Show THE RIVER VL R of 31 w alln P by ge george 04 r ise 6 marsh 0 PENN publishing CO SERVICE arter VIII continued 12 louah as tho the leader fol turn by powder rogue wheel or sled dog the 3 were started in the kiel trail on collar dar trace and enow now of those keen oc when the wind had the Is knife it was a joy to I 1 i noel to train dogs with it t and power the winter shut in and strengthened farther and lithe at the ice sheet reached in and near the shore be ck that they raised their cache was now jl t the big i h with rozen frozen fish when the river closed they dogs down to the cabin on mg to find all well with heather and no news from in in at last clime came tho the mon ilo moon when the snow i the trees 0 and nd in the of 0 december alan and ted tea with the dogs to search adwater ad waler lakes of the kok e barrens flanking the val sinking lakes they trav ahe e northeast but it was iced ced noel who trotted be dogs over the spar dra 0 evair go into dds county come back ho he reminded they y stood on a high bared lazed over the undulating te to the north and east flame aflame as the sun slant its 3 limitless expanse said aid alan dropping his ng to his neck by a thong g the rime from his face cehand hand someone always first ell eh rough s they traveled north of of the sinking lakes but ireci lon beyond the dim they ey had often seen from T they found no water wing ing north no headwater ming ing they headed into the in the sparsely wooded now ow walte te arc arctic tic hares ears tipped with black n willow thickets to race the ie coming ot f the dop dof ce e at a distance three thre hite lie foxes danced gro n the snow inspecting the of tle th e team until the ex getting their scent set ed yelping which drove r over the tundra like ite smoke of the wood the boys din a small valley where headed to boll boil their ket eating they continued same came out ot of the lold fold in higher country As alan iding bading the team reach reached ed P ie e valley and looked far st he raised his hands ut it he ie erlea cried look at that wel herel weve found idill ed him and the two gazed ent across the tundra es sway away to the east be w i hills of the foreground e level white shell of an ike ake until it was lost in the distance 3 as big as lake blen e 8 great while whale noell alan excitedly thise ne of the lakes in the lies 11 a stood in awe gazing I 1 i reaches of the distant to lo the north and south e shimmering hammering floor of ind d scoured ice and into ill it merged with the ver beeg lak he said now flow out of dis t 1 river rive r must be a head Koks oakl cried alan the helget of land the u un north herel here weve ell I 1 I 1 weve found idill III the boys cn aped on the steal great lake in the wind stand and of black spruce Ss 93 lay curled in the alan an and noel tall talked ted ring ing fire are ill 1 right around this le find the outlet noel to find a way to get the e canoes from the e 8 11 is s ilk ka not now into de is lake 1 S Is 13 surely th the of 1 0 I the big river or of an hes it Us s got to be al the river does an out thel ir caribou caribo u sleeping red in 1 boys ys sl slept ept beside the ho Il loining they 8 9 shore over if tle L wind in search ci he outlet t traveled rapidly Y north th after noon 00 when the I 1 ley ey u were va at the end endom of as yet had sal found no bould quid i lead is as they ithane Q e north and the thes great upeor P e next morning uley they 0 oft fl mhd the 9 hore to be a long S e island isia d cutting found that thai the lako lake reached to the north like the fingers on a hand in three separate boys bays and from each of these ran on an outlet look noel said alan as they stood on a low hill and followed the channels of the three streams with the binoculars these outlets run right into tile tho north through a hat flat valley and must join later I 1 tell you were on water to the east tho the ridges all run north and south sout hnot not a break in them weve found it boyl were on tile the Koks oakl the indian nodded his head in agreement now well follow the east cast shore and see sea it if this Is the main discharge some of these lakes have two but im positive no water could run to the east cast from rom the lay of the country its bound to travel north with the boys riding tho the toboggan away galloped the dogs along the eastern shore in an hour looking across the wide expanse of ice into the southwest they could barely see the white hills from which they had discovered the great lake in places the hard snow carved by the wind vind rippled away for miles like white waves in places the ice was scoured almost clean of its snow blanket making sledding a delight on up the cast shore the eager cage ar dogs took them at a gallop but at y w noell he cried weve found it noon the sun in the south was gradually smothered in haze to tile the n orth north banks of lead colored clouds i piled above the white hills snow comin announced noel as they stopped to give the dogs a breather sure en cloughl ought agreed alan what do you say to crossing the lake to the camp we had two nights back in that thick umber timber it may be an old drifter and last for or days with the hills running as they do theres no outlet from this side after the blow well make sure beet ees tar far across there we have to io hurry but weve got the dogs to make it we rough old boyl boy I 1 alan went to the great dog sprawled on the wind hammered snow and rubbed his ears as he looked into the slant eyes you take the team across this lake before that snow comes rough answered with a red laugh as his breath rose like smoke on the biting air CHAPTER IX I 1 back in their windbreak of black spruce the boys holed in for the storm for three days the drifter pounded the barrens driving every living thing furred or feathered to the sanctuary of the spruce or to snug burrows in the snow the morning of the fourth day when the sun flanked by two brass balls of sundog sun dog or false suns lifted above the korizon while the skies to the north and west were still a dense blue block black the wind had died with the stinging air shot with glittering snow crystals their frozen breaths trolling trailing behind them like smoke men and dogs started for t the he head of the lake along the shores the wind had ile heaped aped huge drifts but much of the lake ice had been scoured of snow camping at the head of tho the lake the following day they started over the young snow for the shoulders of the nearest hill to search for a spring water route from the sinking lakes here in the tim timber ber the boys broke trail on snowshoes ahead ot of the