| Show I In a Far Country e Th the T. Gold Cold Seekers Who Journeyed Into the and Peace of off the Arctic and Who Never sever Came Back Bach B ch By JACK LONDON Over by br Jack Jek Lonbon oo HEN a man Journeys Into a far tar country he he- must bo ho prepared to toi i forget m many ny of ot the things h he has learned i and to acquire suck d customs as are inherent Inherent en ent t wi with th existence In Inthe Inthe Inthe the new nc land Etc ne mustI must I abandon the old Ideals and the old gods and andi oftentimes he must reverse reverse reverse re re- i i verse the very code by which his conduct has hitherto been T Tg those thew who have o the I rotean rotea faculty of ot adaptability the i V C of of such change may mar even I ike be a source of pleasure but to toese ese ase w io happen to be hardened jio to tho ruts t in whIch they were created the the pressure of the altered environ environment f ment unbearable e and they chafe in hi body and d In spirit under the new re re- which they do not under under- r I fits chaffing is Is Abound bound to act Viand and react react producing divers evils lIs and II leading to various misfortunes It Ic were getter better r for tor the man who cannot fit tit himself to the now new groove grooTe to return to flits his ow own country If It he delay too lon long longhe longhe he will purely Aurely die When tho world rang with the tale of Gt arctic gold and the tho lure of ot the north grip bO gripped d the heartstrings of ot men Carler Carley Carter Car Car- ter ley threw up his snug cler cIer clerkship turned half halt o of ot f his sa savings v over jover ver to his wife and with the remainder remain remain- remainder der bought an outfit There was no Romance manc in his nature The bondage e commerce com e had bad crushed crus bed all aU that He j simply tired of or lh the ceaseless grind and wished to risk wk great hazards In View Yiew of or corresponding d returns Like many many another fool tool disdaining the old tails used by the northland pioneers for tor a score of or years he hurried to Ed Ed- monton In in the spring of or the year yea and there unluckily for tor his souls soul's welfare I be allied d himself with a party parl of men 1 There was vas nothing unusual about this party except its plans Even en it Its goal coal lil like that of ot all other parties was the Klondike But Hut the route roule it had mapped out to attain altum th that t goal took way away the breath of ot the hardiest native e born bom and bred to the vicissitudes of ot ote the e northwest t. t l liven ven Jacques Baptiste born bom of ot a a Chippewa woman and a renegade reu- reu voyageur oy having bli ing raised his bis first finst I whimpers In a deerskin lodge north of ot the sixty fifth parallel and had tho the i ime same me h hushed bed by blissful sucks of oC raw tallow was surprised Though he heBOld heBold Bold sold his services Cervices to them and ab agreed eed I to 10 travel even en to the never nc opening rl lice he be shook his bis head ominously whenever whenever when when- ever his his' advice c was asked l Percy Perey evil e star must have ha I I been In the ascendant for Cor he too joined joined this countr country of or argonauts Ho no was as an ordinary man with a bank account account ac no- count as deep as his liliI culture which is la saying paying a good deal lIe He had no reason tto to 10 embark on such a venture venture venture-no no rea- rea pon on in the world save that he suffered from an abnormal development of ot sen sen- en- en He mistook this fur for the true spirit of ot romance e and adventure ad Lany Cany another man has done the like Uka end and made as 05 fatal a mistake The first breakup of ot spring found Cound Itt party following the Ice lee run of oC Elk Over Driver ver it was on an Imposing g fleet for tor forthe forthe the outfit was large and und they were accompanied ac- ac companied by a disreputable continGent contingent contingent contin contin- gent of ot half breed vo o voyageurs with their women omen and children Day In and day tIny out they labored with wilb the We bateaux and canoes fought mosquitoes and other kindred or sweated and swore at atthe atthe atthe the port portages portage Severe toil like this th J laysa lays lay a a man naked to the tile er very roots of ot his loUI soul and ere Lake Athabasca was lost lostIn ln In the south each member of or the party bad had hoisted his hb true colo colors The e two o shirks n and n chronic grum grum- m. m Llers I Liens were we e carter and Percy Percy Per Per- cy The whole party complained com com- less of oC Its aches and pains than did d of oC them Not once did they tiley er for tor the thousand and one j IK jr y duties of ot the camp cump They thought I lobo y noticed but their comrades wore swore under their breaths and grew to hate them while Jacques Baptiste openly and damned them from morning till tul night But Jacques Baptiste Bap Bap- fists tiste was no DO gentleman At the Great Slave Sla Hudson bay dogs I ere purchased and the fleet sank to tot 11 t guards with Its added burden of ot ofa 10 0 a ed f fish sh and pemmican Then canoe Wd sad bateau answered d to the swift cur cur- reut Je of ot tb the Mackenzie and they r fed id into the Great Barren Ground Every Every Every Ev Ev- ery likely looking ng