone.” - -Toma arose, brushing the snow from his clothing, then placed a still -trembling hand on Dick’s arm. - -“Him lay there all night—huh?” he inquired. “What you think we do next? -What you think?” - -Disconsolately, Dick gazed out into the black pall of darkness which had -gathered around them. - -“Toma,” he inquired presently, “do you believe Sandy will feel better -after a while? Will he be able to get up and walk again?” - -“Him walk no more tonight,” stated Toma with conviction. - -“In that case, there’s only one thing to do. I’ll camp here with Sandy -while you go on to your friend’s house for help. Do you think you can -make it, Toma?” - -“You start ’em fire here,” instructed the Indian. “Me make it all right. -Get back two, three hours, mebbe, with dog team and take poor Sandy to -warm bed. Please no worry if I be little late.” - -“No,” answered Dick, gulping down a hard substance in his throat. -“Good-bye and good luck to you, Toma. I’ll be here when you return.” - -Not a suspicious moisture, but real tears were standing in Dick’s eyes a -few minutes later as he and the young half-breed separated over the -recumbent body of Sandy. A single, warm hand-clasp, then Toma was away, -his footfalls sounding faintly through the dark. - - - - - CHAPTER XIII - DICK SEES A GHOST - - -Several hours had passed since Toma’s departure, and the fire Dick had -kindled had burned down to a mass of glowing, red embers. The still -falling snow hissed and sputtered over the coals. Off in the distance a -few wolves howled. Sandy lay stretched out at Dick’s feet and the owner -of the feet himself drowsed and nodded in a futile effort to keep awake. - -He recovered consciousness a few moments later, however, when a -half-burned stick, lying on the outer edge of the fire, crackled forth -suddenly like a cap in a toy pistol. In an instant he was wide-eyed and -alert, his eyes straining towards the outer rim of darkness. He could -see nothing. - -“Dreaming again,” he grumbled to himself, looking down at Sandy, and -wondering how much time had elapsed since the young Indian guide had set -out on his perilous journey through the storm. Then his thoughts turned -to the happenings of the day. - -One thing that bothered Dick, and which he had not yet explained -entirely to his own satisfaction, was Sandy’s strange behavior a few -hours previous. The young Scotchman’s violent and unwarranted attack -upon Toma was not in the least like the usual happy-go-lucky conduct -that Dick had ascribed to his friend. Of course, he had heard many times -before, of similar cases where men, driven to the limit of physical -exertion, had acted queerly. It was a sort of temporary mental breakdown -preceding physical collapse. What Sandy needed was a good sleep, -followed by a day or two of complete rest. He’d probably feel better in -the morning. - -For the next few minutes Dick busied himself in gathering more wood for -the fire. His first duty was to keep himself and Sandy warm, as warm as -possible in their hastily improvised camp there in the inadequate -shelter of the river bottom. - -“Toma will be back in an hour or two,” he thought to himself, “and then -everything will be all right.” - -He looked down at Sandy, whom he had bundled up in their two blankets -and hoped devoutly that nothing had happened which might delay the young -Indian’s safe return. Although not in the least doubting the guide’s -prowess, Dick had learned to his sorrow that Govereau’s opposition was -not the only factor to be considered in the successful carrying out of -their plans. - -“There is always this blamed wilderness to contend with,” ruminated -Dick. “Treacherous rivers, forest fires, wild beasts, the danger of -freezing to death in the extreme cold or getting lost in a blizzard. -Sometimes I think——” - -Exactly what Dick thought will probably never be recorded. He woke -suddenly from his preoccupation, a look of fear in his eyes, every nerve -tingling as if tiny electric wires ran close to the surface of his skin. -A slight sound somewhere out there in the enveloping darkness had caught -his attention. In addition, there had quickly come over him a vague -feeling that he and Sandy were not alone, that an actual presence, -either an animal of some sort or a human being, had intruded within the -circle of their campfire and was ready to pounce down upon them. - -For a brief second Dick could scarcely suppress the cry of terror that -had sprung to his lips. He wanted to turn his head to look at the thing -he knew to be immediately behind him, but, for some unknown reason, his -body seemed incapable of action. Instead he sat there, weak and -trembling, the blood pounding in his throat with a force almost -suffocating. - -With a truly mighty effort he contrived finally to twist and squirm -around so that his gaze could discern the thing that menaced him, and in -that instant he caught wildly at the trunk of the up-rooted tree upon -which he sat, so frozen with horror, that the person who stood -immediately opposite—probably no more than ten or twelve feet away—might -easily have advanced and overpowered him without encountering even the -slightest resistance. - -In all his life, Dick had never seen so strange an apparition. His first -sickening impression was that he was confronted not by a man at all but -by a real ghost, fashioned out of a substance as hard and unyielding as -a block of ice. In the glare of the campfire, the person’s body gave -forth a peculiar gleam or sparkle that so amazed and confounded Dick -that he found himself putting up his hands to his eyes in an effort to -shut out the unusual sight. - -“Toma, he tell me come,” issued a friendly voice from the ghost-like -figure, standing there in front of him. “You no ’fraid me.” - -Dick came to with a start. - -“No,” he mumbled weakly. - -“Toma one mile down river,” continued the voice. “Him stuck in ice with -huskies. Mebbe no get sled out.” - -“What’s that!” demanded Dick. “I don’t think I understand you.” - -“Ice thin where river runs quick. Toma, me, drive on river too close to -rapids. Hurry up get back here for sick fella. We go fast. Toma, me, sit -in sled. All at once ice break. Toma, huskies, me, sled—everybody fall -in river.” - -Dick sat and stared incredulously at the speaker. He understood now. -This was Raoul Testawich, Toma’s friend, who, in his broken English, was -trying to describe what had taken place that night farther up the river. -Dick shivered at the thought of that unexpected, icy-cold plunge when -the sled with its two occupants had broken through into the river. No -wonder that young Testawich looked like a ghost, his clothing a -glistening ice and snow-covered mantle of white. - -“Is Toma safe?” he questioned eagerly. - -“Yes,” nodded the half-breed, “Toma all right, but sled gone. Cut -harness away from sled to save huskies. Toma stay back there now and -watch dogs. What you think; you, me take sick fella along that far?” - -“We can try,” answered Dick in an awed voice. “How far did you say it -was?” - -“About one mile,” said Raoul. - -“We can do it!” Dick stated with conviction. “I know we can—even if we -are compelled to drag and carry him all the way.” - -There was admiration and wonder in Dick’s eyes now as he looked at the -ice-clad form of the half-breed. What tremendous endurance Toma and this -man must have. It seemed almost incredible. - -He rose quickly, fired with new determination, walked over to the spot -where Sandy lay and, as gently as possible, attempted to arouse him. - -“Wake up! Wake up, Sandy!” he called. - -Several minutes elapsed before Dick succeeded in dragging his friend to -an upright position. Sandy swayed on his feet, mumbling incoherently, -glaring about him with blood-shot, unseeing eyes. Supported by a -friendly arm on either side, he moved forward, almost a dead weight -between them. - -“We get there sooner you think,” encouraged Raoul. “Bye an’ bye we turn -bend in river an’ then you see Toma’s campfire. Little fella pretty -sick.” - -They mushed on in silence. Step by step, slowly, at what seemed to Dick -a snail’s pace, they plodded through the darkness towards the place -where the courageous young half-breed guide awaited them. The snow had -ceased to fall. The roar of the storm above their heads had died down to -a faint murmuring. Presently Raoul spoke: - -“I see light now. Pretty soon we get to campfire. Then dogs pull sick -fella rest of way to my home.” - -“But we haven’t any sled,” interposed Dick. - -“Toma tie poles together for sled by time we get there. Make ’em pole -sled for sick fella.” - -Again they went on in silence. The light of Toma’s campfire gradually -grew brighter as they advanced. Presently Dick discerned the lonely -figure of the Indian guide and after a time, five blotches in the snow, -five furry forms that snarled and howled as they waited impatiently for -the return of their master. - -“We’ve made it!” howled Dick, unable to suppress his exultation. “We’ve -made it, Toma, old boy. Yip! Yip!” - -Toma’s answering shout was drowned out by a deafening chorus from the -huskies. - - - - - CHAPTER XIV - AN UNWELCOME VISITOR - - -The cabin of Raoul Testawich, which stood in a sheltering grove of -spruce a few miles back from Bad Heart river, loomed up through the -darkness several hours later as Toma, Raoul and Dick, with the team of -huskies in the lead, crossed a narrow coulee about thirty yards away -from the house and plunged on through heavy drifts to the narrow, -cleared space immediately in front of the door. - -Wrapped in blankets, Sandy still lay on the hastily improvised sled. As -his three comrades gathered about him, a heavy door squeaked open and a -sleepy voice, in Cree, called out a welcome. In an incredibly short time -they had lifted Sandy from the sled and had carried him within, gently -placing him in a bunk at one end of the room. - -A young Indian girl, whom Dick judged to be Raoul’s wife or sister, -closed the door after them and advanced swiftly to the mud fireplace -where, over crackling spruce logs, a heavy iron pot sent forth the -pleasant aroma of steaming moose meat. Close by, with growing interest -and enthusiasm, Dick beheld a small table laden with food. - -“We eat this time for sure,” grinned Toma, nudging Dick’s arm. “Mebbe -you no want eat now.” - -“Like fun, I don’t,” laughed the other. “There are two things I -want—food and sleep. I’m so blamed tired that Raoul will have to wait -until sometime tomorrow before I buy his dog team. I believe I could -sleep for three days.” - -“You sleep long you like,” conceded Toma, as Raoul left the room to look -after the dogs. “Him, Raoul, my very good friend. Fine fella. Like ’em -sister, too. Mebbe some day marry girl.” - -The far away expression in the young half-breed’s eyes drew a laugh from -Dick. - -“I’m glad to hear that,” he said, “and I want to congratulate you. When -do you expect to get married?” - -“Four—five—six years,” he answered, counting laboriously on his fingers. -“Father Girard he tell ’em me at mission too young yet. No marry till -get older. Get older very slow,” he concluded, casting woebegone eyes in -the direction of the young lady of his choice. - -The re-entrance of Raoul cut short any further reference to the subject -of Toma’s tender affair of the heart. It was well, too, for the face of -the owner of the huskies wore a look of concern as he strode forward and -commenced to remove his outer garments, still thickly encrusted with ice -and snow. As he fumbled with the buttons of his moose-hide coat, he -broke forth excitedly in Cree, pausing now and again to make quick, -explanatory gestures with his hands. - -“What’s the trouble?” demanded Dick, who though not understanding one -word that had been spoken, could tell from the Indian’s expression that -something out of the ordinary had taken place. “What did he say, Toma?” - -“He say,” interrupted the guide, “that he no like way huskies act. -Huskies tired but no want to lie down and make bed in snowdrift. Huskies -afraid of something, very much afraid.” - -“That not all,” Toma continued as a relieved expression brightened -Dick’s eyes. “Raoul him not sure, but see track mebbe made by snowshoe. -Look like snowshoe track only wind blow snow over it. Raoul think -Govereau’s men come here tonight and look for us. What you think? Mebbe -camped not far away.” - -For a brief moment, a look of apprehension, of fear, swept through Dick. -The supposition was not entirely impossible. Experience had taught him -that Govereau was both an experienced woodsman and an implacable enemy, -a man who had the disconcerting habit of putting in an appearance at -times when one least expected him. On the other hand, Dick could not -help but believe that the hated French half-breed had not yet succeeded -in catching up with them. The incident at the river when he, Sandy and -Toma had crossed through the ice floe successfully, must have delayed -him considerably. - -“I don’t think he has had time to overtake us yet,” said Dick. “If any -one has been here today, it must be someone else.” - -Toma shook his head. - -“Mebbe you right. I like think so. All same Govereau make you surprise -once in a while. Fool ever’body.” - -“That’s true,” rejoined Dick, “but if Govereau really is here, he’s here -and that’s an end to it. There’s nothing that we can do except to fight -him and take our own risks. I think that you and Raoul had better get -into some dry clothes as quickly as possible. A good supper and a sound -sleep afterwards are the first things to be considered. I wonder if I’d -better wake Sandy?” - -“Him better sleep long time an’ wake up himself. Him be all right then.” - -Dick heeded this advice from Toma and a few minutes later sat down to -one of the most enjoyable meals he had eaten in weeks. Then he and the -young Indian guide tumbled into the bunk above Sandy and were almost -instantly fast asleep, their weary limbs stretching out in the luxurious -softness of a white rabbit sleeping-bag. - -They woke on the following afternoon and clambered down from their -perch. To his amazement, Dick beheld Sandy, somewhat pale but otherwise -quite his usual self, sitting at the table, opposite their host. He was -eating gruel from a bowl and conversing in low tones to Raoul. - -“Why, Sandy!” exclaimed Dick, unable to conceal his delight. “What has -happened?” - -“What do you mean?” - -“You’re up.” - -“Sure I’m up,” the voice of the young Scotchman rose in jovial good -humor as he glanced across at his two friends, who were dressing -hurriedly. “Didn’t expect me to lie in bed all night and all day too, -did you?” - -“Yes, but how do you feel?” - -Sandy put down his spoon and swung round to meet Dick’s inquiring gaze. - -“A little shaky, I guess, but otherwise about the same as usual. By the -way, Dick, what happened yesterday? When I woke up this morning, I -couldn’t imagine where I was. And funny thing—I can’t remember very much -of what took place on the trail. Did I get hurt?” - -“Didn’t Raoul tell you?” - -“Not yet.” - -Dick picked up his moccasins and began absently to turn them in his -hands. For Sandy’s benefit, it had occurred to him to gloss over the -events of the previous day, to give his friend as little information as -possible. It was not that Sandy’s breakdown was anything to be ashamed -of, considering what he had been through. It was not that, Dick told -himself. It was the possible effect the news might have on him. For -Sandy was proud, and