team for ther thera was three feet of new snow and without firm arm tooting footing the dogs wallowed to their shoulders everywhere the night before the wild creatures had traveled in search of food after the storm at last alan discovered a water route to the big lake by way of a chain of ponds lying on the height efland of Land the object of their explore ing trip was accomplished thu the great moon of january with its searing scaring winds and nights when the lake ice split with tha boom ot of mulled artillery and thi spruce snapped under the contraction of the frost rode over tho the barrens followed by the moon of the eagle night after night the aurora lit tho the white tundra and streamers of pearly mist writhed aaros tile the heavens beneath stars that shone through with a spectral blue the spirits of the dead at play the eskimos call the done ing lights of the polar heavens often fearful for the safety of the man and girl wintering on tho the talk ing alan and noel rode the iced river trail behind their galloping dogs more than once during the winter john had crossed strange snow shoo trails some were the bearpaw prints of the and some come tho the long shape of the coast cree the cabin on the talking was being watched mcqueen was biding his time waiting to follow the canoe that would start in the spring with may the high barrens began to wake from their winters sleep shoulders of tundra thrust through their white blankets to expose lilac green pastures of caribou moss riding the brown snow water after the ice left the talking came alan and noel in the canoe they had taken to the sinking lakes on the sled when john and heather returned from the barren with bags filled with cranberries they planned their start it will be juno june before the ice leaves the big lake said alan but we can take our stuff in the two canoes to the head of it and bo be ready to start when it does yes agreed mccord weve got no time to lose on the last day as they sealed doors and windows of the cabin against the sure attacks of bear and wolverine heather turned wistfully to alan remember alan that day last winter when I 1 came back to find you and noel with dad do I 1 remember he laughed your eyes were like saucers and your mouth opened like that HO he indicated the extent of the opening with hands held wide apart you wondered what kind of animals had drifted in out of the bush 1 I know now she said that two good friends drifted in alan gazed curiously in the girls sober face brace up heatherd He atherl he said with a laugh just think girl what a great time were going to havel her fine brows contracted actea as she returned his gaze do you think alan were ever coming back she asked ive dreamed such terrible things thing s this w winter inter mcqueen will surely ambush us when we start back with the gold it if we find it its honeycombed honey combed ice flooded with pools of water and entirely open in wide areas from which rose clouds of vapor the great lake reached under the june sun to the hills dim on the eastern horizon for foi days the big peterboro Peter boro had waited while three men and a girl watched its frozen shell soften and break breakup up A few more days and well be able to start for the cache at the outlet observed alan as he and mccord removed the gray koko mesh and silvery whitefish white fish from their gill net and returned to the hungry dogs who stood breast deep in the icy water clamoring to be fed probably the ice at tho the foot of the lake Is out by now replied mc cord and a good south wind will start these big rafts up hero here I 1 wonder how close behind us me queen Is not far ill bet but hell never get the two conjuror river indians to go down the river with him well only have four to handle when tho the time comes what are we going to do lot let him dog us clear to tho the river of skulls or 7 what ayou say interrupted the big man in the other end of tho the canoe 1 I say I 1 dont want to slave nil all summer and then fight for our dust id rather fight bowl suddenly gray eyes softened as ho he odd add ed cd but then theres heather yes theres heather their game Is to trail us then wipe us out to got get that gold and what would become of her ive been thinking of her I 1 want her to come now ashes with us ive turned indian you mean the cold eyes glit gilt beneath tho the livid scar on me cords forehead 1 I mean when I 1 think of heather in their hands I 1 forget orect all law its a finish fight john rind and no quarter going to make it their lives or oursa mccords accords Mc Cords big knuckled hands closed convulsively on his paddle A finish fight and no quarter partner nerl ho he repeated huskily all laws off on the Koks oakl I 1 know mcqueen ailed wipe us out with i out a qualm then murder heather later before they reached tho the coast leave no witnesses no I 1 evidence against them and have our gold I 1 I 1 theres another thing john the Nas kapi drummond got by with 1 i out meeting them but were bound I 1 to run into them somewhere on the Kok soak were passing through i their country well need luck when we do the giant nodded lets hope me queen meets up with them first at last the south wind and the tha high juno june sun cleared the lake of its rotting raft ice and the big peter boro in which they were to make the voyage reached the hidden cache at the outlets there the precious bags of flour beans and pemmican which they were to leave with the extra canoe were wrapped i in tarpaulin and stored on the high platform while the freshet water following the ice thundered down the three outlets into the flat valley to the north the supplies tor for the summer were carefully overhauled and packed in bags spruce setting poles were cut and shod with irons mccord had brought from rupert every ounce of superfluous equipment was stored on the cache for they could not guess what long port ages awaited them on this unknown river that flowed hundreds of miles north th to the sea what churning walie white waters around which they would have to pack canoe and supplies only the and the caribou in their migrations had looked upon the upper Kok soak the water dropped rapidly and alan and noel returned one night from an inspection of the central outlet which they were to follow with the news that the river was now passable tor for a canoe following their dally daily custom when the boys had eaten they climbed to the nearest high ground to sweep the lake with their glasses miles to the south glasses picked up something of interest wat you see demanded noel he handed the binoculars to noel and waited for the indians verdict TO BE CONTINUED |