Show 0 en by GEORGE MARSH penn bervice CHAPTER I 1 with a grinding of brakes the imperial express came to a stop at nottoway Nott away ay a huddle of log buildings and frame shacks buried in the eternal spruce traversed by the canadian national beyond the clearing a steel bridge spanned the upper nottoway Nott away river which flows north to james bay the attention of the idlers at the shack of a station was suddenly focused on a russet haired giant carrying a cased gun duffel bag and a surveyors transit who blocked the platform door of a sleeper he swung to the ground followed by a wide shouldered young man with penetrating agate gray eyes from the scotch station agent who nodded to two half breeds who whispered heads together as they watched the travelers the gray eyes missed nothing the strangers left their dunnage and started for the head of the train reaching the staring half breeds the larger man stopped bo jol the secret mac he threw at the surprised pair blood leaped to their sullen faces as one said nobody spik to you but you strain your eyes looking dont you youre figuring what my name and age is and where re im from well I 1 always aim to please im four years old my names marie and ive forgotten where im from that help any the listening group of loungers waited with caught breaths as the scarred face of the taller breed filled with blood his yellow eyes blazed as they measured the man who slouched big hands on hips smiling at his discomfiture for an instant his right hand hovered over his coat pocket then left it as his companion amnion mn ion s seized his arm you look for here he snarled brother I 1 thought you were after information drawled the amused giant and I 1 was giving you some of course if you cant use it well aloir with a careless wave of his hand the russet haired young man joined his waiting companion dont start anything here red cautioned the dark man its too early weve got to look around but you sure got the goat of that burntwood Burnt wood 1 I meant to that bird looks like a bad boy to me he needs a spanking good job somebody did on his face with a knife at the head of the train the travelers found a blocky individual sliding an eighteen foot peterboro Peter boro canoe from a baggage car his high cheekbones slits of eyes and crow black hair marked a strain of indian blood watching the proceeding fretted a huge airedale all right blaise said the man with the gray eyes well give you a hand the airedale leaped on the speaker who grasped the dogs hairy jowls hello flame old partner the bush smell good after t the he train boy depositing the canoe on the slant of the railroad fill the man called blaise 1 c said aid we got ta rush dat grub off dis train not stop for long time shortly a heap of dunnage dur inage and provision bags lay beside th the track the square built blaise tossed the canoe to his shoulder and started down a path to the river well red said garrett fin lay laemy my guess is that those two breeds at the station might know something we came a long way to learn before we leave this great city of six shacks and a store im going to make some talk with wilh those baules altogether too k keen cen to know who we are and where were going well give them a chance to find out tonight said finlay do down the line they say no one at nottoway Nott away will talk before we start well find out why chief we cant go back you and blaise and me until we do find out weve burned our bridges its sink sia or swim now n owl the bronzed face of t the he other hardened while lights flickered in his deep set eyes right redl red well get to the bottom of this if it takes all winter and god h help elp somebody when we dol do after supper the friends separated leaving malone in conversation with cotter the storekeeper finlay went to the house of the station agent mcleod so youre going to the bay on the survey observed the scotchman glad of the chance tor for a gossip with someone from the outside yes were meeting the main party at rupert house wintering there eh oh yes we wont get out until next fall by the way all this mystery about here mr mcleod threw out finlay mcleod shot a sidelong glance over the steel rims of his spectacles at his cifes troubled face before he answered you noticed something noticed something the place seems scared to breathe when I 1 asked cotter who this isadore was who has the big storehouse store house here he looked at me as if I 1 was throwing a gun on hi him 11 again the eyes of mcleod and his wife locked what did cotter tell you why he said isadore was a big fur man on lake waswanipi he had a depot here because all his hi IS stuff went in from the t he railroad but when I 1 asked him if any prospectors were going into the mau this way he acted like a scared rabbit I 1 understand that three parties who tried it were reported drowned in the rapids but mysterious about that demanded finlay with assumed innocence mcleods McL eods pale blue eyes squinted hard at his caller young man ive been on this section of steel only six months my business is railroading your job is surveying for the government going on in the bush two hundred miles north of here aint my business Is it yours 71 finlay slowly smiled then there is something going on in the bush north of here said finlay ive had my answer yes youve had your answer admitted mcleod but mind you im deaf blind and dumb finlay took a sheet of paper from his wallet and folded it to expose a single line of writing at its foot he leaned and showed the folded sheet to the station agent 1 I wonder if V nobody spik to you recognize that handwriting mr mcleod he asked while his wife peered over his shoulder mcleod read the line aloud 1 I dont believe those six men were drown drowned ed the station agent nervously Y cleared his throat never saw that handwriting before he replied with a shake of the head while finlay caught a look of duppre suppressed ased excitement cit ement in mrs mcleod