the knowledge of even a temporary weakness on his -part would be sure to cause him a good deal of humiliation. - -“You played out on the trail, Sandy,” Dick stated evenly. “I was all in -myself. I hope we never again have so many obstacles and difficulties to -contend with. I can’t imagine what would have happened to us if Toma -hadn’t gone for help. We have Toma and Raoul to thank for getting -through safely yesterday.” - -“Toma is always doing remarkable things,” said Sandy. “I can’t help but -admire the way he broke trail through that storm. Wish I had half his -endurance.” - -“You no talk about me so much,” Toma broke forth, pretending to be -angry, but grinning in spite of himself. “Me no like ’em all big words. -Mebbe make fun of me.” - -“You hurry up dress,” interposed Raoul. “My sister wait in next room to -bring something to eat. Pretty soon we have breakfast middle of the -night.” - -“All right,” laughed Dick, “we’ll hurry. I’ll be ready as soon as I put -on these moccasins.” - -He was looking at Raoul as he spoke, but was hardly prepared for what -suddenly ensued. The young Indian was abruptly on his feet and had -dashed forward to one side of the room, where he caught up a rifle, -which had been leaning there against the wall. Amazed at first, Dick -quickly caught the significance of Raoul’s actions, as there came to his -ears the dull tromping of feet outside, followed quickly by a loud -thumping at the door. A moment later, a towering, heavy form broke into -the room and stood blinking across at them. - -“What you want!” demanded Raoul, flourishing his rifle. - -The intruder closed the door behind him, his shifting eyes regarding -each of them in turn. He was a big man, clothed almost entirely in fur, -a parka concealing the lower part of his face. As the four other -occupants of the room stood or sat watching him, he shook off his heavy -mitts, kicked the snow from his feet and removed his parka. His general -appearance, Dick observed, was far from prepossessing. - -“What you want!” repeated Raoul. - -“You don’t need to be afeered o’ me,” finally grumbled their unexpected -guest, rubbing one burly hand against his bearded cheek. “Put down yer -gun, brother, I ain’t gonna hurt nobody. I jes’ came in to get warm an’ -ask fer something to eat. Been hoofing it all the way from Twin Brothers -Creek, near the Big Smokey. Left there this morning. Stranger in these -parts. My name’s Bill Watson. Guess you don’t know me.” - -Dick was conscious of a feeling of relief to learn something of the -intruder’s identity. At least, he was not one of Govereau’s men. Then -Dick felt Toma’s face brushing close to his own. - -“No like him,” breathed the guide in a scarcely audible whisper. -“Ever’body watch out. See him one time before with Govereau. He come to -find out if you and Sandy here.” - -Toma drew back quickly as the stranger’s gaze turned again in their -direction. - - - - - CHAPTER XV - OUTWITTING THE ENEMY - - -Dick Kent had no reason to doubt that Toma’s stealthily imparted -information concerning the true identity of Bill Watson was correct. The -man had been sent by Govereau. His story of the long trek from Twin -Brothers Creek was a deliberate falsehood intended to deceive Dick and -his friends. He was here as a spy to carry out certain instructions from -Govereau, the accomplishment of which would probably result disastrously -to their expedition. - -In a few minutes following Toma’s whispered warning, Dick thought -swiftly. Their safety and the success of their plans depended upon -immediate action. Something had to be done before Watson became aware -that anyone suspected him. - -The first step, of course, was to discover some way to acquaint Sandy -and Raoul with the stranger’s duplicity. This, of course, must be -accomplished secretly, and in a manner that would not arouse Watson’s -slightest suspicion. - -“If only on some pretext I could get the two of them outside,” thought -Dick, “the rest would be easy. Four of us would have no difficulty in -taking him prisoner. We would bind him hand and foot and then Raoul -could keep him here several days while Sandy, Toma and I continued our -journey with the dog team.” - -Annette entered from the adjoining room at Raoul’s summons and began -removing the dishes from the table, in preparation for the meal for -Watson, Toma and Dick. Watson now occupied a chair at one side of the -room, and sat directly facing Sandy. Raoul had moved forward and was -assisting his sister with her task, while Toma, like a restless spirit, -remained unseated, occasionally changing his position from sheer -nervousness. - -“I ain’t had very much to eat today,” Watson informed them, producing an -evil-smelling pipe and lighting it with the stub of a match. “Been too -busy mushing to think about it. Trail heavy all the way, too.” - -A strained silence followed. It was evident that Watson intended to make -himself perfectly at home, for, a moment later, he stretched out his -burly legs, and, to Dick’s disgust, spat on the floor. - -“Where you fellows bound for?” he demanded suddenly of Sandy. - -“Nowhere in particular,” replied the young Scotchman non-committally. -“Where are you going?” - -Watson’s face darkened with a scowl. - -“I ain’t a goin’ to tell neither if that’s the way you feel about it. -Guess you never was taught no manners, young man.” - -Sandy turned his head slightly and winked covertly at Dick. - -“No offense intended, I’m sure.” - -The man from Govereau’s camp grunted something under his breath. - -“Little boys ain’t got no business on the trail anyway,” he began again, -this time in a scoffing tone that caused an angry red to mount suddenly -in Sandy’s cheeks. - -In his restless moving about, changing positions often, Toma had -presently come to a pause close to Sandy and now stood absently tossing -a small object in his hand, his gaze directed toward Annette and Raoul, -who were completing preparations for supper. Looking at him, no one -would have suspected that any thought, out of the ordinary, lay at the -back of the young half-breed’s mind. His face was expressionless, yet as -Dick watched him, there flashed from them unexpectedly a look that could -not be mistaken. - -It was as if Toma had sent him some sort of a signal. What was its -meaning Dick could not possibly imagine until, apparently by accident, -the small object, which looked like a brass buckle, fell from the -guide’s hand and rolled under Sandy’s chair. As he stepped forward and -stooped to get it, Dick knew from the expression on Sandy’s face that -he, too, had been warned. - -“Supper all ready,” Raoul announced. - -Watson bounded to his feet and was the first to reach the table. Without -waiting for further permission he pulled out a chair and slumped into -it. Dick followed more leisurely, with Toma bringing up the rear. As -they approached directly behind Watson’s chair, Toma’s hand shot out, -poking Dick in the ribs. Half-turning, the recipient of the blow emitted -a startled gasp as he perceived Toma’s long arms steal out and encircle -the unsuspecting guest. - -Watson and the chair swayed backward, then toppled over, striking the -floor with a resounding crash. The heavy, powerful form rolled to one -side, endeavoring to break the iron grip of the young half-breed. For a -tense second Dick stood inactive, then leaped to his friend’s -assistance. Attempting to pinion Watson’s arms, to his horror Dick saw -their opponent had actually succeeded in pulling a dangerous looking -automatic from his pocket and was grimly endeavoring to use it. - -Dick seized Watson’s wrist in his two hands, putting forth his last -ounce of strength in an effort to force the gun from the man’s grasp. In -quick succession three ear-splitting reports rang out. Annette screamed. -After that Dick was not quite sure what was taking place during that -confused wild scramble on the floor until he felt the heavy body under -him relax and a voice triumphantly proclaim: - -“Well, I guess that ought to settle him for a while.” - -With perspiration trickling down into his eyes, Dick looked up. Raoul -stood with a small stick of wood in his hands and close beside him -Sandy, a look of triumph on his face, each surveying their now helpless -foe. - -“You didn’t hit him half hard enough, Raoul,” Sandy protested. “It was a -good thing for him that I didn’t have that club, myself. I might have -killed him.” - -“Hit ’em plenty hard,” Raoul confessed, tossing the stick back toward -the fireplace. “Tie him up easy now. I go get rope.” - -Dick and Toma rose to their feet and a moment later Raoul returned with -a rope. Bound hand and foot, Watson was lifted bodily and carried across -the room, where he was deposited not unkindly in the selfsame bunk -occupied by Sandy on the previous night. Dick breathed a sigh of relief. - -“I’m glad that’s over with,” he declared thankfully. “All things -considered, we’ve been pretty lucky so far. We’ve beaten Govereau at -every turn.” - -“Beaten but not licked,” Sandy reminded him. “I’ll have to admit right -here that he’s a mighty tough customer. It’s a good thing Toma saw this -man, Watson, before. Otherwise things might have turned out -differently.” - -“We must get an early start in the morning,” said Dick, as he moved back -toward the supper table. “I’d hate to meet any more visitors from -Govereau’s camp. If Raoul is willing, I’ll pay him tonight for the team -of huskies. What do you think would be a fair price for them, Toma?” - -“Raoul say he willing to sell for two hundred dollars,” answered the -guide. “That very cheap for good team like that.” - -“I’ll make it two hundred and fifty. The additional amount wouldn’t -begin to pay him for all the kindness he has shown us.” - -As he spoke, Dick reached in his pocket and pulled out the roll of bills -Factor MacLean had given him on the day of their departure from Fort du -Lac, and, counting out the sum mentioned, passed it over to Raoul. - -“I hope I’m not cheating you.” - -“You buy best dog team in the country,” Toma stated enthusiastically. -“Mounted police use ’em last winter to carry mail. Govereau go fast to -catch us now.” - -“How long will it take us to reach mounted police headquarters?” -inquired Sandy. - -“Three, four day if nothing happen,” their guide answered. “First day -snow too heavy to make trail good. After that mebbe get better.” - -A short time later, a low groan from Watson attested to the fact that -that gentleman was slowly regaining consciousness. After considerable -tossing and rolling about, their captive finally opened his eyes and -presently called for a drink of water. - -“Feeling better now?” Dick inquired solicitously, when he complied with -the request. - -“Yeah, I’m feeling better,” came Watson’s smothered retort as he glared -up angrily at his questioner. “I’m feelin’ a blamed sight better than -you’ll be feelin’ in another day or two, I can tell you that.” - -“You brought it all on yourself,” Dick reminded him. “You had no -business coming here to play the part of a spy, in the first place. If -you got hurt, it’s your own fault. All I’m sorry about is that the -unpleasant little blow you received on top of your head wasn’t given to -the man who sent you.” - -“What do you mean?” bluffed Watson. - -“I guess you know what I mean,” Dick spoke coldly, “and please get the -idea out of your mind that we don’t know who you are, and where you came -from.” - -“Where did I come from?” their prisoner blustered. - -“From Govereau.” - -“Well, what are you gonna do about it?” - -There was defiance in Watson’s voice. - -“If you mean, what are we going to do with you,” Dick answered, “I might -as well tell you that we haven’t decided yet. A good deal depends upon -the way you behave yourself.” - -“We’re thinking seriously of taking you outside and putting a bullet in -you,” chimed in Sandy. - -“Yuh better not, if you know what’s best for you,” stormed Watson. “If -yuh try that, Govereau’ll come down here and make mince-meat out of -yuh.” - -“He might walk into the same kind of trap you did,” grinned Sandy. - -“Where is Govereau now?” asked Dick, shaking his head at Sandy in an -effort to check the useless controversy. “If you answer my questions -truthfully, we’ll let you off a whole lot easier than we would -otherwise. We might even be induced to give you something to eat.” - -“He ain’t very far from here.” - -“How far?” - -“About two miles away. We’re camped in the heavy timber jus’ back from -the river.” - -“How did he find out that we are stopping here for the present with -Raoul?” - -“One of our men seen a dog team come up here early yesterday morning. -Govereau thought it might be you, so he sent me over to find out.” - -“Is that all he told you to do?” - -For a few minutes Watson lay, staring about him, apparently quite -oblivious of his surroundings. He paid no attention to the last question -put to him. Finally he turned his head, his gaze meeting Dick’s -squarely. - -“You fellows are in a mighty bad position, if you want to know it,” he -suddenly blurted out. “There ain’t one chance in ten thousand that -you’ll ever get through alive. Your only hope is to go back to the place -you come from.” - -“I’m not asking you for advice,” said Dick angrily. - -“Jes’ the same, I’m tellin’ yuh. I wouldn’t take the whole of upper -Canada to be a standin’ in your shoes just now. You’re only a kid an’ -don’t realize how bad a mess you’re in.” - -Sandy strode forward and put a hand on Dick’s shoulder. - -“No use to bother with him, Dick,” he exclaimed in disgust. “We’re just -wasting time. He’d keep us talking here all night. Our best plan is to -get out of here as quickly as possible. Govereau may be along any time -to find out what has happened to him.” - -“I think same, too,” Toma cut in. “What you say I hitch up huskies, and -we start right away?” - -Dick glanced from one to the other. - -“I guess you’re right. We can’t any more than lose our way in the dark, -and we’ve been lost before.” - -“But what are we going to do with him?” Sandy wondered, pointing at -their prisoner. - -“We’ll have to leave him here with Raoul,” Dick replied. Then he turned -to Toma’s friend. - -“Do you object?” he asked. “You can release him sometime tomorrow. That -will give us a chance to be well on our way before Govereau learns what -has become of us.” - -Raoul nodded his head, grinning. - -“All right, me keep ’em big fellow in bed. Bye an’ bye feed him with -spoon like little baby. How you like that?” he asked, turning to Watson. - -The only reply from the man in the bunk was a snort of rage as he -twisted to one side and glared helplessly about him. - - - - - CHAPTER XVI - A JOURNEY THROUGH THE NIGHT - - -The lonely journey through the dark proved to be not nearly as difficult -as Dick had expected. An hour after their departure from Toma’s cabin, -the little party emerged from the shelter of spruce and pine, skirting -the river, and drove forth upon a comparatively open prairie, piled high -with drifts. - -Here the snow had been packed down by the wind and the huskies were able -to trot across its surface without breaking through. They went forward -at such a brisk pace that Dick, running behind, was forced to admit, -breathlessly, to Toma: - -“I can’t keep this up all night. Can’t you slow down once in a while, -and give me a chance to catch my breath?” - -“We all ride now,” the guide answered, motioning Dick to a place on the -sled in front of Sandy, who, because of his weakened condition, had been -riding