feeder was prospected pros peeled but the elusive pay dirt dan daiv d d. ever to the north At the Great Bear overcome by the common dread of ot the unknown lands their voyageurs I began to desert and 1 Fort FOlt oft of ot Good GoodHope Goodhope Hope saw the last hist and bravest bending to the tow lines as they bucked the tho t which they had hud so trench f glided gIlded Jacques Baptiste alone remained remained Had he not Dot sworn to travel even en to the never opening Ice i 1 I Abandon Abandoning bag their river craft cruft at tho the headwaters of ot the Little Peel they consumed the rest of ot the summer In Inthe Inthe the the great portage over the Mackenzie watershed to the West Rat ThIs Tula little lit lit- tle tie stream fed ted the Porcupine which in InI I item t turn m Joined the Yukon where whelO that I I mighty highway of ot the north counter countermarches marches on the Arctic Circle But they I Thad bad lost In the race with winter and andon andone lone I tied their her rafts the he to on one day they tied thick eddy ice ico and hurried their goo goods I ashore That night the river jammed I I and end broke several times The following follow follow- ing lag morning It had bad fallen tallen asleep for tor I good g. g I. I v v I JVe Vo Ve cant can't bo be moren 4 miles from fromI I the Yukon concluded multiplying multi multi- i plying g his thumb nails by the scale of the map The council counell In which the I two had bad whined to excellent excellent excel excel- lent disadvantage was drawing to a close I Hudson bay post long lon time ago n o. o No NoI I use um urn now noes Jacques Baptiste's futher father fa fu- ather a- a ther had had made the tn trip for the Fur company compa y In hi the tho old oM days das Incidentally marking the trail with a couple of or frozen toes crueltY cried another of ot the party No whites Nary white sententiously affirmed hut But Its It's only more up the Yuk Yukon to Dawson son Call it a ro rough gh thousand from here and groaned in to chorus How that take Baptiste The half breed figured for a moment Workum like h no man play out ten tn t twenty ro forty fifty days Um babies babies babies ba ba- bies come designating the ties bles no can tell when h h h- freeze over O not then The manufacture of oC snowshoes and moccasins teased leased Somebody called the name qt of n an absent member who conic come out opt of ot an pa ancient cabin at the edge of the and tend Joined them The cabin was vas one of ot the many wAny toys toys- teries tenes which lurk in tho the vast recesses of or the north Built when and by whom no man c could telL Two graves graVed in the pen plied high with stones perhaps contained the tho secret of ot those early Y wanderers But nut whose hand had I i I I piled plied tb the stones The moment had bad come Jacques Baptiste paused In hi the fitting of ot a harness and pinned tho the struggling dog dogin dogin dogin in the snow The cook made mute protest for Cor delay threw delay threw a handful of ot bacon into a 0 noisy pot of ot beans then I came to attention rose to his feet leet His body bod was a n ludicrous contrast contrast con con- to the healthy physiques of ot the I Yellow and weak fleeing from a South American fever er hole he heI had not broken his flight across the zones and was still able to toll toU with I men His weight was probably ninety pounds with the heavy beavy hunting knife knite thrown In and his grizzled hair told of ot a prime which had ceased to be The fresh tresh young oun muscles of ot either ether or were equal to toI ten times the endeavor of or his yet he could walk them Into the earth In a aday'S aday's aday's days day's Journey And nd all this day he had whipped his stronger comrades into venturing a thousand miles mlles of ot the stiffest hardship man can conceive He Be was the Incarnation of or the unrest of ot his bis race and the old Teutonic stubbornness stubbornness stub stub- bornn s dashed with the quick grasp and action of the Yankee held the flesh In the honda bondage e of ot the spirit All those In favor tavor of ot going goin on with the dogs doCS as soon as ns the Ice sets seta say aye Aye rang ran out eight voices voices voices-voices voices d destined to string a trail of ot oaths along many a hundred miles of ot pain Contrary minded 1 Not Nor For the first time tho the bles were united without some compromise compromise compromise com com- promise of personal Interests And what are aro you going to do about It 10 added belligerently Majority rule role MaJo T rule ruler clamored clamored clamored clam clam- ored the rest of ot the t party I know the e expedition la is liable to fall tall through If you dont don't come replied sweetly but ut I guess If it we try reAl teal hard we can manage to do without without without with with- out you What do you say eay boys I The Tho sentiment was waa cheered to the echo But I say you know ventured ventured ventured ven ven- apprehensively a chap chat like me to do 1 Aint you coming with us uN No o 0 Then do as you ph please Ase We Ye wont won't have nothing to say sap Kind o 0 yuh yub might settle It with that pardner of ot yourn yours suggested a 11 Ilea heavy vy going westerner westerner west west- erner from the lire Dakotas at the same time pointing out Hell HeU be shore to ask yuh rub