Show BAREE AREE Son of Kazan By JAMES OLIVER CUR CURWOOD WOOD Ie Doubleday Pac Pap k Co Ii A AY Y iC Y r G C I y 0 Y r r C ll f Y J J C lull service Chapter VI Continued VI-Continued Continued 11 li lilt lt It was n a splendid night that fol- fol followed fol tol followed lowed Perhaps Baree would have slept through It In his nest on the lop of the dam If It f the bacon smell had hadnot not stirred the new hunger In him Since his Ills adventure ad In the canyon the deeper forest forst had held a dread for tor him especially at night But Dut this night was like a n pale golden day It was moonless but the stars shone like a billion distant lamps flooding the world In n a soft and billowy sea of Light A gentle whisper of wI wind nil made pleasant sounds In the treetops Be De- Beyond Beyond yond that lint It was very ery quiet for It was the s Moons the the Moon Moon- Moon and the wolves es were not hunting the owls had hall lost their voice the foxes I I slunk with the silence of shadows and even the beavers had begun to cease their labors The horns of the moose the deer and the caribou were In ten ten- tender tender tender I der velvet elvet and they mo moved l but little I and ond fought not at nt all nil It was late I Jul July 1 Moon 1 of the Cree Moon of Silence for the In this silence Baree began to hunt lIe He stirred up n family of half grown partridges es but the they escaped him lIe pursued a rabbit that was swifter than thanh h lie For an hour lie he had no luck Then he heard a n sou sound nIl that lint made every ever drop of ot blood In n him thrIll He lIe was cl close se to garts gart's camp and what he had heard was a rabbit In one or of snares lIe He came out Into n a little starlit open and there he saw the rabbit going through a most marvelous pantomime It amazed him for a moment and he stopped In his tracks the rabbit had run his furry head Into the snare and his first frightened Jump had hind shot the I sapling to which the copper wire was attached so o that he was now nosy hung half haIr halfIn halfIn In midair with only his hind feet touching the ground And there lie he was dancing madly while the noose about his neck slowly choked him to death Baree gave ga a sort of gasp lIe He could understand nothing of the part that the wire and the he sapling were ere playIng In this curious game All he could see i was that was hopping and dancIng about on his hind legs In a most puzzling and like Ilke fa fash- fash fashion fash fashion h- h hIon ion It may be that he thought It some sort of play In this instance however he he did not regard apos ns as ashe aslie he had hind looked on the beaver lIea lie Ill knew that made mighty I tine fine eating and after otter another moment or two of hesitation he darted upon his prey half gone already made al- al almost al nl almost most no struggle gle and In the glow or of orthe the stars Barce finished him and for tor half an hour afterward he feasted M Taggart hind hall heard no sound for forthe forthe forthe the snare Into w which had run hIs head licad was the one set farthest from his camp Beside the smoldering coals of Ills hIs fire he lie sat with his back to a 0 tree smoking his black pipe and dreaming co covetously of when naree Baree continued his Ills wandering night night Baree no longer had hind the desire to tor hunt lie Ill was too full But Dut he nosed r In and out ont of the starlit spaces en- en enJoying en enjoying Immensely the stillness and the golden glow of the night lie He was fol- fol following fol following lowing a run rabbit when he lie came to toa toa toa a place where two fallen logs left n a trail no wider than Ills his body lIe squeezed through something tight tight- tightened tightened ened about his neck there was S a sudden snap snap-a snap a swish as ns the sapling was released from Its trigger and trigger Baree Barc e was jerked off Ills his feet so sud- sud suddenly sud suddenly denly that he lie had lind no time to conjecture conjecture conjecture ture as ns to what was happening The yelp elp In lh Ills throat died In a gur gur- gurgle gur- gur gurgle gurgle gle and the next moment he was going through the pantomimic actions of who was having hawing his Ills ten ven vengeance Inside him hum For the the life of or him Baree could not ke keep p from dancing about while tile the wire Ire grew tighter and andi i tighter about