most of the time since they had left the cabin. - -A moment later, sitting at his friend’s feet, Dick was conscious of a -new experience. He had never ridden behind a team of huskies before. - -“This is wonderful,” he remarked as the dogs sprang forward at Toma’s -sharp word of command. “How easy they pull us, Sandy. If we keep on at -this rate, it won’t take us long to reach mounted police headquarters.” - -Toma, who was standing behind, with one hand on the gee-pole, laughed -good-naturedly over Dick’s enthusiasm. - -“They go fast tonight,” he admitted, “but mebbe tomorrow we come to soft -snow in woods. No go fast then.” - -Somewhere, close at hand, there broke forth a weird, unearthly noise, a -sound that echoed across the stillness, causing both Dick and Sandy to -sit up very straight, hearts thumping excitedly. - -“What was that?” they demanded in chorus. - -“Wolves,” came the ready response. “We see plenty of wolves from now on. -Rabbits very few this year and wolves always hungry.” - -“Well, I don’t want ’em to feed on me,” shivered Sandy. “What would we -do if they should happen along and suddenly decide to make a meal on -us?” - -“Shoot,” answered Dick, one hand stealing back in the sled to make sure -that in the hurry of their departure they had not forgotten their -rifles. - -“They not come yet,” Toma reassured them. “Bye ’n’ bye weather get more -cold, snow more deep, wolves more hungry. Then we watch out. No travel -like this at night then. Me ’fraid wolves too.” - -Dick laughed. “I’m glad to hear that there’s something you’re really -afraid of, Toma. I’d begun to think that nothing could frighten you.” - -Another howl from the wolf pack, and Sandy’s mittened hand was pawing at -Dick’s shoulder. - -“Honestly, Dick, I don’t like this. Just listen to that! Isn’t it awful? -Toma, are you sure they won’t come over here and try to gobble us up?” - -“Plenty sure,” answered the guide. - -Sandy slouched back in his seat again, not entirely convinced in his own -mind that Toma was right. - -“I hope so,” he grumbled, “but why in the dickens did the rabbits have -to get scarce this year. I suppose they heard we were coming along and -just to make our bad luck complete, hopped off to another part of the -country. I wonder why the wolves didn’t follow them, Toma?” - -“Wolves no follow rabbits ’cause rabbits all dead,” patiently explained -the half-breed. - -“Who killed ’em?” Sandy wanted to know. - -Toma’s whip cracked forth over the boys’ heads, and the huskies sprang -forward with redoubled effort. - -“Rabbits no get killed—they sick an’ die,” he answered. “When you live -in this country long time you find out queer thing. Ever’ six, seven -years see many rabbits—like mosquitos in spring. Wolves an’ coyotes all -very fat then. Almost step on rabbits when you walk through woods. When -rabbits many like that, one fellow him get sick, bye ’n’ bye another -rabbit him sick, too. Pretty soon no rabbits left—all dead. No tell you -why.” - -Following this explanation, Sandy lapsed into silence for many moments. -There was no sound at all except that made by the pattering feet of the -huskies, and the crunching of the sled under them. A belated moon had -risen slowly from the distant horizon, and in its pure, white light, the -boys could now discern objects, which a few hours before had remained -hidden. Looking about him, Dick saw that the comparatively open space -around them extended southward for many miles, a vast, snow-covered -field, dotted here and there with small patches of poplar. - -They were passing one of these tree clumps a short time later when, -plainly discernible, not more than fifty or a hundred yards to their -right, Dick perceived the huge body of a wolf gliding quickly along, -almost abreast of them. The boy’s startled exclamation drew the -attention of Sandy and Toma. - -“Follow us like that all night, mebbe,” Toma stated indifferently, “he -no come any closer. He ’fraid us like we ’fraid him.” - -“He doesn’t appear to be very frightened,” came Sandy’s dry comment, -“and if he comes one step nearer, I’m going to teach him a few manners.” - -“No,” said Dick, “we’ve got to save our ammunition. We may need it badly -a little later on. Besides, I doubt very much whether one wolf would -dare to attack us. It’s a full pack that I’d be afraid of.” - -“If there were more than one,” rejoined Sandy, peering fearfully across -at the subject of their conversation, “I think I’d be inclined to pull -this blanket over my head. I simply wouldn’t want to see ’em.” - -Dick’s amused laugh was broken short by a sudden snarling from the -huskies. This continued until Toma cracked his whip and shouted out a -sharp word of command. - -“No like ’em wolves either,” he explained. “You promise no be afraid if -I tell you something.” - -“Certainly,” answered Dick. “What is it?” - -“You look on other side.” - -Sandy and Dick, following directions, drew in a quick breath of alarm. -Two more wolves, equally as large as the one on their right, trotted -along unconcernedly across the drifts, their furry forms plainly -distinguishable in the moonlight. - -“Lord help us!” exclaimed Sandy, with no thought of irreverence. - -“Can you beat that?” Dick wanted to know. - -“No see wolves any more when morning comes,” Toma attempted to cheer -them. “You wait.” - -After that the hours seemed interminable. Both Dick and Sandy had -forgotten about the novelty of their ride. Intermittently Toma’s whip -cracked; the huskies moved on; there was no sound except the slight -noise of their progress across the field of white. On either side -trotted the wolves, three dark shapes, moving like ghosts, never once -quickening or slackening pace. It was with a sigh of relief that Dick -finally perceived the first faint glow of morning across the eastern -sky. - -“We stop pretty soon and have something to eat,” announced Toma, -breaking the long silence. - -And a few minutes later, when they drew up before a small log cabin, -standing at the edge of a narrow sheltering woodland, their companions -of the night—the three wolves—were nowhere in sight. - -“What I tell you,” their guide reminded them. - -“Right, as usual,” grumblingly admitted Sandy. “But tell me, Toma, whose -place is this?” - -“Another friend—him live here,” answered Toma. “We have breakfast, sleep -two, three hours, then go on some more. No like to travel night.” - -It took but a few moments to unhitch and feed the huskies. Dick looked -on with interest as Toma threw each one of the dogs its ration of frozen -fish. Then the three boys strode forward toward the cabin, upon the door -of which the young half-breed knocked loudly. But no answer ensued. - -“Guess him gone away,” Toma stated, and pushed open the door. “He no -care if we stay here for little while. Mebbe out on trap line.” - -After a fire was started in the fireplace, Dick and Toma proceeded to -get breakfast, while Sandy carried in armloads of wood from the big pile -outside. They ate in front of a crackling flame, joking and laughing -amongst themselves. - -“With the help of the huskies,” exulted Sandy, “we’ll soon leave Pierre -Govereau so far behind he’ll never catch up. Won’t he be wild when he -hears how we’ve outwitted him?” - -“I wouldn’t be too sure about that if I were you,” Dick cautioned. -“Govereau isn’t the only man we’ll have to fear either. You know -Henderson has accomplices all along the line.” - -So it proved. - -In spite of their good intentions, their determination to sleep only a -few hours, it was morning of the following day when Dick and Sandy awoke -to find their new team gone and Toma hunting around in the underbrush -some distance from camp. - - - - - CHAPTER XVII - THE STOLEN HUSKIES - - -The dogs were gone, and that was all there was to it, Dick decided a -moment later, after a shouted conference with Toma. They would have to -go on on foot. It was discouraging, but it made Dick more determined -than ever. - -“We’ll never get to the fort now,” Sandy grumbled. - -“Well, we’re a darn sight closer than we were,” Dick tried to be -cheerful. - -They watched Toma circling the camp, looking for tracks. Presently he -came in. - -“Some fella steal dogs all right. Mebbe Henderson’s men; mebbe just -plain thief. Who know?” - -“Well, they’re gone anyway, and it’s up to us to make the best of it,” -Dick resigned himself. “It’ll be slow work hauling this sled.” - -Toma had nothing more to say. His only answer was to slip the breast -band of a dog harness over one shoulder and start the sled. Dick and -Sandy followed his lead and presently they were mushing slowly out on -the trail. - -It was exceedingly tiresome business, and within an hour all were leg -weary. The snow had begun to thaw a little, and was soggy underfoot. The -sled runners cut down deeply, making it exceedingly hard pulling, even -with so light a load as they had. - -Long before noon they were resting frequently. And it was with great -thankfulness that they at last made camp. - -“Phew! That was a stiff jaunt,” Dick panted, lying flat on his back, -even his iron endurance tested to the utmost. Sandy was too winded to -reply. Toma alone seemed to make no note of it. Long since the boys had -ceased being surprised at any of Toma’s feats of muscular endurance. - -They were about ready to dine on cold baked beans and coffee, when Toma -called their attention to a movement ahead of them from the direction of -Fort Dunwoody. It proved to be a man and a dog team. - -“Honestly, we’re going to meet somebody!” Sandy exclaimed incredulously. -For days they had seen few save enemies. - -“Well, maybe this isn’t a friend,” said Dick, dubiously. - -Toma studied the man intently as he drew nearer. Finally they could hear -the cries of the driver to his dogs and the occasional cracking of his -long whip. It was a white man; they could tell even at that distance by -the tail to tail hitch of the dogs. Most of the Indians drove in fan -formation, each dog attached to separate tugs of varying lengths. - -The stranger stopped some distance from them, and came on more slowly. -Evidently, he himself was not too certain whether or not he was meeting -a hostile party. - -They hailed each other. - -“I’m Corporal Richardson of the Mounted,” called the lone driver of the -dog team. “Who are you?” - -“Hurrah!” cheered Sandy. - -“Dick Kent and Sandy McClaren with a guide from Fort du Lac,” Dick -called back through cupped palms. - -The policeman seemed satisfied. Cracking his whip over the dogs, he -speedily joined the young travelers. - -Corporal Richardson was dressed in a heavy fur coat and parka. When near -the campfire he pulled open his great coat, disclosing the scarlet of -his uniform coat. He listened attentively to Dick’s story of their -adventures, and he seemed favorably impressed with both Dick and Sandy, -though at first he was somewhat suspicious of Toma. - -“I left Fort Dunwoody a week ago,” the policeman told them, his steely -eyes unwavering. “We’ve been hearing rumors of Bear Henderson’s -outbreak, and I was sent up here to clear some of these trails. Of -course Henderson is rather foolish to think he can whip the Mounted and -the Hudson’s Bay Company, but he’s made rather a good try at it already. -Last report we had he’d burned two trading posts, and had captured three -more. Mackenzie’s Landing has fallen to him, I understand. They say his -next move is Fort du Lac.” - -Dick and Sandy gasped at the revelations of the policeman. - -“Didn’t you know about the capture of Fort Good Faith, and the -imprisonment of Walter MacClaren, my friend’s uncle?” Dick asked. - -“We did not,” replied Corporal Richardson. “That is news. But of course -Henderson has made a lot of moves we know nothing of. I suppose you’re -after help. It was nervy of you young fellows to break through -Henderson’s lines. You know he isn’t letting any one in or out of the -far north. A man’s life isn’t worth a cent who isn’t hand in glove with -the outlaw. I’m detailed to scout the trail to Mackenzie’s Landing—clear -things up there if possible. I wish I could go with you fellows, but -you’ll have to go on alone and talk to the Inspector. I doubt if you get -help right away. Every officer is out on the trail now, except the bare -few that guard the post. It looks like reserves might be called out in -spite of the fact that we don’t like to do it.” - -“Then you think we may even have to go on to Fort Good Faith alone?” -Dick spoke concernedly. - -“Oh, no, but you may have to wait for a constable.” - -“But we can’t wait!” Dick cried desperately. “We’ve been delayed a week -as it is. Sandy’s uncle must have help.” - -Corporal Richardson sympathized with them, but he said he would not -build up false hopes. “I suggest you ask the Inspector for a special -deputization. In times like these every man will be forced into the -service who isn’t an enemy of the crown.” - -Dick and Sandy thrilled at this possibility. To think of being for even -a brief period a member of the Royal Northwest Mounted Police was almost -beyond their dreams. - -“I’ll have to be mushing,” announced the policeman. “Too bad you lost -your dogs. I passed a team about ten miles back. I thought the driver -looked rather sneaky. It’s pretty hard to describe ordinary huskies. All -I remember unusual about the team was that the leader, an exceptionally -big fellow, limped with his left forefoot. Not much, just a little.” - -“That’s our team, sure enough!” Dick cried. “Remember, Sandy, how that -leader limped?” - -“I wish we could catch up with the fellow,” Sandy gritted. - -“It’s too late now,” Corporal Richardson shook his head. “I wish I could -split my team with you, but you see I’ve only four and with two I’d be -slowed up considerably. What you’d better do is leave your sled, and -take what you need by shoulder pack. If——” - -Corporal Richardson did not finish the sentence. He seemed to start, and -his eyes widened. His hand flew to his chest. Across the snow came the -ringing crack of a distant rifle. The mounted policeman dropped upon one -elbow, as his startled companions hastened to him. - -Dick shook his fist at the hills in the direction the shot seemed to -have come from. - -“I guess I’m hit pretty bad,” the corporal revived and whispered. Toma -had thrown up the sled as a sort of barricade, if any more shots were -fired, and Dick and Sandy commenced administering first aid to the -wounded policeman. The bullet had struck under the shoulder blade at the -back, and had come out the right side. - -“It’s a nasty wound,” Dick said grimly—“maybe a lung is touched.” - -“Rather lucky for you fellows at that,” the corporal smiled gamely. “Now -you can use my dog team to tote me back to the fort.” - -“Do you have any idea who shot you?” Dick asked. - -“One of Henderson’s men without a doubt,” was the faint reply, “the -country’s alive with them. But we’ll beat ’em yet.” - -Dick grimly agreed with him. - -Strangely enough, no more shots were fired. Dick judged the reason for -this was that a single man had attacked them and had lost courage after -seeing he had drawn blood in a party too strong for him. Yet he could -not be sure. At any moment they might expect the sharpshooter lurking in -the wooded hills to drop one of them. If they were to move on to the -fort they could not remain sheltered from attack. - -The limp body of the corporal was speedily transferred to his sled, -after some of the packs had been thrown aside. Dick picked up the -gee-pole, Toma took the lead, and Sandy