Show 1 o A By r GEO GEORGE nIl MARSH h e d M Men Penn Y r. r Publishing Service J p Ca m j I TILE STORY SO FAR FAtt sound for the r gold raId country six men lost their the lives Ihu on the y river Red J Malone alone lone Garrett Finlay brother of one oneo of o Ute the e six sir and half breed guide arr arrive arrhe e at posing as surveyors Reflected in m the mirror behind the counter Finlay saw a pair of sinister eyes yes watching the two through a window He yawned stretched and sauntered to the door Wait a minute minute minute min min- ute Batoche he called to the man who was moving away your hurry The h half breed swung around and snarled You spik to me Reaching the waiting Batoche he announced wire Ive just had a from Ottawa Im I'm ordered to map I I Waswanipi on my way to the bay Finlay watched the astonishment on Batoche's scarred face shift shUt to toa toa toa a covert look of satisfaction You go to Waswanipi eh Yes and well we'll need another man I thought possibly you yourself would take the job i if Isadore could spare you ou How about it I got damn good job snorted the furious halfbreed half Well then said Finlay affably affably affa atIa- bly how about Blanche Tete-Blanche He knows the lake and would make a good man for the survey You You you know Tete Blanche Tete-Blanche Blanche Huh Huh I know him I knew him long before he went to work for Isadore Isadore Isadore Isa Isa- dore If you see him before I do tell him his old friend Finlay asked about him Leaving the dumbfounded dumbfounded dumb dumb- founded Batoche working his Jaw in ina ina ina a futile attempt to voice his thoughts Garry turned and entered the store I guess that'll give Batoche something to chew chewon on he muttered There was raw terror In Cotters Cotter's face as he whispered Tete Blanche Why hes he's Isadore's The storekeeper gaped at Finlay as asi asif asif i if he thought him demented what Mr Cotter Cotter shook his head waving his hands aimlessly Youre crazy man plumb man plumb crazy I he exploded Where did you ou ever hear of Tete- Tete Blanche Why hes he's an old friend of mine Finlay left lct Cotter mumbling Blanche Tete a friend of ot yours I and started for the station McLeod sat at the telegraph key as Finlay entered the station Good morning Mr Finlay he greeted Off today McLeod returned Garry you may be surprised to hear that early this morning you handed me a wire from Crom my department chief at Ottawa Ottawa Ot Ot- tawa directing me to change my plans and first run a compass survey survey sur sur- vey of the Waswanipi chain of lakes b before fore proceeding to the Bay Th The Scotchman scowled Oh I have have I Well I haven't You can deny I got that wire but I wouldn't wouldn't wouldn't-it if I were you What did you do to him Blaise asked Garry when he and Malone reached the river shore with their bags I tell dat Batoche he mus' mus be crazy Flambeau talk wid me last night That must have pleased him chuckled Red First he was ver cross Den he me big pay What did you say I say too small I get tousand dollar a mont wid you He Hc was like wild man I laugh at him and he pull dat gun But he was fool fool- ish He stand too close If Blaise produced a snub-nosed snub automatic automatic automatic au au- from his pocket Heres bis his gun I Shortly from Crom the steel bridge two men with heads together watched the canoe start down river and disappear disappear pear behind a bend CHAPTER ER III For a hundred miles after passing passing pass pass- ing through Lake the theNo No No away thrashed itself to foam in inSh Sh scarred scarred reaches of broken water wa wa- ter terr o o or narrowed d to slide past timbered timbered tim time hm S it raced off the Height Height- of Land Allons We go I Down the flume into the whIte hite chaos leaped the thc Peterboro On eIther ei either el eI- ther side boulders pushed up their granite bulk where the tile river burst to fling spray high in air Eddies and currents cross sucked at her keel Knife edged ledges that would rip out her bottom snarled beneath the broken water One mistake and canoe and men would be sucked into the maw of the thundering river to tobe tobe tobe be spewed up and cast ashore bat bat- and broken miles below Drenched to the bone battling always al al- always ways for the safety of the black blackwater blackwater blackwater water the crew ran the Peterboro to the first bend Were through the worst of it iU panted Red as they snubbed the I boat to study the river below I Good channel ahead As he spoke the whip lash crack of rifles broke through the din of the rapids Were ambushed cried Red on that point Come on Finlay caught the blue haze baze of smokeless powder hanging banging in the al alders alders al- al ders ers of the right