The Blue Birds' Winter Nest Part 30

"'He isn't in perfect range yet. I'd only ping him and make him run, if I shoot now,' whispered Hal, still holding his finger on the trigger.

"'If he'd only move a foot this way!' I sighed.

"As if the brute felt my wish, he turned his head in our direction.

Instantly a deafening report seemed to blow up the cabin, and powder smoke hung thick over our heads. The dogs were so startled that they yelped and rolled over on the floor.

"There was not a sound from outside, and Hal smiled to himself.

"'Bet I got him first try. Didn't hear any objections from him, did you?'

"'Gee! I wish we could open this door and drag him in before those wolves come back,' I said, digging frantically.

"'They won't get back straight off. They have been whipped for the time and will be feared to try it again unless they get the scent of the dead bears,' said Hal, digging away at the top of the drift while I scooped at the bottom.

"We finally managed to open the door enough to get out.

"The bear had dropped dead in his tracks. At his feet--but out of range of the c.h.i.n.k of our door--lay the other, literally ripped to pieces by the wolves during the night's battle. She had put up a fine fight, though, for the area all about her was covered with the bodies of the wolves she had slaughtered, and the snow was all trampled and red.

"The dogs ran out, their hair bristling along their spines as they sniffed at the carca.s.ses.

"We heard the wolves' howls from the pine woods, so we hurriedly dragged the bear Hal had shot inside the hut. We put the carca.s.s in one corner of the room, which left us scarcely enough s.p.a.ce to move around in.

"Hardly had the door been closed before the pack of wolves were upon it, scratching and tearing at the logs.

"We had a difficult time skinning the bears and trying to cut the steaks properly; the grease we kept for oil after it had been melted down. I used to implore Hal to throw out the whole dreadful mess, but he knew the value of bear-grease and steaks, so kept his own counsel and minded me not at all.

"Parts that could not be used, however, and refuse were thrown to the wolves, thus keeping a howling horde of them in our vicinity constantly.

This, as it happened, proved our salvation.

"We sat cross-legged one morning, figuring out by the notch calendar how many weeks of winter remained. Suddenly a most startling sound rose above the din of the snarling, fighting beasts outside.

"A shot rang out, followed by a shrill yelp of pain from one of the beasts; again a rifle cracked, and one more wolf was struck, judging from the noise and confusion that ensued.

"Hal and I looked at each other as if in a dream; then we comprehended, and almost choked with joy. The beasts outside slunk away as the strangers who had dealt death so swiftly among them approached. Hal and I both raised our voices and shouted and called as loudly as we could. I thought of his rifle, and brought it to him.

"'Shoot through the rifle-hole in the door,' I said, excitedly.

"'Sure thing!' he cried, raising his gun to his shoulder and shooting toward the sky.

"We heard an answering shot, and then voices approaching to within a few yards of the hut. We pried the door open far enough to hand out the spade. The unknown visitors already had one spade, and between the two we were soon excavated, the door was opened, and we leaped forth! There stood an Indian squaw with a boy of about twelve.

"Fancy our chagrin and sinking hearts! Hal said afterward that he thought a rescue party had started out to find us, although he knew this was practically impossible.

"The squaw and Hal could speak, after a fas.h.i.+on, and he explained to me that she and her son were hunting the day before, and had been caught by night's swift approach. They were forced to rest in a cave until morning. Here they had to keep the wild animals at bay, although they could see them moving around in the shadows just outside the circle of their campfire, and heard them howling all through the night. When light came again, they started to find their way home, and had seen the beasts prowling around a hump in the snow from whence issued a thin stream of smoke. They knew immediately that some human being was there, and tried to drive away the animals long enough to investigate.

"Hal explained how we had come to be there--and how grateful we would be to get away. The squaw managed to tell us that she would return to her tribe at once and find out whether or not we would be welcomed among them.

"Hal made her understand how much money she would have if she would help us reach Forty-Mile, where he had 'much money' waiting for him in the bank.

"The squaw had heard of 'Old Hal,' the guide, and was evidently surprised to find him lost while so near the trail.

"'With this kid, I couldn't take any chance at hunting for the trail any longer,' he explained, 'but decided to follow the most sensible course, and wait until Spring!'

"We offered the squaw the bear-pelts if she would return with help and rescue us. In the native manner of 'hearing without speaking' she stalked away, and we were not sure as to whether she would return or not.

"In a few days, however, we again heard the sound of a shot which came from the direction of the woods, and after forcing the door open we found the squaw with two young men from her tribe.

"'Trail--him all right,' mumbled the squaw.

"We found the weather clear enough to enable us to travel, so we packed all of our belongings upon the sledge, leaving the canoe in the s...o...b..nk, where it lay hidden against the house. The bear-steaks were almost gone, but Hal showed the squaw where the other food was buried, and told her she could use the hut any time she liked. She nodded, and as soon as the dogs were hitched to the sledge, we proceeded on our journey, guided by the squaw and the two boys.

"We had only a few hours in which to travel, but in that time we reached the cave the squaw had told us of, and there spent the night. The following morning, we continued the journey, reaching the village before dark.

"The settlement was small, comprising but a dozen families and about six huts, but it seemed like a town to us, who had been lost all Winter with nothing but wild animals and snow around us.

"Our dogs were delighted at being able to join some of their breed again, and, upon the whole, we were all treated as well as could be expected.

"We stayed there for two nights, then made an early start on the third morning for Forty-Mile.

"The faithful squaw and her two boys accompanied us a short distance, until Hal had gotten his bearings and said he would be all right.

"We started on the trail at a goodly speed, and reached a small settlement by night-fall. The next day we arrived at the first real colony of white people we had encountered since we left the camp, and a week after we had left the squaw we came to the town of Forty-Mile, where we filed the papers for the claim Herrick and Dwight had staked out.

"Hal knew this was an important matter, and wondered if the rascal who stranded us had found his way to the land-office first.

"I was sitting in the little smoking-room in the place they called 'Hotel' one morning, while Hal was in our room sewing his gold-dust belt a bit safer inside of his s.h.i.+rt.

"I had changed so much in appearance--with a boyish growth of beard over my chin, and my hair as long as a poet's--that a villainous-looking man who came in and asked for whiskey failed to recognize me; but I knew him at once as being the man who had escaped from our canoe.

"I managed to get out of the room without being seen, and ran to Hal.

"'What do you think! The murderer is downstairs!'

"'Who?--Sit down and talk sensible,' said Hal.

"'One of the Indians who got away from the canoe,' I cried in a hoa.r.s.e whisper.

"Old Hal leaped to his feet. He strapped on his belt and swung his gun over his arm. After making sure his revolver was all right, he crept downstairs. I was not going to be cheated out of anything as exciting as this promised to be, so I cautiously followed him.

"The tavern-keeper and by-standers knew Hal well, and, of course, would stake their all on his word; so when he entered the bar-room and cried: 'Hands up!' to the Indian, everyone took sides with him, and we soon had the fellow safely bound.

"'Now, let me see those papers you forged for our claims,' snarled Hal, fis.h.i.+ng through the man's dirty pockets, but finding nothing.

"The man's face showed too much elation for an old guide like Hal to be fooled, and he ordered the boys standing about to help him strip the Indian, and there--fastened to his back with strips of plaster--were found the drawings rudely sketched, somewhat like the set of surveys Hal had already filed.

"They were ripped off and thrown into the fire and the villain was chained to a post out in the shed with the dogs, with his arms tied behind him to prevent his escape, until the Sheriff should come in the morning.

"Hal told the crowd all about the treachery of the Indians, and they promised to attend to this man after we were gone.