cracked the long whip. - -“Mush!” - -They were off, the dogs yelping eagerly down the back trail, overjoyed -at hitting the home trail so soon. - -For nearly an hour they advanced at a fast rate of speed, Sandy and Dick -changing off advance guard with Toma. Then they entered a long ravine, -crested with spruce and jackpine. As yet no sign of the man who had shot -the corporal appeared. Then, without warning, from the brow of the -ravine, puffed the smoke of a rifle. A bullet fanned Dick’s cheek, and -he paused and fired at the distant smoke at the top of the ravine. - -“Mush! Mush!” shouted Sandy to the dogs, cracking the long whip. - -The dogs responded nobly, drawing the sled, carrying the wounded -officer, so fast that the boys could hardly keep up. - -Again the hidden rifle cracked from the top of the ravine. This time one -dog gave a sharp yelp, leaped into the air and fell kicking his last in -a tangle of harness. - -“He’s killed a dog!” cried Dick angrily. “Quick, get him out of the -harness so we can go on.” - -The three remaining huskies were growling and snarling in a mess, and it -was some minutes before Sandy and Toma could straighten them out, cut -the dead dog from his harness and start on again. Meanwhile Dick emptied -his rifle at the brow of the ravine, taking a chance on hitting whoever -was skulking there with such deadly intent. - -On their way again, the fast moving sled proved an elusive target for -the sharpshooter. He shot three times without effect. Swiftly they -neared a point where the ravine widened out into a low walled valley, -which was almost barren of vegetation. Once on this clear space they -would be safe, for there was no cover within rifle range for the man who -was dogging them. - -Dick and Sandy were almost on the point of giving a shout of triumph -when the hidden rifle cracked again and another dog dropped in the -harness. The sled stopped, and once more the excited dogs got themselves -in a bad mix-up. At the mercy of the mysterious and deadly rifle, the -boys attacked the tangled harness and dogs. - - - - - CHAPTER XVIII - A HUNGRY PACK - - -Scarcely had they cut loose the fallen dog when the rifle sounded again -and the lead dog dropped to his haunches, failing to rise again. Dick -put the dog out of misery with a shot from his rifle, then turned to -Toma and Sandy. - -“We’ve got to get that fellow out of his nest. He’s playing with us. As -soon as he finishes with the dogs he’ll start in on us. We might as well -die fighting. Follow me.” Dick wheeled and started up the hill, firing -his rifle as he went, Sandy and Toma not far behind. - -The man on the rim of the ravine seemed taken by surprise. His shots -went wild. Only one came close, and that tore through Sandy’s mackinaw. - -Shouting at the top of their voices, the boys reached the top of the -ravine. A running figure was just disappearing over a knoll ahead of -them. Dick paused a moment, levelled his rifle and fired quickly. The -figure, some hundred yards distant, leaped high, as if hit, and ran on -limping. Toma and Sandy also fired, but did not hit. They ran on after -the man a little way, then fearing to leave the wounded officer too long -alone, they hurried back, certain they had routed the sharpshooter. - -“We’re lucky,” Dick said, as they trotted down the slope of the ravine, -“—not a scratch and he was sure shooting close.” - -“I kind of wish I was in Corporal Richardson’s place when I think of -going on with one dog,” Sandy changed the subject, making light of his -narrow escape. “Means we’ve got to buckle into the harness again.” - -Toma paused as they reached the sled. They could see him looking up at -the sky. - -“Heap snow come soon,” the imperturbable weather prophet announced. -“Make um wolves hungry.” - -Dick and Sandy did not think seriously of Toma’s prophecy, for they were -intent on the hard work ahead, and already were stepping into the places -vacated by the dead dogs. - -Again they toiled out on the trail to Fort Dunwoody, hauling the wounded -man, who was muttering to himself now in a delirious state brought on by -rising fever. - -In an hour it had begun to snow, but the boys kept on. Thicker and -thicker fell the soft, white flakes, until they could see no more than -twenty feet ahead. It was a wet snow, and made pulling the sled harder -than ever. The runners seemed to drag like lead upon the aching -shoulders of the three. They were glad when darkness fell and they were -forced to camp. - -“We’re in for an all-night snow storm, I guess,” Dick observed, as the -fire he was trying to start went out for a third time, and he had to -enlist the aid of Toma. - -“I’d like to sleep for a week,” said Sandy, from where he was trying to -make the wounded officer more comfortable. “That falling snow is just -like a bedtime story that really does put a fellow to sleep.” - -They rolled into their sleeping bags as soon as they had appeased their -appetites, not troubling to keep watch. All night the snow fell, and in -the morning they awakened almost smothered with the wet drifts. The -world was all fresh and white like a new blanket, but they had not taken -ten steps before they knew they would make little progress that day. - -“If a crust would only freeze over the snow we could get along faster,” -Dick bewailed. - -Corporal Richardson seemed a little better after the night’s rest. His -fever had gone down and an examination of the wound showed it to be -coming along as well as could be expected. He was very weak, however, -from loss of blood. - -“Where are we?” the officer asked Dick. - -“About fifty miles north of Fort Dunwoody with only one dog,” Dick -replied. “You were unconscious yesterday during the scrap we had with -the same fellow who hit you.” - -“Yes, I seemed to have had delirium,” replied the corporal. “I imagined -I heard shooting.” - -“Well, you didn’t need your imagination to hear that yesterday,” Dick -assured him. - -“It’ll be a wonder if you get through,” the officer said, “better leave -me along the trail somewhere. There’s an abandoned cabin a few miles -this side of Badge Lake. You’ll strike it if you follow the long ridge. -Put me off there with some grub and then have Inspector Dawson send a -man out after me.” - -“No, we couldn’t do anything like that,” Dick returned firmly. “In your -condition you need medical care as soon as you can get it. As long as we -can stand you’re going to stay on this sled.” - -As if to bear out Dick’s words, the officer fainted dead away. - -Alarmed, Dick put a cup of melted snow to the pale lips. The corporal -had just aroused enough to drink when a sound from across the snow -startled Dick so that he spilled the water. - -“Listen to that!” ejaculated Sandy. - -“I heard it,” Dick replied. - -Long, weird, mournful, the howl of a wolf rose and fell in the distance. -It was the hunger cry of the most savage denizen of the northland wilds. -Deep snow had made hunting hard for the wolves, and they were beginning -to take notice of the man prey of the land. - -“Him hungry,” grunted Toma. - -They set off on the trail once more. A half mile they struggled along -with the sled, when another wolf howled from a different quarter. This -time the cry was answered. - -“Wolves come together for big hunt,” Toma explained, with his usual -absence of emotion. - -“Here’s hoping they don’t pick on us,” Sandy remarked. - -Dick was silent. His face was haggard. The troubles of the trail were -weighing heavily on his sturdy shoulders, and this new danger of the -northland taxed his courage to the utmost. Yet he did not falter. -Instead, his words were cheerful, though they came from drawn lips. - -“I guess we have a few shots left in our rifles,” said Dick meaningly. -“Those wolves better not come too close.” - -“Few shots is right,” Sandy came back dishearteningly. “Dick, do you -know we have only about ten shots left for each of the rifles? And we -had the hard luck to unload Corporal Richardson’s ammunition when we put -him on the sled. All he has is a belt full of revolver cartridges.” - -Dick’s hands clenched on the strap with which he was helping pull the -sled. “Makes no difference, Sandy. After we’ve escaped all these human -wolves that have been after us, I guess we can handle the animals all -right.” But he was not quite so sure as he tried to make Sandy believe. - -“Wolves eat um dead dogs back trail,” Toma called from the rear of the -sled, where he was following up after a stiff job of breaking trail. - -All afternoon the cries of the gathering pack could be heard, now near, -now far. Once it seemed they were all around them. Then the boys -redoubled their efforts on the heavy sled. - -“We ought to pull into that cabin the corporal mentioned before long,” -Dick said worriedly, as he changed places with Sandy. - -“I don’t know about that,” Sandy replied. “The corporal was probably -estimating the distance if we made time with a good dog team—but we -haven’t gone more than five miles today.” - -They made no stop for a mid-day meal, chewing raw bacon while toiling on -the trail. The fear of the wolves had entered their hearts yet they -would not let one another feel that fear by any spoken word. - -Near nightfall they were certain the wolves were trailing them, and they -could not hide it from one another. Far in the rear they could hear the -hunting cry of the pack, and it was blood-curdling. - -While the sun still shone over the western skyline, the first of the -wolf pack appeared behind, and the boys knew that they were in for -trouble. - -The leader of the wolves was old and wise. For a time he held the pack -of nearly thirty gaunt, gray wolves out of rifle range, waiting for -dark. But hunger could not be denied. The less wise of the pack forged -ahead, and the rifles of the three boys spoke with deadly effect. - -Dick’s toll was three wolves before he emptied his magazine. Sandy shot -one and thought he had killed another, but the animal seemed only -stunned, and after a minute leaped up and came on again at a swinging -lope, to be dropped by a shot from Dick, who had reloaded. - -Toma did not fire, however. Instead, without any orders from Dick or -Sandy, he made camp in a patch of scrub pine and spruce, where there was -plenty of dead wood. Speedily he made a fire. When Dick and Sandy had -exhausted their ammunition, and had gone for Corporal Richardson’s -revolver, a huge fire was roaring and crackling before the upturned -sled, in whose shelter rested the corporal. - -The wolves had drawn off out of gunshot now. Some of them were devouring -their comrades that had fallen. When darkness crept over the little camp -the wolves had completely surrounded it. - -“We’ve got to save our cartridges,” Dick said at last. “Toma, how many -have you left?” - -“Just gun full up,” replied Toma, which meant he had the magazine of his -repeater full—eight shots. - -Dick was fingering Corporal Richardson’s revolver. He was unaccustomed -to handling a revolver and comprehended he could do little real damage -with the small arm, having always used a rifle. Sandy was no better than -he, and when Dick asked Toma if he could shoot with a revolver with -accuracy, the guide shook his head. - -“They’re slinking around us in a circle now,” Sandy reported fearfully, -as the shadows deepened. - -As he had said, now and again a dark, sinister form glided across the -snow from shrub to shrub, skirting the firelight. Here and there, one of -the pack sat on his haunches, his beady eyes fixed on the camp, while -his mouth slavered. Frequently one of the number raised his nose to the -sky and sounded the hunger howl. - -The wolves feared the campfire, and Toma explained that as long as they -could keep the fire going they need not fear any very dangerous attack. -And even if the wolves did rush them they could be repelled by fire -brands. - -“I’m going to see what they do when I throw fire,” Dick said presently. -He picked out the nearest shadowy form, and drawing a flaming stick from -the fire, threw it at the wolf. His aim was good and the animal snarled -horribly as the fire fell within a few feet of its feet. - -It was close to midnight when Toma confided to Dick and Sandy what they -both feared. The wolves were gaining in number as wanderers joined the -pack surrounding them. The places of those they had killed earlier in -the day, and the few they had managed to pick off after dark were being -filled by other ravenous beasts. - -There would be no sleep in the camp that night. - - - - - CHAPTER XIX - THE CIRCLE OF DEATH - - -Toma had cut a huge stack of wood, and it was well he did, for the -moment the fire died down the wolves drew closer. In fact they seemed to -taunt the boys into using the last of their ammunition in firing at the -difficult targets they made. - -The one dog was whimpering with fear and cowering under the legs of his -masters in abject fear. Sometimes, however, a low whine sounded among -the wolves, at which the husky pricked up his ears and did not seem so -frightened. Toma tied the dog to the sled with a thong of moose-hide. - -As the night wore away, Dick and Sandy risked shot after shot at the -wolves, and now and again they dropped a skulking shadow. But usually -they missed, since Toma objected to giving up his rifle, and they were -forced to use the corporal’s revolver. - -“How long do you suppose we can hold out?” Sandy asked in a strained -voice. - -“I see no reason why we can’t hold out until they leave,” Dick replied -with more confidence than he felt. “We’ve plenty of firewood. As long as -we have fire to fight with we’re safe.” - -“How do we know they’ll leave?” Sandy wanted to know. - -Dick shuddered a little, and did not answer. He saw a gray shape loom up -at the edge of the firelight, and raising the revolver, fired quickly. -He gave a cry of satisfaction as he saw the gaunt beast leap into the -air and fall, kicking its last. - -There followed a rush of hungry wolves for their fallen companion. -Horrified, the boys watched the dead wolf torn to pieces by the pack. -Dick emptied his revolver into the writhing mass. He could not help but -hit, and he killed another wolf, wounding two others, which the pack -finished. - -Sandy began throwing burning brands at the wolves, and they drew off -once more into the darkness, where they paced nervously back and forth, -growling and snarling. - -The boys decided that one of them should try to sleep while the other -two watched. Dick arranged three twigs in one hand for Sandy and Toma to -draw from. The one with the shortest twig, after the draw, was to be the -lucky one. Sandy drew the shortest. But after a half hour of futile -tossing about, he gave it up. - -“No use,” Sandy joined the haggard watchers at the fire. “One of you -fellows try it. I couldn’t sleep in a million years with those devils -out there waiting to gobble me up.” - -“I don’t think I can either,” said Dick. “Toma, you’d better try it. One -of us had better get some rest.” - -The guide grunted assent, and rolled into his sleeping bag, which once -had been his brother’s. In a few minutes Toma was breathing steadily in -sound slumber. His calmness gave the boys courage. - -“If he can sleep I guess we hadn’t ought to feel so nervous,” Sandy -observed. - -“I’ve heard old sourdoughs say an Indian never lets the nearness of -death trouble him when he can’t get away from it,” Dick related, trying -to get his own mind and Sandy’s off their perilous predicament. - -“Well, I wish I was an Indian