mcleods McL eods 3 pink pi face you dont think that anybody in nottoway Nott away wrote that letter then I 1 the rhe scotchmans Scotch mans faded blue eyes snapped no I 1 dont want anything to do with it he spat out wh where ere did you get that letter it was sent to my family at north bay robert robe rt finlay one 0 of f those six men was my brother teh tell teh too bad murmured M mrs rs mcleod so youre here to investigate no im here on survey duty bound for james bay naturally after our getting that letter im asking in questions while im here finlay I 1 looked 0 aked significantly at the M mc C leads but it looks as it if no one dared answer them im sorry said mcleod but all I 1 can tell you is that isadore reported that the canoes of the parties had been found by waswanipi indians finlay frowned isa Is dores adores freight already gone down river h he suddenly deman demanded dedo yes weeks ago then the two breeds I 1 here bere iere I 1 who were so curious when we left the train are lookout men mcleod blinked into the stare that drove into his lookout men I 1 dont understand 1 I mean that checking on every canoe that leaves here for the north what im asking you mr mcleod is who are they checking for and why mcleod coughed caught his wife cifes S warning eyes then replied if you think there was something suspicious about your brothers disappearance why dont you bring in the provincial police 1 I got a thing but this letter not a thing but theres one question id like to ask you why does this fellow with the knife slash on his face pack a gun he afraid of youre pretty shrewd mr finlay have to judge for yourself I 1 dont know after it a chat about lower ontario the mcleods McL eods home country finlay bade them goodnight good night As he left the house he saw the taller of the halt half breeds who had watched his arrival at nottoway Nott away with such interest Fin lays curious eyes studied the man who was evidently waiting for him in front of the frame store which carried on a spruce plank above the door the name J cotter approaching the halfbreed half breed he called fine even evening the other grinned slapping vigorously at his face and neck good night for bug also al so finlay lost no time in getting to the point you know the river to the bay the breed nodded you headin for de bay on survey he asked I 1 yes were heading for rupert the river runs pretty hard for a hundred miles below here I 1 hear plenty strong water on all dese riviere erel two men drown last yearl year finlay cl closely watched the flickering eyes as he said and four the year before but that was on oil the waswanipi they tell mel me ah hah 1 I see that the hudsons Hud sons bay and jules isadore have depots here observed finlay nodding at the storehouses beside the track who is this isadore the halfbreed half breed gaped in surprise you nevare hear of heem no f wal you not see hees place on nottoway Nott away trail lie he does a big fur business I 1 judge by the size of his depot ver beeg business he agreed ver beeg mcleod he talk wid you bout isadore finlay laughed inwardly no he says hes new here know isadore ahl ah As yet the man who had evidenced such curiosity concerning the survey party had not shown his hand then finlay abruptly brought the matter to a head you work for isadore yes my name is finlay yours louis batoche you handle his freight yes now finlay returned the other with a grimace 1 I ask you question wy you go by dis way to rupert and not by easy trail to moose finlay laughed so that was the in the woodpile they wanted to know why the survey party was taking the nottoway Nott away trail to the bay he answered disarmingly disarming I 1 y oh were going to make a new survey of the nottoway Nott away from lake mat agami to rupert bay otherwise wed have gone by moose garry narrowly watched the effect of his explanation the halfbreed half breed lifted his brows in seeming surprise as he replied ah hahl hah I 1 seel the answer appeared to satisfy Bat oches curiosity his eyes dropped to the river shore where the smoke from Bl aises smudge fire hung in the spruce tops then his gaze shifted to a tent above the bridge who are those men camped there prospectors asked finlay batoche laughed dey head for de rouyn drouyn contree not interested in trying for the chibougamau finlay watched the other closely Bat oches eyes glittered chib he sneered onlee fool head for de chibougamau from here and they paid for it by drowning in the basw waswanipi anici rapids all of them Bat oches pale eyes probed the inscrutable face of the white man then shifted to the spruce ridge beyond the river onlee indian travel dat waswanipi it ees bad water de prospector all go in from lac st jean 1 I hear that Is adores people found a piece of a canoe for surel sure all smash up below beeg lapide on waswanipi which party was that two young fallar who go in last year wid peterboro Peter boro cano Fin lays eyes clung for an instant to the purple ridge as pain lanced through him all they found no bodies or outfit batoche shook his head dats data all well im much obliged said finlay ive got to see my man brassard well be pushing off in the morning bo jo 11 r replied batoche as finlay left him and started for the camp on the river shore in the meantime down on the river shore blaise brassard had been smoking in the lee of his smudge fire before a small A tent with a cheesecloth mosquito drop near him lay the big airedale flame said the ruminating brossard brassard exhaling a cloud of pipe smoke you and blaise got big job dis summer wat vat you vink tink the dog raised his head his three cornered eyes gazed fixedly through shaggy brows as if he understood der stood and agreed then he suddenly stiffened ears cocked rose to his feet and stood with head thrust forward peering into the scrub ah hahl somebody comin com ln tn the hair on flames neck and ba back k lifted as his throat swelled iu in a menacing rumble TO ITO DC CONTINUED |