Show ks N OF ZAN bit 0 Y forlaw chapter al XIV continued 2 the lite hatred was different from tho the beauts beasts but perhaps even more implacable with Afe Taggart it was not hatred hat d alone there was mixed with it aa indefinable and superstitious fear a thing he laughed at a tiling lie cursed ira cd at but abich clung to him us a surely as aa the scent of liln his trail lung clung to Il lareda la reea arees rose nose babee baree no longer food for the animal alone lie tood stood for Ne that wait wa the thought that insisted in growing in la ugly mind ite he hild not COMM cased to hate ilaree tic lie still tinted him as lie he hii bita i never hated it a nuin mun hut but tie lie had find nit even greater reason now for wanting to kill him it came to him first in ills his steel sleep in a restless dream tin and after that it lived and alved the thought that hint file alio of wits was guiding ilaree in the rov aging of tits his trap line I 1 it wits was in january that Wi cTaggart caught ills his first glimpse of ilaree barce ile he tind had placed ills his rifle it tree mid and aris a dozen f tent t AWRY away front from it nt at the lie time it was HI fig it if mime knew mil end had biad come to taunt ard for w shen lien file lip factor suddenly looked up tip babee baree ivin standing out clear from the dwarf spruce not twenty yards away from blin ills his white fangs fanga gleaming find and ills his eyes burning like coals cents for a space Me Taggart stared its as it if turned into stone it was baaree baree laiq H rec tile the white star tita h wl white 11 tit tipped ear car and his heart thumped 11 like a hammer brimmer in ills his breast very slowly lie he began to creep toward tits hla rifle ills his hand was reaching renaming for it when like a lash flash ilaree wits was gone this gave Me Taggart ills hla new idea lie ile blazed himself a fresh trail through lie forests parallel with hla his trap line but at least live five hundred yards distant froin it wherever it trap or deadfall aaa yet this ills new trull struck sharply ab in fit like lie he arit t of if a V so that lie le could approach ills tire line ity fly th hl strategy lie bell believed eved 11 at in fit tittle imp lie was its hire of getting a stint shot tit nt alic lie log dug again it wits tile the man who as reabon frig and again it was lie war ulio MUM the first din that followed tits it n trull itrice ulio also struck that trail por a litlie 1 vaille 1111 it III three times tip tie atif inick mid borla the old und flip I 1 lie new trull trall then here wag no doubt the 1 I lie new trull was tile the fresh trail and it he followed in tile lie f foot oo 00 tbt maps m of if the flip factor from lac bain ah did not know what was happening cimpl until ills his return trip when tip lie abw tile the story told old in the snow carpe had find gilted lilted each anch trap and without lip had approached each line lit lip lie point of the inverted V after it aepli kcf h of futile hunting of I 1 hlinik frig in wall unit of approaching nt at every pr point it f file lt wind a period during lilli had twenty times uil ui l Ill Relf into its ills of i iden clime phiiip to him film it wits was like en and so simple that it Kc inid almost inconceivable that lie he lind had riot not thought of it before ile HP hurried back to post lac haan abdin the second duy day after he wits on the trail at dawn this time he carried a pach lit in which there were wera a dozen arong wolf traps freshly dipped in betiger ix iner oil and it rabbit which lie he lind find annil lie night now and men lie looked anxiously at tile the sky ll it was clear until late into lit in the he afternoon when ihen honks banks of dark clouds begun rolling up from tle the east half an 1111 hour later a few flakes of snow falling let one of drop on the bark back of his aalt ivied liand hand and examined it ef closel it wits soft and downy and lie gave 1 viii l to ills satisfaction it was what I 1 c wanted before barning there would ile be six inches of freshly fullen fallen s 0 ov covering the trails ile he stopped et tile trap house und quickly set to work first lie brew I 1 iw away the poisoned halt bait in the aue mid and replaced it with the he rah lab tt lit then he began setting lils his wolf imps Three of tharp lie he placed cl do 0 0 t the door of the house through witch baaree baree would have hare to rench for te le bult balt the remaining nine he at intervals of a foot or i axeen H inches apart so RO that when lir ie was wag done a veritable cordon of 1 ps guarded the house lie he did not fi eiten tien the lie chains lint but let them liv lay ln in tile the snow it if baaree baree got into tine me trap he would get lato into others anil licit would be no use of toggles his 1111 work ork done tl li cTaggart hurried flurried on through the thickening twilight of it winter night to hla his shack lie he wits was highly elated this time there could be no such thin thing as T 4 11 arp lie he hal sprung ery trap on ills his way from lac iraln in none of those knips would haree find to eat until lie came to the nest of twelve wolf traps aad inches of snow fell that night rid tile whole world seemed turned u a wonderful white robe like lk bit r ilip rs the he snow hung hune to the trees and shrubs it gave till tall white caps to tile the rocks and underfoot it was so BO light that hat j