then,” Sandy sighed, “—for the present -anyway.” - -The renewed and increased restlessness of their dog attracted their -attention then, and they watched him straining at the moosehide leash. - -Dick caught the dog trying to chew through the thong and spoke sharply. - -“Funny why he wants to get away,” Dick mused aloud. “One would think the -dog would realize his danger and want to stay near the fire.” - -Corporal Richardson’s voice sounded from his blankets. The officer had -awakened and had overheard Dick’s remark. - -“There’s a female wolf out there—several of them,” the veteran -northerner answered Dick. “She’s calling to the dog. It’s the mate call -of the wolf and the dog understands it. But only the wisest of -she-wolves understand how to use the call to lure meat for their -stomachs. That dog wouldn’t last three minutes once he left the fire.” - -“How do you feel now?” Dick asked, going to the wounded man’s side. - -“Much better,” answered the officer, “but my side is stiff and mighty -sore. I’ll be flat on my back for a couple of weeks yet. Couldn’t be -worse luck now that the Inspector needs every man of us.” - -“Then you really think we have a good chance escaping from the wolf -pack?” Dick eagerly seized at a grain of encouragement. - -The corporal did not answer immediately. “You’d have a lot bigger chance -if you left me here in the morning,” said the corporal steadily. - -“Leave you here!” Dick exclaimed. “What do you think we are—cowards?” - -“I should say not, Dick Kent,” replied the policeman. “But that doesn’t -make me any less a burden. With this wolf pack surrounding you you’ll do -well to get away from camp at all, say nothing of hauling me along.” - -“But we’re with you anyway,” Dick concluded decisively. - -“Oh, well,” the officer turned a little, stifling a groan at the -movement, “the wolves may scare up moose or caribou before morning. If -they do they’ll soon leave us alone.” - -The conversation had weakened the corporal, and Dick soon left him to -rest, joining Sandy. The boys discussed the situation, listening to the -fearful howls of the wolves, hoping against hope that as Corporal -Richardson had said, they might find other game before morning. - -After two hours of sound slumber, Toma quietly arose and joined the two -at the fireside. He said little, but set to work cutting down more wood, -and breaking it up into firewood lengths. - -Morning dawned, cold and gray. Dick and Sandy were worn from loss of -sleep. Silently they waited for the wolves to depart. But with the sun -an hour high the pack still circled the camp, tongues lolling, jaws -slavering. - -“Will they never leave!” Sandy’s voice faltered. - -“Wolf much hungry!” Toma grunted. “Maybe um leave, we start. Sometime -they do.” He looked at Dick to see what he thought. - -Dick surveyed the menacing circle of wolves. They had grown bolder as -their hunger increased. Could they hitch up the dog and break out of -that circle of death? - -“If you think we have a chance to get out of here, Toma, we’ll try it,” -Dick grimly returned a moment later. “Anything but this suspense suits -me.” - -As the boys packed up the wolves grew more uneasy and shifted closer. -Toma scarcely could manage the husky as he hitched it to the sled. The -young guide held his rifle in one hand, working at a disadvantage so -that he might be prepared to shoot at a moment’s notice. Toma’s was the -only rifle left in which there was ammunition, and Dick had shot away -all the revolver cartridges during the night. - -It was with many misgivings that a few minutes later they took their -places for the dash through the wolves. - -Toma took the lead, with the rifle, Sandy held the dog, while Dick took -up the rear, swinging the camp axe. - -Slowly, in grim silence, they pulled away from the fire. - -A hundred feet away they discovered they never would get through the -circle. For, instead of retreating, the wolves dashed this way and that, -then rushed them in a body. Sandy’s cry of terror was drowned by the -crack of Toma’s rifle and Dick’s hoarse shout: - -“Back to the fire! We can’t make it!” - -Then Toma’s rifle was empty, and with clubbed rifle and axe they were -left to fight their way back to the campfire. Slashing with razor fangs, -the wolves leaped in and out. Dick wrought havoc with the axe, and Toma -ploughed his way through the snarling, writhing mass like a Hercules. -When the guide broke through he ran to the fire and commenced throwing -coals and burning sticks with his mittens, until the air was filled with -flying embers. Howls of pain followed as the hot coals burned the -wolves. The scent of singed hair and burning flesh arose. - -At last the wolves drew off reluctantly, leaving behind them a trail of -wounded and dying. In the repulsion of the attack the boys had slain -nine wolves and wounded seven. They could see the hairy bodies of the -dead lying scattered all the way from where the fight had begun. - -“Wood not last much longer,” Toma’s voice startled Dick. - -Dick hastily inspected the patch of wood in which they had camped. As -Toma had said, they soon would be out of firewood. And the nearest wood -was three hundred yards away—outside the circle of death. - -Dick and Sandy shuddered; Corporal Richardson stirred and moaned; Toma -began quietly gathering the chips and twigs; half buried in the snow. - - - - - CHAPTER XX - SANDY DISAPPEARS - - -Sitting by the fire, conscious presently of a light step at his side and -a friendly hand on his shoulder, Dick turned and looked up into Sandy’s -face, as his chum spoke in a voice husky with emotion. - -“I guess we’ve about played our last card,” said Sandy. “Right now it -doesn’t look as if Fort Dunwoody was very close, does it?” - -“No, not very close,” Dick was obliged to answer, as his tired eyes -swept the narrowing circle of timber wolves. - -“We’ve done the best we could anyway,” Sandy went on dejectedly. “I -guess my Uncle Walter won’t receive a whole lot of help from us.” - -“Sandy, I used to think you were an optimist,” declared Dick, “but now I -know you’re a born pessimist. Why don’t you try to cheer up?” - -Sandy glanced about at the wolves. A scowl puckered his usually placid -brow. “Can’t be very cheerful with those fellows waiting for us,” he -said shortly. “Do you know I sometimes think that big one with the -shaggy head actually grins at me? If he thinks he’s going to pick a -whole lot of meat off my bones he’s badly mistaken.” - -Dick grinned in spite of himself. “Exactly what do you mean, Sandy?” - -“Well, I’m a whole lot thinner than I was. Toma would make better -eating.” - -At this juncture, Toma, who had been cutting what little wood remained, -strode forward with an almost excited look on his face. “I know what do -now,” he announced. “We no got firewood; plenty over by trees.” - -“We know that,” Sandy responded impatiently, “but we’re a long ways from -being over there.” - -“Me ketch um good idea. No can go to wood with wolves there. We move -fire to wood; move um little at time, one feet, two feet—bye and bye we -get there—mebbe by night we travel fast.” - -Toma was right. At nightfall they had accomplished the unusual feat of -moving the fire to another patch of wood. And with the first snarling -approach of the ravenous wolves a replenished fire sprang up to beat -them back. The boys, in exuberance, piled more and more wood on the fire -until it leaped five feet into the still, frosty air, and grew so hot it -melted a circle of snow about it. - -Dick breathed a sigh of satisfaction as he crawled into his blankets -hours later. It had been decided that Sandy was to stand first watch -with Toma. Tonight, Dick decided grimly, he would make the most of the -hours allotted him for sleep. He intended to follow Toma’s example and -forget everything in the complete relaxation of weary mind and muscles. - -“Got to fight this thing through,” he reminded himself, stretching his -long legs out before the campfire and composing himself for sleep. A few -minutes later, while watching Sandy nervously pacing to and fro, he -forgot all his troubles in a happy loss of consciousness that carried -him away to a land where wolves, blizzards and scar faced Indians did -not once trouble him. - -He was awakened by Toma shaking him by the shoulder. “Big wolf eat you -up if sleep like that,” declared the young guide goodnaturedly. - -Dick jumped up, once more mentally alert, and shortly piled more wood on -the fire, commencing his lonely vigil. He scanned the fringe of the -firelight for the skulking shapes, which had become so dreadfully -familiar, but he could see none—not a single prowling form anywhere. He -decided that the wolves had moved further back from the fire. Several -times he believed he heard a deep-throated snarl, but he was not sure. - -“I hope they’re gone,” he breathed fervently, “so that we can continue -on our way to Fort Dunwoody. We’ve lost too much time already.” - -Off to his right a faint glow suffused the east. In another hour, if the -wolves really were gone, they might continue their slow progress, and, -barring emergencies, might reasonably expect to arrive at the mounted -police barracks in about three days. - -With the first grin in hours brightening his face, Dick set about -preparing breakfast. He had a frying pan over the fire and was melting -snow for coffee. It was so quiet around him that he imagined he could -hear the low, irregular breathing of Corporal Richardson. Then, -presently Toma stirred, stretched out one arm and yawned: - -“Guess I get up,” the guide announced. - -“When you do,” Dick replied, “I wish you’d go over and wake Sandy. I’ve -kept his watch for him, and if I wasn’t so busy getting breakfast I’d go -over myself.” - -Dick was adding coffee to the boiling water when Toma returned. - -“Well, did you wake him?” - -The half breed endeavored to speak, but no sound came from his trembling -lips. - -“What’s wrong?” Dick inquired, trying to be calm. - -“Sandy, him gone!” - -“Gone!” Dick’s heart took a sickening plunge. - -The light was strong enough now so that they could see that the wolves -were gone, but this happy discovery was not so encouraging with the -disappearance of Sandy. - -Horrified at first, at the thought that Sandy must have been eaten by -the wolves, Dick and Toma began a minute search of the vicinity. They -found tracks, but no sign of Sandy. If the departed wolves had slain -Dick’s chum there would have been traces left, at least bits of -clothing. - - - - - CHAPTER XXI - THE MAN FROM CROOKED STICK RIVER - - -If, as Dick suspected possible, Pierre Govereau had overtaken them again -and somehow made off with Sandy, what then could they do? Corporal -Richardson must go on to the post at all hazards. The infection in the -officer’s wound would kill him unless medical aid were procured soon. -Yet Dick could not leave without knowing what had happened to Sandy, and -making a sincere effort to find his chum. And in that strange country he -could not find his way without the aid of Toma. - -“I’ve a good idea what might have happened to Sandy,” Dick mused aloud a -little later. - -“What you say?” Toma eagerly asked. - -“He’s walked in his sleep two or three times in his life that I know -about, and last night he must have done it again. Now I’m sure he left -the fire after the wolves were gone. If he did then he might have fallen -into Govereau’s hands.” Dick strode back and forth in the snow, almost -beside himself. - -“Oh! if some friend would only come along on the way to Fort Dunwoody,” -Dick exclaimed aloud. - -“We take um sick fella to cabin,” Toma suggested. “We leave um there -when go look for Sandy.” - -At his wit’s end Toma’s suggestion seemed the only way out. Dick felt -his duty to Sandy even greater than that to the minion of the northland -law, and he would not exactly be deserting the policeman if he left him -with food and firewood. - -“That’s the thing to do,” Corporal Richardson spoke up from his -blankets. “The Indian has it right. The cabin is between six and eight -miles from here. You can take me there and come back and take up young -McClaren’s trail.” - -Dick was glad to hear the officer’s voice, and to learn that he was once -more rational, with abated fever. - -“If it’s all right with you, corporal, that’s what we’ll do. Toma, let’s -hurry.” - -In a few minutes the camp where they had been held up a day and two -nights had been deserted and out across the vast, endless expanse of -snow, Toma and Dick toiled in the dog traces, dragging the wounded -policeman. - -They had gone some two miles and were resting when suddenly they were -startled by the sound of a dog driver’s voice from over the knoll they -had just coasted down. Was it friend or enemy? Dick prayed it was a -friend as he hurried to the top of the little hill and looked. - -A team of eight dogs, followed by a lone man, swinging a long whip, was -coming along the trail they had made in the snow. Dick waited till the -man had come a little nearer. Then he revealed himself. The man saw him -almost immediately, and drew his dog team to a slower pace. The stranger -seemed suspicious as to Dick’s identity, but the evident distress of the -young man on the hill reassured him. He came on to within hailing -distance, and stopped his team, raising his rifle. - -“If you’re one of that Henderson gang,” called the man threateningly, -“I’ll plug you where you stand.” - -Dick breathed a sigh of relief. “We’re bound for Fort Dunwoody,” he -replied. “We’ve got a wounded policeman on our sled and have only one -dog.” - -Satisfied that Dick was telling the truth, the shouted to his dogs and -came on. A moment later he joined Dick and Toma alongside the sled. - -“By gar, I tink I never get out of dat country.” the newcomer, appearing -to be a French-Indian, mopped his brow. “That Pierre Govereau one tough -customer. Yah!” - -“You came in a nick of time,” Dick returned. - -“One of our party has disappeared, we think he’s been captured. Now -we’re trying to get a wounded policeman to a place of safety while I and -my guide take a look for my chum. My name’s Dick Kent,” he held out his -hand. - -“Me, I’m Gaston Leroi,” announced the stranger, shaking with French -warmth, “that Henderson’s man Govereau kill my partner up on Crooked -Stick River. I get away pretty lucky.” - -“And it’s lucky for us you got away,” Dick replied with spirit. He -stepped to the sled and stopped over the wounded officer. “Corporal -Richardson, here’s a man who can help us out,” Dick told the officer. - -“Thank God,” murmured the policeman. “What’s his name?” - -“Gaston Leroi.” - -“Gaston Leroi!” exclaimed the corporal with more strength in his voice -than had been there for hours. “Not the trapper Leroi. Hey! Bring him -around where I can see him.” - -At the sound of the wounded man’s voice the French trapper had leaped -forward where he could see the officer’s face. - -“By gar!” exclaimed Leroi. “George Richardson! What them fellers do to -you, George?” - -Dick was overjoyed to discover the men were old friends. - -“Gaston, you won’t mind doing something for me?” he heard the corporal -saying. - -“Sacre diable! Do I mind!” Gaston exclaimed. - -“It’s like this,” the corporal went on, “these young fellows want to go -back and look for their partner, but they won’t leave me. Could you haul -me to the fort?” - -The trapper vociferously expressed his willingness to do this for his -friend, Constable Richardson. - -“They’re out of ammunition too,” revealed