what yur a gain to do when it comes to cookin an an the wood Then well we'll consider It all aU arranged concluded Well pull lull out tomorrow tomorrow tomorrow to to- morrow If it we wo camp within five miles just to get everything e In running order and remember If it weve we've forgotten anything any any- thing The IlIe sleds sled groaned by on th their lr steel shod runners and the dogs strained low in the harnesses in which they were born to die Jacques Baptiste plu paused cd by the side of or to lo get g-ct geta i a 11 last glimpse of ot tho the cabin The smoke I curled up pathetically from the Yukon stovepipe The two were watching them from the doorway laid his hang hand on the tho others other's shoulder Jacques Baptiste did you ever over hear of or the Kilkenny cats The half halt breed shook his bis head bead Well my friend and good goed comrade the Kilkenny cats cata fought till neither tilde hide nor hair nor yowl was waa left lett You tode tW tU nothing no way waa left Very Verr VerrI I good Now these lIe two wo men dont don't like Uke work They TheT wont won't work We know that be all aU alone In that cabin all aU winter winter-a winter a mighty long dark winter Kilkenny cat well cats well f Tho The Frenchman in Baptiste Baptisto shrugged i his shoulders but the Indian in him I was silent Nevertheless It was waa an I eloquent shrug pregnant with prophecy ecy esy I Things prospered In tho the little cabin at first Tho rough badinage of ot their I comrades had made and conscious of ot the mutual responsibility re Je e which had devolved them th m. m Besides there was wan not so 80 much work after acter all for two healthy men And the tho removal of or the cruel whip hand or in hi other words the bulldozing bulldozing ing half haH breed had brought with It a joyous reaction At first each strove O to outdo the tho other and they performed petty tasks with an unction which would have e opened the eyes of ot their comrades who were now now wearing out bodies and souls on the long trail trull All A II care W was S banished The forest which shouldered In upon them from three sides was an inexhaustible wood yard A few yards yanIs from Crom their door slept the porcupine and lind a hole halo through Its winter whiter robe formed a bubbling spring of r water crystal clear and painfully painfully pain pain- fully tully cold But they soon grew to find fault Cault with even that The Tho hole bole would persist lit lu- freezing up and na thus gave them many a miserable hour of ot ice Ico co chopping The unknown builders bunders of or orthe the cabin bad bd extended the side logs 80 so as to support a cache sebe at the rear In this was stored the bulk of or the party's party's par liar tys ty's provisions Food there was without without with without with with- out stint for tor three times the men who were fated to live lI upon it But the most of or It was wan of or the kind which built bunt ignore wholly each ench other during these OUt periods And a great wonder sprang up in hi the breast of ot each as to how God had ever come to create the I. I other As All the sugar pile and other little luxuries luxuries lux lux- uries urles dwindled they began to be afraid I they were not getting gettin their proper I shares and In order that they might not be robbed they fell tell to gorging I th themselves The Tho luxuries suffered red in hi inthis this gluttonous contest as did also the men In the absence of ot fresh vegetables bins blea and exercise their blood became Impoverished and a loathsome purplish purplish purplish pur pur- rash crept over their bodies bodles Yet Ye they refused to heed the warning Next their muscles and joints began to swell the flesh turning taming black while their mouths gums and lips took on the color of ot rich cream Instead o ot of being drawn to together ether by their misery each gloated over the others other's symptoms symptoms toms as the scurvy took Its course They lost all aU regard for Cor personal appearance appearance ap ap- and for that matte matter common decency The cabin became a n pigpen and never ne once were the beds made or fresh pine boughs laid underneath Yet they Uley could not keep to their blankets blank blank- ets eta as they would have wished for forthe forthe forthe the frost was wall Inexorable and the fire firebox firebox firebox box consumed much fuel The hair 01 ot of their heads eads and faces grew grev long and shaggy while their garments would have disgusted a n But Dut they did not care They were sick ant and there was Waif no one to see Besides It waa vas very painful to move about To all aU this was added a new new trouble the the fear of the north This fear tear was the tho Joint child of the great gleat cold and the great silence and was born bom In the darkness of ot December when the sun dipped below the southern horizon for tor good It affected them according to 1 i t t r Sprang to Their Feet Shrieking g With With Terror I i I op up brain and ana sineW but did not tickle the palate True there was sugar tai in plenty for two ordinary men but these two were little else than children They Ther early discovered the virtues virtue off of hot water Judiciously saturated d with sugar and they prodigally swam their flapjacks and soaked their crus crusts In Inthe inthe inthe the rich |