his neck Furiously he struggled It was a miracle that hut the fine wire held hlf him hIm In a few moments more It must have but broken broken but Mc Mc- Ic- Ic Taggart hind heard him The Factor actor caught up his Iii blanket ankH and a n heavy stick as he hurried toward the Ilic snore It was not a rabbit making those sou sounds sounds-he nils-he nils lie knew that lint Perhaps a aI fisher cut a lynx a n fox U a young oung I wo I It was the wolf he lie thought of first firstI when he lie saw Baree at ut the end of or the I wire He lie dropped the blanket and raised the club It If there here hall had been clouds overhead or the stars had been en II less brilliant Baree Daree would have died as surel surely as had died With I the club raised over o his Ills head licad Mc Me- Ie Taggart saw In time the white star the white tipped car ear and the jet black of Parees Paree's coat cont With a swift movement mo he ex- ex IX exchanged changed the lie club Cor the lie blanket i In that hour could have looked ahead to the days das that flint were to come he would have hove used the club Could he be have hae fore foreseen een the great tragedy In which Bares Baree was to pin play n a Alai part v his Ills hopes hope and de lie- de- de destroying his world he lie would have en eaten ten him to a n pulp there under r the B tight ight of Hr f lice tIe the stars tarl And nel farce Baree could he have was as to happen between this his h bra with a n white skin c host thing In the forests would bave have von ven mure more bitterly before he lie surrendered himself to the smothering embrace of the Fac Fac- Factor's Factor's tors tor's blanket On this night Fate Fule hall had played a strange hand for them both and only that Fate and perhaps tile the stars above held kno knowledge of what Its outcome was to be Half an hour later Bush garts gart's garts gart's fire lire was burning brightly again In the glow of It Duree Barce In lay trussed up lp like an Indian papoose tied Into a bal bal- shaped loon-shaped ball with Labiche thong his head alone showing where his captor had cut a hole for It In the blanket He lIe was hopelessly caught caught- caught so closely Imprisoned In the blanket lint he could scarcely move a muscle of his body A few feet teet away from hIm 1 was bathing a bleed bleeding ing hand liand In a basin of or water There was also a red streak down the side of 1 arts art's bullish neck You little devil I he he snarled at Baree You little de devil II l 1 I lIe He reached rachell over o suddenly and gave Daree's Baree's head licad a vicious blow with his heavy y hand I ought ht to beat your brains out and I I believe bellee I will Baree Barel watched him as he picked up upa upa upa a stick close at his side side-a side a bit of fire fire- firewood firewood wood Pierrot hind had chased him but this was the first time he lie had been near enough to the monster man-monster to see the red rd glow In his eyes The They were not like the eyes of the wonder wonder- wonderful wonderful ful creature who had almost caught him In the web of her hair and who ho had crawled after him under the rock They were ere beast eyes They kl N s You Little made him hum shrink and ald try to draw his head back hack Into the blanket as the stick was raised At the same time he snarled Ills his white fangs gleamed In Inthe Inthe the firelight His Ills ears tt were ere ere flat lie Ill wanted to sink his teeth In the red throat where he had already drawn blood The stick fell It fell again and when was done Baree Daree lay stunned stunned half stunned half his eyes partly closed by bythe bythe bythe the blows and his Ills mouth ble bleeding the way we take the devil out of a wild dog snarled art I guess you ou wont won't try the biting game again eh cli youngster A thousand devils hut but you ou went almost to the bone of oC this hand 1 He Ill begun began washing the lie wound a again Baree's teeth had sunk deep and there was a troubled look in the Factors Factor's face It was July July-a July a bad month for bites From his kit he lie got gota a small flask of whisky and turned a abit abit abit bit of ot the raw liquor on the wound cursing Baree as It burned Into his I flesh Baree's shut halt eyes were fixed on 1 him steadily He lIe knew that at last i he had hud met the deadliest of all aJl his I enemies And yet et he was no not afraid Time The