the corporal. “Just had a long -fight with a pack of hungry wolves. Can you spare some ammunition, -Gaston?” - -“What kind of gun you got?” the trapper turned to Dick. - -“Ross 30.30,” Dick replied anxiously. - -Leroi’s face fell. He turned to Toma. - -“I got um 45.70 Winchester,” Toma anticipated the trapper’s question. - -“Me, I use 45.70!” Gaston Leroi exclaimed with pleasure and turned back -to Dick, saying: “I use revolver. Like heem better dan rifle. I take -your gun. You take mine. Huh?” - -“Suits me,” replied Dick gratefully. - -Leroi dived into his packs and soon brought out several boxes of -ammunition, with which Dick and Toma filled their pockets. - -A half hour later Dick and Toma bid goodbye to Gaston Leroi, and watched -his dog team, hauling the wounded corporal, disappear over a long hill. -Then the two boys set out over the back trail at a jog trot. They were -determined not to rest their heads until they had discovered what had -become of Sandy. - -“Do you think it was Govereau?” Dick asked Toma as they hurried along. - -“I not know,” replied Toma, who was slightly in the lead. “Tracks show -only two fella keetch Sandy. Hope snow no more; if not we trail um -easy.” - -They did not speak again until they had reached the scene of their -battle with the wolves, where they picked up the trail. - -“They’re going north,” Dick spoke, after studying the tracks. “It must -be some of Henderson’s men, though it seems queer Govereau would come -this far south.” - -“That Govereau, he bad fella; he go everywhere. No ’fraid anybody. Mebbe -I see that Many Scar.” - -Dick fell silent at the mention of the scar faced Indian. He knew Toma -was thinking of his dead brother, and was planning revenge if he met the -murderer, who he believed to be the scar faced Indian. Dick knew nothing -to say which would change Toma’s mind in this respect, so he said -nothing as they forged onward at a mile-eating pace. - -They had traveled nearly ten miles into a deeply wooded vicinity, when -the tracks began to grow fresher, and they slowed their pace. Presently -they rounded a bend, and in a tiny valley, drained by a winding, frozen -creek, they came upon an Indian village of a dozen tepees. - -Toma seemed as surprised as Dick at the discovery. - -“Um war party,” Toma replied immediately. “No good Injun if um fight -White Father.” - -“How can you tell they’re a war party?” inquired Dick. - -“No squaws, no papooses,” replied Toma abruptly. - -As Toma had said there were no women or children to be seen in the camp. -And at different points along the fringe of trees around the clearing, -Dick made out dusky sentinels, armed with long rifles, with feathers in -their beaver bonnets. - -“The tracks lead down into the village, so Sandy must be there -somewhere,” Dick mused aloud. - -The larger portion of the party of Indians who had thrown up their -caribou hide tepees in the valley, seemed to be absent. Here and there a -warrior squatted before a cooking fire, his rifle leaning close beside -him. - -“Look!” Dick suddenly pointed. - -A white man had come out of one of the tepees and was walking slowly -toward the creek. - -“I see um,” said Toma. “Guess him one Govereau’s men. Huh? Him Henderson -got plenty bad Indian work for him.” - -“Then Govereau has joined forces with these Indians,” Dick’s spirits -fell. “It will be one big job getting Sandy away from him now. I wonder -which tepee he is in—er—” he was about to wonder if Sandy was alive, but -dared not trust the words on his tongue. It was too horrible to speak -of—that Pierre Govereau had murdered his chum. - -“We wait till dark,” Toma voiced the resolve of both. - -At twilight the boys saw a large party come in from the north, in which -there were a number of whites. They were loaded down with furs, which -they probably had stolen. Dick thought he recognized the figure of the -half-breed Pierre Govereau, but could not be certain at that distance. - -Slowly darkness fell and the campfires flung out flickering shadows on -the sloping walls of tepees and over the figures of the warriors -squatted around them. - -“I make believe I one of them,” Toma whispered presently. “I go -down—find out where Sandy is.” - -“It’s an awful risk,” Dick tried to object, “and you aren’t dressed like -they are.” - -“I fix that. You wait here—no, you come down closer. Be ready to shoot, -you hear trouble. Jump ’round when you shoot. Make um think you whole -army. I ketch um Sandy.” - -Though Dick feared Toma would come to grief, he could do nothing but let -the courageous young guide take the chance, hoping, if worst came to -worst, and Toma was discovered, that he might draw the attention of the -Indians long enough for his red friend to escape. - -Toma crawled off down the slope toward the camp, Dick followed him for a -little way, until he reached a heavy copse of brush where he felt he was -within good rifle range of the camp. Toma went on and disappeared, -Dick’s whispered wish of “good luck” following him. - -As Dick lay there waiting he could see on the side of the camp nearest -him, the shadowy figure of a warrior sentinel, standing motionless by a -tree, silhouetted by the light of one of the fires. Dick raised his -rifle and drew bead on the guard. It was this warrior who would discover -Toma, if any did, and Dick watched intently for a motion that would -indicate the guard had seen something unusual. - -He watched for possibly five minutes, when of a sudden another figure -arose between him and the shadowy guard. There was a swift movement of -the two shadows; they swayed violently, then the guard fell and the -other stooped over him. Then both disappeared in the dark underbrush. - -Dick held his breath. Toma had attacked the guard and knocked him down. -In a flash Dick saw Toma’s plan—the young Indian would change clothes -with the warrior and creep into the camp, casually joining the others. - -Gripping his rifle, Dick awaited developments. What would happen in the -next hour he did not know, but he hoped for the best. - - - - - CHAPTER XXII - A SKIRMISH IN THE NIGHT - - -Dick waited what seemed to him several hours, though it could not have -been more than thirty minutes, before he saw a sign of Toma. Then, in -almost the exact position the guard had held, he saw a figure rise up -which he was almost certain was Toma, though the firelight revealed that -the young guide now wore the clothes and head-dress of the sentinel. - -“Good for you, Toma,” Dick whispered. “Now if you can only get in among -them without them recognizing that you’re not really a member of their -band.” - -Toma did not enter the camp from that side, however. Once more he -disappeared. - -A patch of brush to the left caught Dick’s roving eyes, and this he -watched, believing Toma would take this means of getting into the camp -without attracting attention, since the bushes led up to a point very -near one of the tepees. - -Dick was right. A few minutes later the bush tops waved a little at the -passage of a creeping body. Presently in the shadow of the tepee nearest -the bushes, Toma rose and walked slowly toward one of the campfires, -where he joined a group. Dick feared Toma might see the scar faced -Indian, and that the guide’s desire for revenge might cause him to -destroy all his chances for the rescue of Sandy. But as time passed and -all went well, Dick felt that Toma must be making good progress in the -dangerous mission he had set out on. - -A little later Dick saw a figure, which he took to be Toma, break away -from a group of natives and saunter toward one of the tepees. Evidently -the guide now was either looking for Sandy, or had learned the captive’s -exact position from the conversation of the warriors. - -Toma stooped into the opening of the tepee and disappeared. Holding his -breath, Dick watched. Toma was gone some time, then in the flickering -light he appeared again. Would Sandy follow? Dick’s heart beat -painfully. - -Then he could not suppress a low cry of exultation as Sandy’s bare head -came out next and the two slipped into the deep shadows of another -tepee. For minutes they did not move, then they suddenly dashed for the -patch of brush that had covered Toma’s entrance into the camp. Dick’s -finger tightened on the trigger. - -There was a commotion among one of the groups about the campfires. A -shout sounded, then a rifle shot. The Indians began to run; they had -seen Toma and Sandy! - -Dick took quick aim and fired. The crack of his rifle in the silent -forest startled the camp. Dick shot again, hurrying to another position -as Toma had advised. He could see that Toma and Sandy had reached cover, -and that the guide was firing on his pursuers. - -The whole camp was in a turmoil now; Indians and whites hurrying hither -and thither, shooting at the flashes of Dick’s rifle. He could not hear -what they were shouting to each other, but he divined they thought he -was quite a number of men, so fast was he firing and from so many -positions. - -“I’ll hurry along toward Toma and Sandy,” Dick muttered to himself, -“they’ll know where I am by the sound of my rifle.” - -Twenty yards further on Toma and Sandy reached him. - -“Thank God you’re safe at last!” Dick embraced Sandy, while Toma kept up -rifle fire on the Indians and whites, who were now charging after them. - -With a parting salvo at their pursuers, the three made off into the -night toward Fort Dunwoody. All night they hurried on, hungry and tired, -yet determined to elude Govereau if they dropped in their tracks. - -“Him Govereau with Indians,” Toma revealed to Dick. “No see um Many-Scar -Jackson. I hear um talk much. Bear Henderson, him make north country big -nation all his own. Give Indians back their land. Humph! Bear Henderson -crazy—him thief, outlaw. That Govereau bad fella too; keep um police -from come up from south.” - -It did not take Sandy long to tell Dick and Toma how he had been -captured by two scouts of Govereau’s band, who had lain in hiding, -looking for a chance to attack. It had been their approach and the -appearance of a herd of caribou going south that had frightened away the -wolves. Dick had been right in suspecting that Sandy had walked in his -sleep. It was almost funny to hear him tell how he had awakened, -struggling in the hands of his captors, dreaming they were wolves -devouring him. - -At dawn the travelers reached the shores of a large lake, whose snow -covered ice stretched for leagues and leagues ahead. - -“Him Badge Lake,” Toma told them. “We cross um ice, make journey -shorter.” - -They stopped long enough to steep coffee and make some flapjacks. Dick -and Toma had taken very few provisions with them when they left Gaston -Leroi, and they now could see that they would have barely enough for -another meal. - -Still hungry, they set off across the frozen lake with many a backward -glance to see if they were followed. But if they were, they saw no sign -of Govereau’s band. The silent forest, fading from view as they forged -out farther and farther over the ice, disclosed no running figures on -their trail. - -“We cross um lake when sun set,” Toma said. “Maybe see moose when other -side. We eat then.” - -It was a long jaunt across the lake. At noon they could see the other -shore, dim and hazy to the south. With hunger gnawing at their vitals -they trudged the last miles across the ice, hearing now and again, a low -rumbling roar as the lake ice cracked open for hundreds and hundreds of -yards. Once they were held up by one of these cracks, wider than the -rest, which they could not leap over. They had to follow this until it -grew narrower. Sandy slipped when they finally jumped the crack, and -fell into the niche. At the bottom the fissure came together, and was -partly filled with slivers of ice. Dick and Toma pulled Sandy out on the -end of a rifle. - -Darkness was just falling when they reached the other shore of the lake. -It was with groans of thankfulness that they built a fire and dropped -down to rest for the night. - -“I’m all in,” Sandy sank upon his back by the fire. - -“I couldn’t have gone much further,” Dick admitted. - -Even Toma seemed tired. They did not bother to get supper, but rolled -into their sleeping bags, and fell into heavy slumber, not even keeping -watch. - -Dawn found them awake. They finished their provisions for breakfast, and -again took to the trail on the last lap to Fort Dunwoody. They had no -time to hunt, but kept watch among the trees for a ptarmigan or -partridge, or bigger game if they ran across it. But they had bad luck -and the entire day passed with no more than two ptarmigan to show for -their pains. - -The birds made a slender meal for the three hungry young men. Toma -chopped out some roots that proved succulent when stewed, and they -managed to fill their stomachs with this, though within an hour -afterwards they were as hungry as ever. - -Twenty miles from Fort Dunwoody, at noon of the third day since the -rescue of Sandy, they came abruptly upon a friendly Indian village at -the edge of a tiny lake. - -“Now we’ll eat!” cried the haggard Sandy. - -And eat they did, in preparation for the last lap of their eventful -journey, for they felt it would be a hard day on the trail. - - - - - CHAPTER XXIII - GRAY GOOSE LAKE - - -“The fort! The fort!” cheered Dick, as the following evening they came -to the edge of a vast plain. - -Sandy was overjoyed, so much so that he could not speak. - -Sure enough, a half mile ahead frowned the stockade of Fort Dunwoody, -under the rippling flag of the king. Toma did not express himself in -words, but hastened his tireless pace. - -Dick and Sandy hurried after the guide, curiously gazing at the fort. -Along the top of the stockade they could see a red-coated policeman -pacing slowly back and forth. - -“Who goes there?” the sentry above the gate called when the worn -travelers appeared. - -“Friends,” cried Dick. “We’re from Fort du Lac—looking for help at Fort -Good Faith.” - -“You the lads that helped bring in Corporal Richardson?” the sentry -gruffly asked. - -“Yes.” - -The huge gate swung back immediately, and the young adventurers passed -through. The police guard met them as the gate was closed. - -“You’ll want to see Inspector Dawson?” asked the guard. - -“I think he’s the man we should see,” Dick replied. - -Presently they were ushered into the presence of Inspector Dawson, whose -grim face, under a thatch of iron gray hair, broke into a smile, meant -to be kind. - -Dick and Sandy gave the scout salute. - -“Ah, ha!” said the Inspector, “I see you’ve been members of the Boy -Scouts.” - -“Yes sir, first class, both of us,” replied Dick, a little abashed in -the presence of so distinguished a man as Inspector Dawson. - -“Corporal Richardson told me about you,” went on the Inspector. - -“Then the corporal got in all right,” Dick exulted. - -“Yes, thanks to you boys and Gaston Leroi,” Inspector Dawson said. -“He’ll be up and around in a few days now. I’ve already sent relief to -Fort Good Faith,” he concluded. - -“Oh!” Dick was both glad and disappointed at once. He had hoped to join -the expedition. - -“However, an Indian runner came in today saying that Sergeant Brewster -and Constable Marden, the two I detailed for Fort Good Faith, were held -up at Gray Goose Lake by one of Henderson’s lieutenants and about thirty -renegade Indians. I believe the man’s name is Pierre Govereau. He has a -criminal record here.” - -“Govereau!” ejaculated Dick and Sandy in one voice. - -“You