shore The canoe was trapped Blaise lifted his pole with a shout Let her ber run Like a galloping horse the Peterboro Peterboro Peterboro Peter Peter- boro plunged down the narrow chan than nel Again and again rifles exploded on on the shore Suddenly the bow man rouged ragged to his knees while his S 1 INSTALLMENT THREE Finlay receives an anonymous letter lettu suggesting that the six men were not drowned as reported They question the reports from Irom the north that the bodies of the men were found by Indians who declared that the men had perished in pole slipped from his limp fingers Blaise Is hit hIU cried the desperate desper desper- ate Finlay Get him Red before he goes overboard Ill I'll hold her herl The kneeling Brassard moved his head from side to side as i If to clear his brain as Red caught him and eased cased him to the floor of the canoe The blue lips in the graying face framed the words Dey got us Then he lost consciousness As i if it were a chip a crosscurrent crosscurrent cur cross rent snatched the canoe from the control of the straining blinded by bursting spray and whirled her Straddling Blai Blaise's es e's body Malone battled to head the boat back into the channel Ashe Ashe As Ashe he thrust with all his magnificent power his spruce pole slowly bowed Into an are arc but the river had Its way The boat did not swing The pole splintered in his hands and he lurched back to escape a headlong headlong headlong head head- long plunge into the boiling water Again the rifles roared on the shore Garry felt a sting lik like the stab of hot iron as his right leg went limp got me he mut mut- Savagely clamping his teeth he managed to brace himself himsel and follow Reds Red's lead Finlay prayed that he might hold holdon on until they reached the bend The shots from the distant point grew fainter The range was long and they were going wide Finlay's leg was numb but propped against the gunwale it still under him Shooting men out of canoes he panted even on the Worse than I guessed Did Batoche pass us in the night on the lake or oris orIs oris is It someone else He wondered J r I t iY Yon You hit hard bard Garr Garry if they had lost Blaise loyal old Blaise hunched there in the bow Where was he hit called Garry Garry Gar Gar- ry fearful of the answer In the head came the sorrowful sorrowful sorrow sorrow- ful reply Garry's leg suddenly went limp In spite of his efforts he sagged to his knees They got me In the leg Red he called Weve got to toland toland toland land I You hit hard Garry Through the thigh No big arterIes arteries ar ar- ar- ar teries I guess Lets Let's get Blaise ashore With fear in their hearts they examined examined ex ex- Blaise's caked blood head Glory be cried the giant as he traced the course of the bullet They only creased him Get some water Red His pulse is good If be he hadn't got a fracture fracture frac frac- ture hell he'll be as right as rain in a afew afew afew few days Hes He's tough When they had washed and bandaged band aged Brassards Brassard's head Red inspected inspect inspect- ed cd Garry's leg Straight through the thigh muscles clean as ns a whistle whistle whis whis- tle tie Not an artery touched That was a powered high small bore Pain any Not much Its It's just numb and weak Shortly Red had his two wounded wound wound- ed friends on a spread blanket Working like the thc moose he was Malone soon had cargo and canoe through the alders and back in the bush The bidden hidden camp was now safe from searching eyes ces on tile the opposite op Ope shore Then Garry and Red held a council of war your guess Red There was an ugly glitter in the blue eyes as they shifted from Garry's Garry's Gar Gar- rys ry's bandaged leg to the still unconscious unconscious un un- un conscious Blaise I dont don't think Batoche Ba toche and Flambeau could have passed us last night and done this It was someone else How about this Blanche Tete-Blanche Do you suppose hes he's putting in the summer on the Who knows All we have is the knowledge that someone tried tred to wipe out a government survey par par- ty That means they'll pay through the nose to Ottawa After this thing today its it's cleu clero what become of Bob and the rest who started for Chibougamau Well as they've started the rough stuff said laId Red finishing the the rapids of the river The name of Isadore rich fur far man when brought by Finlay causes an Immediate Immedi Immedi- ate cessation of 01 conversation While questioning Cotter the storekeeper Finlay Finlay Fin Fin- lay noticed someone watching them oiling of the action of his 45 and shoving it Into the shoulder holster strapped wider under his left arm beneath his shirt three lads I know are goIng going going go go- ing to throw a