club In Bush 1 hand hanel hind not killed his spirit It hind kilted hits his fear tar It Il hind had roused In n him aha a ha- ha hatred ha hatred tred such as lie he had lind never ne not known known even when he was fighting sew the outlaw v owl 01 The vengeful animosity of the lie wolf was burning In him now along with th the savage cour cour- courage cour- cour courage courage age of oC the dog Barce did not take his eJ aes es from as he smoked He lie watched the lie man when the latter stretched himself out on the bare ground and went to sleep He lIe listened still later to the monsters man heinous snoring Again and again during the lie long night he struggled ed to free himself lie Ill would ne er never forget that night It was terrible In in the thick hot folds of or the blanket his limbs and body were suf sut suf- suf suffocated suffocated until the blood almost stood still In his veins Yet he did not whine The They began to journey before the sun was up for If It Daree's Baree's blood was almost dead deall within him Bush garts gart's was scorching his body with the heat of ot Its anticipation lie He made his lust plans as he walk walked ell swiftly s sIft Ift through the forest with Baree Barel under his arm arm He Ill would send Pierrot at al alonce once for Father at his Ills Mission 1 se seventy miles to the west lIe He would I marry yes yes marr marry herd heri her I That would tickle Pierrot And he would I be alone with while was gone for time the lie missioner This thought flamed blood like stron strong whisky There was no th thought in his Ins hot liot and anel unreasoning brain of what might say say-of say i what she might think lie He was not I after the lie soul of ot her Ills hand clenched and he be laugh laughed eel harshly as asI I there flashed on him for an Instant time the thought that perhaps I would not want to give her up Pier PIer- PIerrot Pierrot rot 1 I Ball Bah It would not be the first time he bad bael killed a man or man or the time sec sec- second second ond laughed again and he walked still faster taster There was no chance of ot his losing no losing no chance for to get away from from him lIe He- He Bush was was lord of this wilderness master of ot Its people arbi- arbi arbiter arbi arbiter ter of their destinies He lie was power and and the law The sun was well up when standing In front of ot his cabin with pointed to a rise In the trail three or four hundred yards away over which hind had Just ap appeared lie Ill is coming With a face which had aged since last night he looked at Again he saw the dark glow In her eyes and the lie deepening red reel of her parted lips and anel his this heart was sick again with dread Was It possible possible- possible She Slie turned on him her eyes shining her voice trembling Remember you you must send him to me for his answer she cried quickly and she darted Into the cabin With a cold g gray ay face Pier Pier- Pierrot Pierrot rot faced Bush Chapter VII VI From the window her face screened by the folds or of o the curtain which she had made tor for It t the Willow saw what happened outside She was not smil smil- smil smiling smiling ing now She was breathing quickly and her tier body was tense She heard coarse voice his bolster bolster- boisterous ous greeting and then she Ehe saw him showing Pierrot what he carried under his arm There came to her distinctly his explanation of how he had cau caught ht his captive e In a snare rabbit-snare He un- un unwrapped un unwrapped wrapped the blanket gave ga a cry of amazement In an Instant she was out beside them She did dill not look at red face blazing In its jo joy and exultation It Is farce Daree she cried She took the bundle from gart hart and turned to Pierrot Tell him that Baree belongs to tome tome tome me she slie said She hurried Into the cabin 1 gait looked after her stunned and amazed Then he looked at A man half halt blind could have ha seen that was as amazed as he Ne Nc geese had hUll not spoken to the him Factor of Lac Hahn I She Sue had hl not looked at him himl I And she had taken the dog from him with as little con con- concern concern cern as though he had been a wooden The red rell In his hits face deepened as ashe aslie aslie lie he stared from Pierrot to time the door through which she hind had gone and which sh she hall hail closed behind her ber TO TO m DB DE CONTINUED |