seem to have met him before,” the Inspector continued briskly. “But -the point I’m getting at is this; I have no men to send on as relief to -Gray Goose Lake. I expect one of my scouts, Malemute Slade, in tomorrow -morning from Fort du Lac where he has cleared things up.” - -At mention of Malemute Slade, Dick and Sandy exchanged significant -glances. - -“Yes,” the inspector continued. “And I suppose you follows want to go on -to Fort Good Faith. You seem to be able to take care of yourselves. -Would you like to be special deputies?” - -“Would we!” Dick exclaimed. - -“Hurrah!” shouted Sandy. - -Inspector Dawson could not forbear a smile at the boys’ exuberance. “All -right, step forward,” he commanded, arising from his desk. - -Dick and Sandy lined up like soldiers while they repeated the oath of -allegiance to the law on specials duty for the duration of the Henderson -outbreak. - -The Inspector made Toma an official scout. - -“Now good day, boys,” the Inspector said dismissing them. “Report to me -tomorrow morning early. I expect Slade in then.” - -Dick and Sandy followed Toma out of headquarters seething with -excitement. They felt themselves full-fledged mounted policemen now, -and, too, they were to take the trail with Malemute Slade, the famous -scout they had met on the Big Smokey. Their only regret was that they -could not don the beautiful uniforms they saw everywhere about the post. - -They inquired as to the quarters of Corporal Richardson, and had a long -chat with the convalescent officer. They secured arrangements to pass -the night in the barracks, and once more toasted their shins before a -genuine stove. - -Bright and early next morning, Dick and Sandy rolled out of their bunks -and pulled on their clothes. - -“It hardly seems possible we’re at Fort Dunwoody,” Dick declared when -they attacked the ample breakfast set before them by the post cook. - -Sandy shivered in recalling the narrow escapes they had had and agreed -with Dick. - -Toma, who had slept before the fire on a bearskin rug, was as silent as -he always was when off the trail, but his moon face was split by a -continuous smile. - -Malemute Slade was waiting at headquarters when the boys reported as -instructed. His dog team of six huge huskies stood in front of the -Inspector’s office, harnessed to the sled, ready for the trail. - -Dick and Sandy were pleased to find that Malemute Slade remembered them. -His dark, wind-hardened face lighted up pleasantly, as he shook hands -with his future trail mates. - -“Wal, I swan,” he exclaimed, “I guess we’ll do some tall fightin’ now.” - -Dick and Sandy assured him they were with him with all they had to -offer, and after Inspector Dawson had wished them good luck, they mushed -across the parade square to the stockade gate, which swung slowly open -for them. - -Hour after hour the relief detachment from the post traveled northward. -Malemute Slade would not permit the boys to sleep longer than five -hours. Long before dawn they were up, had eaten a hasty breakfast, while -the dogs wolfed their daily frozen fish, and had hit the trail again. -Dick and Sandy had grown almost as trail hardened as Toma on their long -trip from Fort du Lac to Fort Dunwoody, and they did not complain at the -terrific pace set by Malemute Slade. - -On the afternoon of the third day, more than a hundred miles north of -Fort Dunwoody, they saw from the top of a ridge the white, level expanse -of Gray Goose Lake. They had not been molested along the way and they -decided that Govereau was doing all his fighting at Gray Goose Lake. - -Around the lake they broke into rough and serrated country, through -which they proceeded cautiously. Soon they heard the faint report of -rifles, by which they located the scene of combat. - -Malemute Slade led the way up a long ravine where they left the dog team -in charge of Toma and went on under cover of whatever they found. - -“Follow me, lads, an’ don’t fire till I give the word,” Malemute Slade -ordered. - -“Look! There they are!” whispered Dick a moment later as they reached -the top of the ravine. - -On a rocky knoll, overlooking Gray Goose Lake, they could see the -occasional puff of two rifles. All around the bottom of the little hill -were hidden Govereau’s men, flanked by a deep gorge on their left. - -“Now, lads, we’ll take ’em on the run. Shoot an’ holler all you can,” -Malemute Slade’s drawling voice calmed them. - -Dick and Sandy tensed for the coming skirmish, tightening their grips of -their rifles. - -“Ready,” called Malemute Slade. “Here we go.” - -They broke from cover and ran yelling like an army across the space that -separated them from Govereau’s party. The Indians turned and shouted, -seeming paralyzed with surprise. The besieged policemen, on the hill, -seeing reinforcements, also charged, leaping from their hiding place and -firing as they came. - -Attacked from two sides, Govereau’s band broke and fled. - -“There’s Govereau!” cried Dick. - -“An’ here’s where one dirty skunk cashes in,” shouted Malemute Slade, -raising his high-powered rifle. At the report of the rifle, Govereau -fell, Dick and Sandy rushing past his body in pursuit of the others. - -Dick barely had witnessed the fall of Govereau before he caught sight of -Toma stalking an Indian, who was trying to crawl away among the bushes. - -“Halt, in the king’s name!” commanded Dick, as he recognized the skulker -to be no other than Many-Scar Jackson. - -But the scar faced Indian did not halt. He broke into a run toward the -deep gorge on the left, Toma in hot pursuit, and Dick and Sandy close -behind. - -Suddenly Dick stopped dead in his tracks, Sandy almost falling over him. -“Toma!” he called, but the guide did not seem to hear. - -“He’s going to avenge his brother’s death,” Sandy exclaimed, pushing -ahead. - -“Stop!” Dick hauled his chum back. “Toma doesn’t want us to interfere. -It’s his fight. If we see he’s getting the worst of it, then we’ll -help.” - -Sandy drew back and with pale faces they watched the two Indians come -together and draw their knives in a duel to the death. - -Around and around they circled before Toma darted in like a flash and -drew blood. But Many-Scar made a stab in return, and they saw Toma reel -a little. Then the two clinched, staggered this way, then that, their -knife blades locked. - -“Many-Scar has him!” Sandy suddenly exclaimed, raising his rifle. - -“Wait!” Dick cried. - -For a moment it had seemed as if the scar faced Indian would plunge his -knife into Toma’s breast, but the agile young guide twisted suddenly, -like a snake, and Many-Scar was tripped to his knees. - -Then as Toma leaped in to follow up his advantage, Many-Scar whirled -away, leaped to his feet and once more they circled. - -“Many-Scar is getting the worst of it,” Dick breathed a few moments -later. - -“He sure is,” agreed Sandy exultingly. - -Toma’s enemy plainly was weakening. Dick and Sandy prepared to see the -final thrust, when of a sudden the scar faced Indian broke away and ran -like the wind straight toward the gorge. - -“They’ll fall into the gorge!” Dick cried, starting to run toward them. - -But Many-Scar Jackson and Toma, too, seemed uncognizant of any immediate -danger from a fall. Many-Scar ran like a deer, and as he reached the -edge, he leaped into the air. Like a bird he soared across the space -between the two cliffs, landing safely on the other side, where he -vanished into the bushes. - -“What a jump!” exclaimed Dick. - -“I can’t believe it,” Sandy said amazedly. “Why, it was a broad jump -record. It’s nearly thirty feet between the cliffs.” - -Toma had halted on the brink of the cliff and the boys saw him raise -clinched fists to the sky. Toma had failed this time, but, somehow, the -boys felt sure there was another time coming. - -Behind them Malemute Slade was calling. They rejoined the victorious -mounted police, Toma tardily returning. - -Presently they were behind the dogs on the trail to Fort Good Faith, -their party now increased to five with Sergeant Brewster and Constable -Marden. - -“I hope Uncle Walter has been able to hold out this long,” Sandy -whispered to himself as he ran after the waving tails of the huskies. - - - - - CHAPTER XXIV - CHIEF BLACK DOG’S SCHEME - - -“We’re coming into an Indian village,” Dick called to Sandy, when the -party reached the top of a long ridge. - -Sandy, who was some distance in the rear, hurried up and joined Dick. A -village of nearly a score of tepees lay ahead, the smoke of a number of -campfires rising here and there. - -Sergeant Brewster, who had taken command, explained that he was about to -enlist the tribe’s aid in an effort at retaking Fort Good Faith. - -“Chief Black Dog is a good friend of the mounted,” said Sergeant -Brewster, “and he’ll let us have a few warriors. I suppose Henderson has -tried to get the old fellow on his side, but chief is loyal.” - -They entered the village, and had some trouble with the numberless -Indian dogs that rushed out savagely from behind the tepees and attacked -the huskies. Presently several Indians came and called off the dogs, -throwing stones and sticks at them. - -Sergeant Brewster addressed one of the braves: “Tell Chief Black Dog a -man from the Great White Father has come to see him.” - -The buck hurried away, and soon returned, saying the chief would be glad -to see him, in fact had invited them all to his council tepee. - -Leaving Toma to look after the dogs, Dick and Sandy followed Malemute -Slade and the policemen to a tepee much larger than the rest. The -entrance was so high that even Malemute Slade entered erect. - -“Gosh, it’s dark,” whispered Sandy, when the tepee flap closed behind -them. - -The only light in the tepee was a tiny fire glowing in the center. -Before this Dick and Sandy could make out three shadowy figures. The one -in the center was an aged Indian with snow white hair. He was Chief -Black Dog. - -“The white brother comes from the Great White Father. It is good. Peace -with white brother,” the old chief spoke. - -“We bring presents from the great chief to the big chief,” Sergeant -Brewster announced, drawing from his mackinaw pockets a fine pocket -knife and a shining tobacco box. - -Dick and Sandy could see the old chief’s eyes glitter as they fell upon -the gifts. - -“It is good,” said Chief Black Dog, accepting the presents. - -The sergeant also gave something to each of the two chiefs seated on -either side of Chief Black Dog, for which they muttered thanks. - -“What will the white brother have?” the chief spoke again. - -“We wish help to fight the bad outlaw, Bear Henderson,” answered the -sergeant. “He has taken Fort Good Faith from the good factor Walter -MacClaren.” - -“It is good. My warriors are brave. They go with you.” - -Sergeant Brewster thanked the old chief, then waited for dismissal. -Chief Black Dog sat looking into the fire for a time, his deep eyes -meditative. The boys watched curiously. The chief seemed to be thinking. -At length he spoke: - -“The red man would know how many braves the bad chief Henderson fights -with. Some my warriors, young and foolish, with Henderson. I send -warrior in night. He go make believe join Henderson. He find his -brothers there. He find out how many braves hold fort. Come tell me. He -find where big chief MacClaren in prison. We know how to fight better -then.” - -“The red man’s words are wise,” replied the sergeant. - -“It is good,” the chief said, turning to the chief on his left and -speaking swiftly in his native tongue. - -The other chief rose and quietly left the tepee. - -“White brother’s men stay, wait for spy, when he come back. One night -maybe. Then we know all.” He waved a withered hand in dismissal. - -Dick and Sandy welcomed the open air, when once again they stepped into -the sunlight. At the sergeant’s orders they helped Toma unharness the -dogs. - -Chief Black Dog assigned two tepees to the party from Fort Dunwoody. -Dick, Sandy and Toma took one, the mounted policemen the other. An hour -later the boys watched the spy leave for Fort Good Faith, while the war -drums of the tribe summoned the braves to battle. - -It was an exciting evening the boys passed, watching the warriors in -their fantastic dances. When at last they went to their tepee to rest, -they were tired, but could not sleep. The wait for news from Fort Good -Faith was proving to be a trying one. So near Sandy’s uncle, yet under -orders to remain idle, the boys chafed and worried. - -“I can’t stand it,” Sandy cried. “I want to get there and have it over -with.” - -“I know just how you feel,” sympathized Dick. “I want to smell powder -too. But I believe the chief made a wise move, at that. What do you -think, Toma?” - -Toma’s dark face, lighted by the fire, brightened. “Him wise chief,” -said Toma. “My father know him long ago when they hunt on Saskatchewan -River.” - -“Tell us a story about the old days, Toma,” Dick pleaded, as he squatted -by the fire, “—an Indian story.” - -“Yes, do,” Sandy chimed in. - -The young guide seemed to be looking far away as he stared into the -glowing coals. Outside, the war drums and the cries of the dancing -warriors echoed in the forest aisles. - -“I tell story my father tell me long ago, when I little boy,” Toma -began. “Big medicine man tell my father. It is story of Saskatchewan -River and Great Bear, mighty hunter of the Crees. - -“Long ago, by Saskatchewan live big tribe. One hunter, one Great Bear, -he mightier than all big hunters. Him not like Saskatchewan country. Him -want travel far, far—where sun goes down. - -“Big medicine man, one Two-Horns-in-the-Bone not want lose Great Bear, -great hunter. Him try keep Great Bear home. But Great Bear don’t care. -He go anyway, he say. - -“Then Great Bear get ready go far away. When start, -Two-Horns-in-the-Bone go ’long little way with Great Bear, so Great -Spirit be with him in far lands. They stop on bank of Saskatchewan, -mighty river. Great Bear, lie thirsty. He kneel down, fill up with -water. Two-Horns-in-the-Bone make sign over him, big medicine sign. When -Great Bear get up, medicine man say: - -“‘They who drink waters of Saskatchewan shall return before they die.’ - -“Great Bear, him laugh. Him think Two-Horns-in-the-Bone make fun. Great -Bear young, strong; he laugh at Great Spirit, like him laugh at grizzly. -Him leap in Saskatchewan an’ swim across. Him wave spear goodbye to -medicine man, an’ turn back on Saskatchewan. - -“Two-Horns-in-the-Bone go back to tepee. Say nothing. Him very wise. - -“Many moons pass. Great Bear go far, far away—to Big Sea, to desert, to -other side of sunset. He fight many battles, always win. - -“Medicine man by Saskatchewan, him wait an’ smoke long pipe. Twenty -winters gone by, then spring come. Two-Horns-in-the-Bone walk down to -Saskatchewan. He wait all day. When sunset come he see old man walking. -Old man all bent over, white hair, hobble on stick. -Two-Horns-in-the-Bone watch. Old man come down to edge of water. Him -kneel down and drink. Then he go back and lay down. - -“Two-Horns-in-the-Bone go to old man. Him speak, him look in face. Old -Indian, him Great Bear. Old medicine man raise face to sky. ‘The Great -Spirit has spoken,’ say Two-Horns-in-the-Bone. ‘They who drink waters of -Saskatchewan shall return before they die.’” - -Toma’s voice died out. The young Indian seemed to be in another land, as -he thought of his father’s people. Dick and Sandy sat spell-bound. - -“It is the Legend of the Saskatchewan,” Dick said in a hushed voice. - -“It sure was a good story,” said Sandy. “Tell us another one, Toma.” - -But Toma shook his head. Dick and Sandy saw a certain sadness in his -face, that the legend had aroused, and they did not urge him. Presently -they rolled into their blankets. Once asleep, they did not awaken until -summoned by Sergeant Brewster. - -As they hurried from the tepee on the morning of that day which was to -mean so much, an inspiring sight greeted their eyes. - - - - - CHAPTER XXV - THE ATTACK ON THE FORT - - -The tepees of the Indian village were arranged in a hollow square, and -in the midst of this were gathered more than fifty warriors, arrayed for -battle. - -“Isn’t it a fearful sight!” exclaimed Sandy. - -“I’d hate to have them catch me alone in the forest,” Dick responded. - -“They’ll help us do for Henderson,” Sergeant Brewster remarked at their -elbow. “The spy came in an hour ago. He reports that Henderson has about -ten half-breeds and thirty Indians holding the fort. They don’t dream of -an attack. Henderson thinks Govereau is taking care of the police.” - -“Did the spy find out anything about Uncle Walter?” Sandy queried -anxiously. - -“I was coming to that,” continued the sergeant. “It seems that Henderson -has imprisoned him in a cave about a mile from the fort. The spy -believes he can find the cave from what he overheard while inside the -stockade. I’ll detail you fellows to go after the factor. But don’t -leave until we’re sure we’ve taken the fort—that comes first. Toma and -Malemute Slade will accompany, with the spy as a guide.” - -They were interrupted by Malemute Slade and Constable Marden driving up -with the dog team. - -“Wal, boys,” grinned Malemute Slade, “we’re off for another tussle. As -f’r me I can’t get to it too soon.” - -Dick and Sandy laughed and fell into line. The band of Indians already -had started out. They left the village amid the lamentations of Indian -women and the loud barking of the dogs. - -They traveled slowly, Sergeant Brewster explaining that they must not -reach Fort Good Faith until nightfall, if they were to surprise -Henderson. Scouts were sent on ahead to report any appearance of -Henderson’s men. - -Just before dark the war party came to a halt on the slope of a hill, -from the top of which they could see Fort Good Faith not far away. Dick -and Sandy gazed upon the stockade in awe. They had traveled more than -six hundred miles since leaving Fort du Lac, and at last within sight of -the post, they felt rewarded for all the hardships they had gone through -in an effort to rescue Sandy’s uncle. - -“We’ll have to keep out of sight till after dark—that’s all that bothers -me,” chafed Sandy. “I wish we were climbing the stockade right now.” - -Sergeant Brewster called to them just then. “Here’s the spy,” he -presented a somber Indian. “He’ll stay close by you until it’s time for -you to go after your uncle. Take your orders from Malemute Slade.” - -Worked up to a frenzy by their war dances, the warriors were eager to -attack, and it was all the policemen and the chiefs could do to hold -them back until nightfall. - -The minutes seemed like hours. But darkness slowly fell, and the hour of -the attack approached. The Indians grew quieter then. At a word from the -sergeant the war party started on toward the fort. - -All was silent until they were under the very walls of the stockade, -then the Indians gave vent to a horrible war cry, and like so many -chipmunks clambered over the stockade. The first inside rushed the guard -at the gate and swung it open for the rest of the party. Rifles and -revolvers flashed in the darkness everywhere, and combined with the -cries of the Indians, made a deafening racket. - -Dick dropped down from the top of the palisades on the heels of Malemute -Slade, Sandy and Toma following him. Suddenly he heard Sandy cry out: - -“Help, Dick!” - -Dick turned and ran toward the sound, his rifle clubbed in his hands. In -the gloom he could see Sandy struggling in the grip of a brawny -half-breed, Dick’s gun stock swept down, and Sandy’s adversary rolled -over and lay still. - -“Come on, Sandy. Let’s not lose Malemute,” Dick called. - -They could see the policemen concentrating their attack on the door of -the post residence, which had been hastily barricaded. - -“Up an’ at ’em,” Malemute bellowed as he rushed to join the mounted -police. Three half-breeds leaped out of the shadows and barred the big -scout’s way. Malemute fired once, swung his fists twice, and the -half-breeds were trampled underfoot. - -The surprise attack was over as quickly as it had begun. Dick and Sandy -saw a huge, long-haired man come to the door in answer to the sergeant’s -demand for surrender, and watched the handcuffs snapped upon the -outlaw’s wrists. It was the first look at the man behind all the -trouble. Henderson’s name fitted him, they decided. He looked much like -a grizzly in man’s clothing. - -“That wasn’t half a fight,” Malemute Slade complained. “Now if that -pesky spy would show up we’d skip out for the prisoner.” - -“There he is!” Dick exclaimed. - -The Indian spy and Toma both were approaching at a run. - -“Lead on there,” Malemute sang out to the spy. “We’ll be a’ter the -factor now—double quick.” - -Led by the spy, the five left the stockade in the hands of the mounted -police, and hurried off into the night. - -It was hard going through the deep snow, but the spy seemed to be sure -of the way. Only once did the Indian seem confused. Then he paused while -the rest waited impatiently. Then they were off again. - -Presently they came to a narrow canyon. Dick, Sandy and Toma were -running close together. Malemute Slade and the Indian spy were slightly -in the lead. - -Suddenly the spy stopped dead, emitting a guttural exclamation. - -“Down!” cried Malemute. - -Scarcely had all five dropped flat when a hoarse voice sounded, -seemingly out of the wall of the canyon: - -“Who’s there?” - -“You’ll shore find out in a minute,” retorted Malemute boldly. “Jest -come out where we can see the color o’ y’r whiskers.” - -“If you think much of y’r hide you better skidaddle,” replied the voice, -threateningly. - -“Haw, haw,” called Malemute. “You’ll be the one to do the skidaddlin’ -when we finish with yuh.” - -Silence followed, while Dick strained his eyes to see from whence the -voice came. - -“It’s from the cave,” Sandy whispered. - -Nerves at snapping pitch, the young adventurers awaited the orders of -the scout, who was mumbling to himself. Malemute was about to order a -blind advance, when four dark forms leaped out of the rocks behind them. -Dick Kent had a momentary vision of Malemute Slade pinned under two men, -then something crashed down upon his head and all went black. - - - - - CHAPTER XXVI - LOST UNDERGROUND - - -Dick Kent regained consciousness slowly. His head pained severely, and -as he passed his hand through his hair his fingers encountered something -warm and sticky. All was silent in the canyon. He sat up with a start, -all coming back to him—the mysterious voice from the canyon wall, the -surprise attack, the blow that had felled him. - -“Sandy! Sandy!” he shouted hoarsely. But the dark canyon gave back his -voice in a hollow echo. There was no answer. - -“Where have they gone?” Dick wondered. “Have they been killed or -captured?” - -He got dizzily to his feet and stumbled along the canyon, feeling his -way. Almost immediately, he felt a depression in the rock. In the -starlight a dark hole yawned in the wall. - -“The cave!” he exulted. - -Just then he stumbled over something solid, yet yielding. Groping about -his feet, he recoiled in horror. It was the face of a man! In the -starlight he finally made out the body, and saw that it was not one of -his party. - -Again Dick called out Sandy’s name, but only the echo of his voice from -the yawning cavern answered him. - -Dick’s head was clearing now. He thought swiftly and concluded his -companions must have gone into the cavern in search of Walter MacClaren. -He turned in and groped his way along, calling every now and then. Once -he thought he heard a shout and stopped, but all was silent. - -He had a few matches in his pocket and he drew one out and lighted it. -He found himself in a large cave, evidently formed by the erosion of -water. The roof of the cavern was some six feet higher than his head. -Where he was standing there seemed but one passage. - -“Well, I can’t get lost if there’s only the main passage,” Dick decided, -and started on boldly, feeling his way in the blackness. - -The cavern slanted downward slightly, and leading forward fairly -straight, Dick made good time, though he tested every bit of footing to -make certain he did not step off into a hole, or run into an -obstruction. - -Presently he could hear running water, and as the sound grew louder, he -lighted another match. There was no disturbance of air and the flame -burned steadily. Dick could see that the cavern branched at this point. -Down one passage a swift stream of dark water flowed; the other was dry. - -About to take to the cavern that was dry underfoot, Dick heard a shout -somewhere in the cave before him. He thrilled as he recognized Sandy’s -voice. - -“Sandy, Sandy, here I am!” he answered at the top of his lungs, hurrying -down the cavern from which he believed the voice had come. Once more he -heard Sandy’s shout, but this time it was fainter. Then he heard it no -longer. - -“There must be tracks if anyone has passed here,” Dick thought, and -striking a match, stooped down. Plainly, in the moist floor of the -cavern, were the tracks of moccasins. But they were directed both -forward and back, and meant very little. - -Thinking to catch Sandy before he was too far away, Dick hastened -forward with less caution. He had advanced some fifty yards, when of a -sudden the earth gave way under him. His cry of terror was drowned by -the sound of falling stones and gravel, as he pitched downward. His -clutching hands encountered a rim of solid rock. With a painful jerk he -stopped his fall, dangling there by his fingers over a chasm he knew not -how deep. - -Once he regained his breath and sense, he endeavored to pull himself up. -But he could not quite make it. The hole bulged outward under his feet -and, kick and thresh as he would, he could not get a foothold anywhere. -The rim he was clinging to was so narrow that it was impossible for him -to hold his body up on it even if he pulled himself up by the hands. He -realized that he was part way down the hole, hanging to the conical -wall. - -Dick’s struggles slowly weakened. His head was paining him severely. He -realized that he could not hang on much longer, yet gritting his teeth, -he clung on while his muscles burned and his fingers grew numb. - -With his last remaining strength, he shouted. But it seemed that his -voice was deadened by the formation of the hole, as if he had shouted -into a barrel. But again and again he raised his voice, though it grew -weaker and weaker. - -He did not know whether he imagined it or not, but he thought his last -outcry received an answer. Slowly he was losing consciousness. It seemed -that he could hear the pad, pad of moccasins and more voices. A hand -grasped his wrists, then he gave out. - -When once more Dick awakened he found himself in a dimly lighted -underground room. Some one was pouring something hot between his teeth. - -“Sandy!” he started up, looking into his chum’s happy face. - -“Greetin’s, lad,” called Malemute Slade, smiling down from the other -side of him, “you’ve had a tough time of it.” - -“I thought it was all over with as far as I was concerned,” replied -Dick. - -“Uncle Walter is here, but he’s pretty sick,” Sandy was telling him. “We -found him in this room, almost dead from starvation. He seems to be a -little better since we fed him some hot broth.” - -Dick raised up, his aching head swimming. Across the room, watched over -by Toma, on a heap of balsam boughs, he saw a bearded man, haggard of -face. It was Walter MacClaren. - -“I guess I can stand on my pins now,” declared Dick. “But where did you -all go right after I was knocked out?” - -“The devils drove us right into the cave,” volunteered Malemute Slade. -“It was a running fight till I climbed on a shelf of rock an’ dropped -down on the beans of a couple of ’em. I cracked their pates, then we -choked the other one till he told us where the lad’s uncle was. Me—I -guess I’ve got about all I want of fightin’ for today.” - -“I heard you shouting,” Sandy explained, “but you were in the wrong -branch of the cavern. I had to go clear down to the fork before I found -where you were. You had just about let go of the rock. I was scared to -death when I had pulled you out. I struck a match—and say!—that hole -didn’t seem to have any bottom.” - -Dick shuddered, but smiled grimly. He had had a close shave—they had all -had a close shave—but things had come out right in the end. - -Malemute Slade had located the store of food kept by MacClaren’s guards, -and they sat down and had a bite to eat. Then, they all gathered -anxiously around Walter MacClaren. With eyes shining, Sandy stooped -forward and patted his uncle’s hand. - -“Everything is all right now,” the youth muttered happily. “I’m sure -that Uncle Walt will get better.” - -For several minutes they stood there in the half-light, looking down at -the recumbent figure of the man, whose life they had saved barely in the -nick of time. Except for their quiet breathing and the low trickle of -water in an alcove close at hand, the deep hush remained unbroken. Then, -unexpectedly, MacClaren stirred, muttering in his sleep. His eyes -blinked open. - -His gaze wavered from one to the other of the little company gathered -around him, and slowly a smile played across his lips. - -“Up in a few days,” he managed to articulate weakly. “Thanks—everyone of -you! I’ll be feeling fine in the morning.” - -Then, with another smile, he rolled over on his side and went back to -sleep. In a surge of new-found happiness, Dick nodded significantly at -Sandy, and, arm-in-arm, they turned quietly and tip-toed out of the -room. - - - THE END - - - - - Transcriber’s Notes - - ---Copyright notice provided as in the original—this e-text is public - domain in the country of publication. - ---Silently corrected palpable typos; left non-standard spellings and - dialect unchanged. - ---Added a Table of Contents based on chapter headings. - ---In the text versions, delimited italics text in _underscores_ (the - HTML version reproduces the font form of the printed book.) - - - - - - - -End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of Dick Kent with the Mounted Police, by -Milton Richards - -*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK DICK KENT WITH THE MOUNTED POLICE *** - -***** This file should be named 50431-0.txt or 50431-0.zip ***** -This and all associated files of various formats will be found in: - http://www.gutenberg.org/5/0/4/3/50431/ - -Produced by Stephen Hutcheson, Rod Crawford, Rick Morris -and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at -http://www.pgdp.net - -Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions will -be renamed. - -Creating the works from print editions not protected by U.S. copyright -law means that no one owns a United States copyright in these works, -so the Foundation (and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United -States without permission and without paying copyright -royalties. 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