little rough stuff themselves I They wont won't work In the open Red It will all be Injun stuff under Under un un- I Ider der cover with no surviving witnesses wit wit- I nesses They're blocking the Chibougamau Chib- Chib I Trail but they dont don't intend to hang for It it tAnd t. t j And I dont don't intend they shall Garry growled Red II Garry loved Reds Red's weakness for a fight and his berserk courage when he was In one but he cautioned Remember were we're a peaceable survey survey sur sur- vey party patty interested in n certain other other other oth oth- er matters on the side We cant can't make the first move Sure boss but while were we're running running run run- ning that compass survey of Waswanipi Waswanipi Waswanipi Was- Was run run-I Im I'm going to make a personal personal personal per per- survey of ot Mr Jules Isadore If U I 1 find what I think I will it'll be bea I IU a sweet job I And a dangerous one Red I Uh huh Uh huh And a dangerous one grunted Malone I In the morning Blaise was con con- I Six days of rest and careful careful care care- ful nursing put him on his feet and gave the clean flesh wound in Garry's Garry's Garry's Gar Gar- rys ry's leg a chance to heaL In the i meantime Malone had swum the river river river riv riv- er below the rapids and found inthe In Inthe Inthe the mud at the foot of the old Indian portage the tracks of two men and freshly broken brush where a canoe canoe ca ca- ca noe had been cached At the head of the carry footprints indicated that the men had come downstream Batoche and Flambeau must have passed their camp on the river inthe in inthe inthe the night ambushed them and thinking that they had somehow run the rapids gone on searching for their supper fire Now Blaise what do you think of your friends who wanted to give you a job demanded Red Blaise grimaced as he fingered his bandaged head I tink i If I ambush cano cane in dose rapids I make job At less dan hunder bunder yard dey start to fire at tree free men who got to stand up and make good target Dey shoot ten eight-ten time and get two hit They shot straight enough to satisfy satisfy sat sat- me said Finlay I thought wed we'd lost you when you went down If U they'd wiped us out there'd have been three more reported accidentally accidentally tally taBy drowned and no proof to the contrary The half breeds eyes blazed with such fury that his friends gaped in surprise We head for plenty trou trou- bl bI he bit of oft off between his teeth we come back Who know But wan ting you promise Blaise Brassard You give dis Batoche Batoche Ba Ba- toche to me I take him in dese han hanso so so Brassards Brassard's thick fingers reached into the air and clamped shut as asif asif asit if it on a throat Hes yours Blaise But hes he's only a n tool said Garry What puzzles me is his boss I cant can't make out Isadore's game He must have brains to make such a success of the fur business and yet hes he's riding riding riding rid rid- ing straight for a fall with the au au- au Hes got a rich placer strike somewhere and to avoid a stampede stampede stampede stam stam- pede of prospectors wont won't register it until hes he's skimmed off the cream insisted Red Vial Wai now we feel we go have look at Isadore grunted grunt grunt- ed Blaise He drew a villainous looking skinning knife knUe from its sheath and tested its edge with a thick thumb as he said Somebody Somebody Somebody Some body goin gem to pay for my sore head for sure Im glad Im I'm not the fellow you old wolverine laughed Garry When you take the war path theres there's blood on the moon CHAPTER IV Ten days later the Peterboro was approaching the head of Matagami Lake flanked by black spruce ridges which rolled away to the hori horl zon zone Finlay had intended to stop at atthe atthe atthe the Hudsons Hudson's Bay post which his bis map showed was located somewhere on its irregular north shore But as asIt asit asit it was hidden in a deep bay the survey party had passed the fur post Do we go on up the inlet to this Lake Olga asked Red or turn turnback turnback turnback back to hunt for the Hudsons Hudson's Bay outfit We must be pretty close to the thoroughfare now said Garry examining examining ex his map Weve lost ten days already According to the map the post is thirty miles mUes back of us behind a bunch of islands Well We'll keep going Good WaswanIpi and Isadore or bust Is my motto laughed Red Was that the flash of a paddle up there where the lake suddenly narrows demanded Garry The three men stopped paddling to focus locus their eyes on the distant water Cano leave de inlet for sure surel announced Blaise his black eyes narrowing to slits as he watched We make talk wid dem Injun Meb be Icy dey know TO BE CONTINUED |