Show t a A. A FLAME Aars f IA Y i taro I IN THE THEl s L FORE l s FORES FORESt I t 1 HAROLD HAROLD- Y TITUS i v Jar l r Illustration py y t 1 IRWIN MYERS s r i CHAPTER IX ax l 9 0 Q L FOR Fon On a week welk Kerr Kerry Young made I g P mope maps sitting la Is the office with Nan Downer for hour bourn each day da i L Sometime long tong Intervals Interval would f pus pats without a word being ex changed Again she be would go to i him abruptly with tome some question and find her manner would betra betray her profound pro profound profound 1 found respect for hIs bis Judgment Ha Ite Habad tl r had bad said Bald that he could do man many In and about the woods wood she be learned the truth of ot his hi statement Intelligent ai as the she was wa well as u she he sheat I at bad bd been trained by bl her sighted far j RIi father father flaws flaw bad had developed In herr ber her r procedure errors error la In Judgment had bad gone lone undetected Young did not force his opinions did dill not offer advice Hut But when she he 94 brought matters matter te to his hU attention j la In which be b. discovered flaws be he V. V pointed these the out r Dally Daily he assumed stature and Importance Im to her ber undertaking S Youre right again I she he cried once Youre always right Its It's a 1 L you yen who should bould be running this Job I Me Je take root he be laughed Me Ie settled down In to one place placY s Wh Why not she he challenged and curiously curiously he be asked that of himself Tip rose rOle then from his bl place beneath be be- Heath neath the drawing board and maa r tied sled Nan Kan's knee which mad made It unnecessary un in ini i necessary to pursue that question l further farther I I must run down to the mill for fora a halt half hour bour she he said ald s The dog dOl watched her ber prepare to depart Want to go Tip Young asked I The dog wagged an all affirmative All Ail Allright right then go along Nan Nao stood tood In la the doorway watch watch- Ing lag The retriever apparently could not Dot believe belte this order to follow another an other Go Oo 00 on I Kerr Kerry said uld Gor Go 00 r. r with Nan Nant I And doggishly dumfounded dumfounded dum dum- founded with Nan he went clots close to toft ft other heels for tor the first time since Ince It It became a little game lame between p t i the three Whenever Nan went li 4 out Tip gave gava evidence of wanting to go EO but always he be awaited Youn Youngs Young's order before following And Andonie once onie when the girl had bad crossed to the landing to send lend a tl telegram and Ind w. w was urgently wanted b by telephone phone Kerry scrawled a I note gave rave It to the dog and told hIm to find Ond Nan He Ue Ile did atter much running here re i and there and snuffling at theY the Y ground and It would have baTe been dim dim- is 9 cult to determine which was the themore themore more pleased girl or dog dor rc You'll finish tomorrow Nan said aId looking over Kerry's shoulder Can I get let you rou to make next neat a anew alIew as s t new lIew cruise cruite of the stuff northwest of laker lakel o You can eaD get let me he said laid with s odd soberness to tr try to do about I anything you oa want done 4 I The Tb words word gave laye him a strange y giddy dy feeling 4 Well go Ie tomorrow rooming morning then she replied d overlooking his hll inference With a canoe on a trailer behind i her car they drove droye to the end o othe of ot the road which gave guve access to Town Town- Townline L line flue lake late Then the they set et oft off on that tha t body of water to spend the do da day making a swift reconnaissance o or of ot f 1 r th the country In which Young was wa I to work t A family of ot ducks docks swam before betor e F them turning ruffling the placid surta surface The mothers mother's bead head was WIS raised big high hleb 4 n she ah uttered low quacks quack of ot warning g and the brood brats clustered close dOle about abon her A As AI the canoe drew closer th theold the theold e old one took wing and the d young oung youngsters den Itera doing their best belt skittered I a along th the water halt half flying half hat f ll swIm swimming minI making a great to to-do i A little breeze arose and the lake late which had lain like a burnished burnish N 1 plate of steel was touched to life lite r Lobes of light blue appeared taro turned ei j 4 to Indigo Indira and ran together until th the S boo body of ot water la lay like Ilka a great sapphire sap eap flecked with emerald Islands Island s An eagle soared oared majestically above se e and as al they rounded a point a adeer adeer deer having late tate breakfast In the e f shallows lifted Its Ita bead head In quick quid C alarm and loped toped noisily for coyer cover Water Waters cold Young remarked trailing a hand band Like Ute lee Ice I This take lake Is II terribly y d deep p la In the channels channel The India Indiana na say la It serer never gives lite up Its Ita dead an and d Father said ald that was 1911 probably so 10 t Youngs Young's eyes ees held on Nan Nan's co cois competent com m. m I is shoulders shoulder watching the their g tt rhythmic swing Her lIer vole voice tame came e s back to him talking of the job D Ds but buthe tit s he h. caught only the music of ot t ii It Why Wh he be told told- himself t t t it