| Show J ANIMAL HEROES The Story of Snap Snap the Bun BuH Terrier Ernest Thompson SJ last reb b book Animal h heroes Is If possible more re than ever up to the standard of his In Interesting Interesting In- In wild animal tales To the animal lover this new collection will be read with absorbing attention Mr Seton has been subjected to considerable criticism by other naturalists notably John Burroughs for endowing his animal characters with unusual unusual un un- usual Intelligence and powers which It Is claimed are not possessed by any dumb creatures Very likely ns a II class but as Mr l Seton himself admits In his preface to Animal Heroes these histories while In each case rounded founded on the actual life doings of a real animal are arc more or less composite What novelist no indeed does docs not combine the most moat striking characteristics of several Individuals to construct his human hero who shall shaU appeal to the render reader as an exceptionally ex ex- fine character So has Mr Seton Seton Se Se- ton taken the record of a II number of wood or other animals and embodied their most striking kills or fellings of the pack Into one sagacious brave and gigantic specimen Like all of hIs bis books Animal Heroes Is delightfully Illustrated by some two hun dred drawings and sketches from his hla own and his wife's pencils Interest Is stimulated by a a. constant succession of marginal drawings liberally interspersed with full page paintings of thrilling Incidents The story of good hunting of fierce pursuit of 01 fatal closing in sometimes In-sometimes to the pursued sometimes to the pursuer pursuer pursuer-Is is told by an witness eye wielding a 3 master pen in de- de plc animal adventures and at all aU times runs through the story the love which the writer bears for all aU animals ot of the proud indomitable fearless beast even though he be the scourge of the ther country r a killer r of cattle t or sheep or even e dogs of l nw which II 1 latter 1 the eo author is pas passionately fond be they good ones Nothing he discusses has ever been written writ writ- ten which Is better worth the reading and withal sadder in Its finale than Is the account ac nc- count In this volume of the tho little dog Snap This Snap is a bull terrier which was sent the author as a II sort of Halloween Hal Hal- loween joke jOke jOke-he he was so vicious and unal- unal He kept Mr Seton on the top of the table most of the night where he smoked cigars until his supply pocket ran out and then shivered However he finally finally fin fin- ally made friends with his little pup pUp a youngster absolutely without fear A year later the two found themselves near Mendoza Mendoza Men Men- doza North Dakota where the wolves had been playing havoc with the stock live evading poison polson and traps and actually scorning the attempts of the ranchers and the wolvers to exterminate th them m. m The following following fol fol- lowing is a recital of the hunt in which Snap figured most gloriously From a II high point we caught sight of a II moving speck of gray A moving white sp ck stands for Antelope a II red speck for Fox a gray speck wolf Gray or Coyote and each of these is determined by its taU tall If the glass shows the tho tall down It is a Coyote if up upU U 11 is the hated Gray We got a momentary view of the pursuit pursuit pur pur- suit a II wolf Gray it surely was loping away ahead of the Dogs Somehow I Iso so fast as they had after the tho Coyote But no one knew the finish of the hunt The Dogs came back to us one by one and we saw no more of that Wolf Sarcastic remarks and recrimination were now freely Indulged in by the hunters Pah Pahl I plumb was the fathers father's disgusted comment on the pack They could catch up easy enough but when he turned on them they lighted out for home home pah Wheres that fearless fear fear- Ic less S o nort T asked Hilton Hnton scornfully I dont don't know said I. I I Iam am In InclIned Inclined In- In to think he never saw the wolf but If he ever does Ill I'll bet he sails in for death or glory That night several Cows were killed THE DESPERADO IN TilE THE MIDDLE PACED FACED THIS WAY AND THAT close to the ranch and we were spurred on to another hunt It opened much like the last Lite Le In Inthe Inthe the afternoon we sighted a II gray fellow with tall talt up not half a II mile mUe off As we rose to the upland and sighted the chase half a mile mUe off Dander the greyhound came up with the Wolf and snapped at athis athis his haunch The Gray wolf turned round to fight and we had a tine fine view The Dogs came up by two and threes barking at him In a ring till last Snap the little white one rushed up He wasted no time barking but rushed straight at atthe atthe I the Wolfs Wolf's throat and missed It It yet seemed to get him by the nose then the theten theten ten big Dogs closed In and In two minutes the wolf was dead Snap had lived up to my promises for him Now it was my turn to crow and I did not lose the chance Snap had shown them how and at last the Mendoza pack had killed a wolf Gray without help from the men There were two things to mar the victory somewhat first It was a II young Wolf a mere Cub second Snap was wounded wounded the the Wolf had given him a II bad cut in the shoulder As we rode In proud procession home I saw he limped a II little Here I cried come up Snap He tried once or twice to Jump to the saddle but could not Here Hilton HUton lift him tip to me Thanks Ill I'll let you handle your own rattlesnakes was the reply for all knew now that It was not safe to meddle with his person Here Snap take hold IsaId I Isaid said and held my quirt to him He seized It It and by that I lifted him to the front of my saddle and so carried him home He lIe had shown those men Cattle how to flU fill the weak place in their pack the Foxhounds may be good and the Greyhounds swift and the Russians and 7 v j rt Danes fighters but they are no use uso at atall atall all without the crowning moral force of grit that none can supply so BO well as asa a Ii Bull Bull terrier On that day the Cattlemen Cattlemen Cattle Cattle- men learned how to manage the Wolf question Next day was Halloween the anniversary anni annl- of Snaps Snap's advent The