thing th that at i had bad made mad of him film a wanderer w was w. u gone One I n. n n had bad at last tut found toune aa ID a answer an ao- o- o rarer er to his hII doubt of responsibility oy y tor for ruining old Jack lack Snow Scow KnowIng Know ow log Ing that h why wander farther tarther Wb Why I s not take root and here Bare Barel Barely Nan Downer was wu the moat most lovely y r W M most moss Well We'll land here she wu was la sayIng say say- l Ing eg breaking oft off this wild train of thought I can see ee the corner s take stake Father bad had a une survey made three years rears ego ago The They landed Nan produced a t map and spread It on a log Here we are Right here This creek otter creek Otter Is alive with trout front a and nd beaver beater ponds pond make It splendid fly fishing which Is II what the tor sort lort t of ot folks who might bu buy will want There are boas bass and other fl nib flab h galore ga go- gore lo lore re In the lake One of ot the best belt t y arding error areas for tor deer In la the country coun tr try tuna runs down Into Section Twelve h here beret ere There are some same moose too and plen plenty of grouse This happens happen she continued to be the northwestern corner o of ot f our holdings The road toad we used today tales Is II a the only one that comes come s does close There There's no one at all aU In th the e country beyond belond Tod West Wet knows I It like a book and I guess gees hes he's lh the e only white man men alive afire who does Tod Too West The name struck truck tem ter temper per within Young Tod West Vest who rots b had ad ruined one be he loved In bo boyhood boy h hood who now sought to ruin on one e he perhaps W was l to love la to ma Little did Kerr Kerry reckon la In that tha t moment that Nans Nan's Idle remark c connecting West Weal and that vast reef lonely lone tone I ly countr country beyond them would one da day come back to 10 him would pound In la his hll ears ear with the rush of fevered fe to v end vered blood that he be would fight a tog fog of ot sickness and pain pats to remember remember remember re re- member It to remember that none non but Tod West knew those thole v vait ast swamps and untracked op- op lands The They went on A cove covey of halt half grown crown grouse fluttered flattered out of ot the way war not particularly alarmed A spotted fawn tawn ran before them and anda a spruce hen eta stared red stupidly froma fromn from a n low tow limb Dear Beat sign alga showed Inthe In Inthe Inthe the game trail and a wolf had passed that wa way last tut night eight ORto Off OR to the right sounded a s sudden udden tremendous tremendous tre tre- meadows eras crashing bing which could only h have ave been a moose making away f tram from rom man his hll worst entry enemy Here was wall an old burning where l lightning had started fire lire Wild grasses and firewood abounded and end Y Young oung stopped watching bees bee work i In n the brilliant blossoms He lie was wal about to go ge on when a small mall movement on the ground attracted at t him hit he stooped and gently put pat down one hand bead palm cupped and end rising showed Nan a bee crawling craw ling hug upon his hI fingers I Pig I he chided Hes Ue loaded up so 0 hp heavily vU that be cant can't fly tIl I Go 00 on out I Try It from here beret I He lie waved his hll hand band and the bee took wing going slowly and Ind groggily but with that aid old finally making a successful attempt at flight He lie stooped over again watching witching another bus busy worker Pretty fair Italians he be h said laid Not Nat pure pare hybrids but the they look l like Uke right good honey Are you yon among other things a abee abee abee bee expert 1 Nan laughed No but once I had bad to live for fora a while with an sa old codger who kept em That was rose about shoat the best belt time I had when I was a kid I 1 got real dubb clubby with bees bee liked em cm When I get so 10 old I cant can't ramble an any more maybe Ill I'll settle down and end keep em and let em keep keel me mil milLs I I Is tl that the only on plan you have haver He Ile straightened and looked at ather ather her so Intently that she he flushed Maybe sot not not he be said gravely Til rn know before long Later they thel stood tood to shoulder wetting for tor the compass to come to rest teat that they ther might bo Do certain of ot precise directions eyes ere of or each ench on the swinging dial Nan Nan's breath was roue a caress for tor Kerry's ch cheek k and end his hi bands hands began belan to trem tram ble tile A few days dare earlier parlier he be would world have hue laughed at this reaction but now he ho simply moved motel without explanation tion lino and end placed the compass on a s boulder where It t would have sta Ita bUIt That hemlock stub club Is Ia do due e north Dorth- north north- Shi l Young cut oft off her words word with th the thelow thelow e low law warning making mating no move moT movement e ment meat Walt I be he whispered Something Some thing thine coming Hear near tit Itt The rhe girl did not at first bu but t after alter a moment of strained listen naten lag lac nodded her head silently Something was roes coming their way wa slowly perhaps hesitantly Then The n aa u a breath of breese breeze stirred th the e ton foliage Ie blowing from them to tD the direction Uon from which the sounds snood came that approach became mo more re tepid rapid Hoof beats beata and scrapings o of t brush brash and finally a queer r. r Inquiring g grunt grant cr or two Ohl Nan whispered as II It cam e into view flew Moose calf I 1 Wb Why bee he's coming up op to u net P Indeed It seemed a as 81 If It the creature creature crea ture would run them down It came on on head bead up ears stiff atilt emitting emitting emit emit- emitting ting a series aeries of low sounds picking lIckIng up op Its Ita feet awkwardly with the thelong thelong long gangling legs leI great reat dark eyes fast fut on those two humans Why I Hell He'll Nan caught at Kerr Kerry's elbow as a the calf kept kepton on never neTer slackening Its Ita pace and so 0 close that In another stride or two they might have bare touched It lint But on oo the movement the animal swerved half alt turned aWl away swung oft off to the right anI and stopped topped facing facing fac fac- ing them standing there all rigid attention and wonder The short hort tall twitched the nostrils nos nos- trite quirked Youngs Young's elbow pressed Nans Nan's hand warningly to tobis his bis side aide They stood motionless as 81 the moose continued to stare at them making those plaintive InquirIng Inquiring In In- quiring sounds lounds Kerry could feel the girl tremble and that sent ent a tremor through his bl own bod body He ne began to Imitate the sound the calf caU made and end on that the creature backed off a few steps seeming frightened But Bat wh when n theman the theman man mID did not move It resumed Its own grunts as It If doing Its best t to o bridge the barrier between species and talk What the dickens are your h he e seemed t to be trying to In say any Where do you yoa come from Wb Why are you here beret beretI I never smelled smelted or saw anything g l like Uke you yon two In all my born days I II Im I'm kind of ot afraid of ot you yon but I want to give you roo a good once over r before I hit for yonder ronder I Theres There's Therese ra a s so 0 o much for far a young oung feller teller like Uke me rue meto meto e to run tori across for the first time IFor I IFor For over a minute the calf calt stood tood d there using all Its sense ranee to size alze upman up that man and that woman An Anthen And d then probably as II an Instinctive mistrust of of anything so 10 widely at variance with all aU Its Ita other young youn g experience asserted Itself began begIn to back The retreat at et first was Will ordeny orderly or deny derly a allow slow backward stepping i a r i 1 i t 1 r 1 tat tJ f Theres There's No One at All In the Country Beyond Then It turned sideways and broke brok S Sinto Into a trot went faster Once 1 It t stopped topped and cast an apprehensive apprehends e glance over Its shoulder and after atter r that dropped Its ears eara and Ind disappeared p peered at a lumbering but flowing 6 trot Vb Why I t Vb Why of ot all an things I 1 breathed Nan withdrawing he berhand her ber r hand band from Youngs Young's arm t The man laughed Never saw law It before I he aal said ald d Dut But In the woods If tf you yoa use see your you r eyes erel you OU see lee plenty plent for tor the first firs t time Ume lie He laughed lowly Ills ml first encounter with ma man o scent you see lee He lIe winded us as trot from from m wherever he be was and curiosity p made mad hIm come our way wa Likely Like LIke- e ly ty bea he never been molested In e all aU ll his couple of months on earth and an anso d so 10 h he h. doesn't know much abo about it fear Tough Isn't It that every sp species Ipe- Ipe e des del baa has Its Ita predator enemies an and d has to start learning how to d defend defend de de- e fend Its Itself lt b by the law of or claw daw an and d tang fang before It has baa a good chance chant e to enjoy enJo such loch a swell well world Yes Ye It Its It's tough she replied ed and looked with a peculiar Intimacy Inti i mac macy Into Inte his bl face Theres Therelo so much to enjoy If tt only all of ot us ns would 1 I They started on 00 and after atter a if time m e Kerr Kerry spoke bluntly the thing th that at her Der last words word had left In his hll min mind d. d The moose did me a favor He lIe frightened you IOU a little tittle and ma mayou made de you yoa touch me me That That was wal a downright enjoyable experience Please I But Dut you ou understand dont don't yo yon on n that I mean that than It Its It's not Just a e string of or words Yes Yea And because of that that Please I 1 RIght I This Thit 1 Is the tha best beat sta stand od of ot maple Ive I've seen leen la in this coun cou try Look at the eye birds tree theta there Two good 1000 veneer lop logs In to It It It 1 was late afternoon when they thel beached the canoe on their return refute Weve Were time to look at the cabin now now Nan told him nodding toward to to- ward the tog log structure on the high highbank bank and she led the wa way Beside the door was roes a rack o of Implements Implement for use tile In fighting ft fires The door Itself was roar unlocked My 11 father didn't like lite locks In Inthe Inthe the bush h she explained Our men use this camp some ome but they always leave tene It open so e anyone anIon to is need of ot shelter helter can get let In The |