weather was clear bright not too cold and there was no snow v on the ground The men usually celebrated the day with a hunt of some sort and now of course Wolves were the one object To the disappointment disappoint dIsappoint- ment of aU all Snap was In bad shape with his wound He slept as usual at my feet and bloody stains now marked the place He was not in condition to but we were bound to have a II Wolf hunt so he was b beguiled Cd Cdo to o an outhouse U a and tW locked ck up while w we went n off I at least with a II sense of Impending disaster I knew we should fall faU without my Dog but I did not realize how bad a failure It was to be Afar among the buttes of Skull Creek we had bad roamed when a white ball appeared appeared ap ap- bounding through the sage brush and In a 0 minute more Snap came growlIng growlIng growl growl- Ing and stump waggling up to my Horses Horse's side I could not send him back he would take no such orders not even from me His wound was looking bad so I called him held down the quirt and jumped him to my saddle There I thought Ill keep you safe till we get home Yes Tea I thought but butI I reckoned not with Snap The voice Of Hilton Hu hu announced that ho had sighted a II Wolf Dander and RUey his rival both sprang to the point of observation with the result that they collided and fell together sprawling In Inthe Inthe the sage But Bat Snap gazing hard had bad sighted the Wolf not so very far off and before I knew It ft ho he leaped from the saddle and bounded high low in and under t the S sage straight for tho enemy e 1 leading 1 g gt ge the e whole t le l oio a f few minutes Not far of course The great Greyhounds sighted the moving speck and the usual procession strung out on the plain It promised to be a fine hunt for the Wolf had less than half a mile start and all the Dogs were fully Interested turned up Grizzly Gully cried Garvin This wily way and we can ead them off We galloped to the top of Cedar Ridge and were about to ride down when Hilton shouted By George here bere he Is Were We're right onto him A great Gray wolf came lumbering across an open plain to toward toward to- to ward us His head was low his tall out level and fifty yards behind him was Dander sailing like a Hawk over the ground going twice as fast as the Wolf In a II minute the Hound was was alongside and snapped but bounded back as th tho Wolf turned on him In a few seconds the next Greyhound arrived then the tho thorest rest In order of swiftness Each Bach came up full of ot fight and fury determined to tofO toto to fO right in and tear the Gray Wolf to pieces but each in turn swerved aside and leaped and barked around at a II safe distance After a minute or so the Russians appeared fine big g Dogs they y were Td Their I Og distant intention I no doubt o was to dash at the old Wolf but his fearless front his sinewy frame and death dealing Jaws awed them long before they were near him and they also joined the ring while the desperado In the middle faced this way and that ready for any or all Now the Danes came up limbed huge creatures any anyone one of them as heavy as the Wolf I heard their heavy breathing tighten ten Into a threatening sound us as' they plunged ahead eager to tear the foe to pieces but when they saw him there grim fearless mighty of jaw tireless of limb ready to die if need be but sure of this he would not die alone well alone well those great Danes Danes all all three of them them- were stricken as the rest had been with witha a sudden bashfulness yes they would go right in presently presently not not now but as soon as they had got their breath they were not afraid of a II Wolf oh no I could read their courage In their voices They knew perfectly well that the first Dog to go In was going to get hurt but never mind that that presently presently they would bark a little more to get up enthusiasm And ns as the ten big Dogs were leaping round the silent Wolf at bay there was wasa a II rustling In the sage at the far side of the place then a white snow rubber ball it seemed came bounding but grew In Into Into In- In to a little terrier Bull and Snap slowest of the pack and last came panting hard so hard he seemed gasping Over the level el open he made straight to the c chang I me lh ing ring rYEn a around the killer Cattle whom I none dared face Did he hesitate Not for an Instant through the ring of the yelping pack straight for tor the old despot of the range right for his bis throat he sprang and the wolf Gray struck with ls twenty scimitars But the little one If foiled at all all sprang again and then what cam cameSI I hardly knew v. There was a II whirlIng whirling whirl whirl- ing mass of ot Dogs I thought t I saw the little White one clinched on the Graywolf's Gray Gray- wolfs wolf's nose The pack was all around we could not help them now But they did not need us they had a 0 leader of ot dauntless dauntless daunt daunt- less mettle and when in a II little while the final scene was done there on the ground lay the wolf Gray a II giant of his bis biskind kind and clinched on his nose was the little white Dog ff We were standing nd around d within Jt g fifteen i rg feet r ready to help p but had no chance till we were not needed The Wolf was dead and I hallooed to Snap but he did not move I bent over him Snap Snap Snap Its It's all over youve you've killed him But the tho Dog was very still and now I saw two deep wounds in his body I tried to lift him let go old fellow Its It's all over He growled feebly and at last let go of the Wolf The Tho Thorough rough men cattle were kneeling around aroundhim aroundhim him now old voice was trembling trem trem- bling as he muttered I wouldn't had him r to C rf i I II I hurt for twenty steers I him In my arms called to him and stroked his lead head lie snarled a II little a II farewell aa all It proved for he licked my hand as ho he did so ao then never snarled a n. That was a sad ride home fc fc me There Thero was the skin of a II Wolf but bat no other hint of triumph e We burled the one fearless on a b butte te f th the tha ranch ranch- a teh louse as h he st od by y was heard to grumble By jl I go lO that was grit clar clar grIll Ye can canty raise Cattle without grit li ft j |