a cort ridge dropped from the hand sun son to the bottom of it idaree won wan on the tenth line earl lie ile was more cautious cout loun this morning for there was no longer the scent or snows snowshoe lioe track of Taggart Me to guide him lie ile struck too the first trap about halfway between lite lac bain and the struck attack in which the factor was waiting it was sprung and there was no bait trop trap after ernp he visited and all of them lie he found sprung and till nil without bait lie ile helfred the clr suspiciously striving vainly to ratch catch the fang ang of smoke a whiff of the nian man smell along toward noon lie he crime to tile the nest the twelve I 1 treacherous reach erous waiting for ilni film with gaping jaws half a foot un iler der the lie of snow for a full lill minute nute lie stood well outside tile the didinger line snI fling the air anil and listen trig ing lie saw the lie rabbit and ills his jaws closed with it a hungry click removed lie moved a step nearer still lie he wits was suspicious for sonic strange mid and inexplicable reason lie he sensed dringer danger anxiously lie sought bought for it with tits his nose none his eyes and his big ears and nil all about film there waa it great silence and a great pence peace ills jaws clicked again ile he whined softly what was it stirring him where wits was the danger he could neither tree bee nor st smell slowly lie he circled about tire the trap house bouse three times lie he circled round it each circle drawing him a little nearer until at last tits his feet almost touched tile the outer cordon of traps another minute he stood still hla his ears flattened inspire in spite of the rich aroma of the rabbit in ills his nostrils something was drawing him away in III another moment he would have gone but there crime came suddenly and from directly behind the trap house a fierce little rat like squeak anti the next instant baaree baree saw an irmine whiter ahrlin the snow tearing liua grIll fit at tile the flesh of th rabb rabbit U lie he forgot ills his strange premonition of danger lie growled fler fiercely cely but his plucky little rival did not budge from tits ills foist feast and then lie sprong sprang straight into tile the nest mst that num hush had made for him 0 0 0 0 0 the next morning bush buah Me Taggart hoard heard flip clanking of a chain when lie was batill a KOOI good quarter of a tittle nille front the lie nest neat wits was it a 4 lynx wits was it a fisher ent cat was it d wolf wol f or a fox or was it ilaree ile he halt half ran the rest of the distance and at lust last ho bo came to chere liere lie he could see and ills his heart leaped into lite his throat threat when lie he sow son that lie he had caught tits his enemy ile he approached holding Is rifle ready to ire fire if by any chance the dog should free himself barce lay on tits his side panting from exhaustion and quivering with pain A hoarse cry of exultation burst from garts lips as he drew nearer anti looked tit at the snow it wits packed liard hard for ninny many feet about tit the trap imp house where baaree baree had struggled 1111 1 if was a red with blood tile the blood had find come mostly from barbes jims they were tripping dripping now as lie glared tit at 1119 enemy the steel jaws hidden under tile the snow had find done their nier mer chiess work well one of his forefeet was caught well up toward the first joint both hind feet were caught a fourth trap had closed on ills his flunk und anti in tearing the jaws loose he had pulled off a patch of skin halt half as big its as garts hand the snow told tile lie story of his desper tilte fight all through the night his 1119 bleeding jaws showed how vainly lie he had find wed tried to break the he imprisoning steel with his teeth he was panting bloodshot lint hut even cien now after all tits hla hours of agony neither his nor his courage were broken ailien lie saw Ale Mcl accart Taggart lie he made a jungr to ills feet alieu instantly crum filing don into tile the snow again till ills forefeet were braced brace ills head and dust chest remained rema lined up and the he snarl that crime came from his throat was tiger ish in its ferocity here at hist riot not more than a dozen fet feet front from him wits was the one tiling in III all tile the world that lie tinted hated more than lie he hated the lite wolf breed and again lie he was bel helpless pis as lie be lind had been helpless that other oilier time lu lit the rabbit snare the hie fierceness of his big snarl did not Ils hush bush ItIc now lie he saw how flow tit utterly terly the other als was at his fits mercy and with an exultant laugh he leaned ills fits rifle against a tree pulled off his mittens and begun began loading ills his pipe this was the triumph he hall had looked forward to the torture he had waited for in his fits soul there was a hatred as deadly as Il arees tile the hatred that a wrin man might have for it nian man lie he had find expected to send a bullet through the dog put but this was tetter better to watch hint him dying by inches to taunt him as lie would have taunted u to walk about him so that he could hear the clank of the traps a and rid see the fresh blood drip an af baaree baree bar I 1 twisted s hla his tortured legs and body to keep facing him it was a splendid wiener 5 H wu wax jw to a ft that he bel aid doot iet beat y do ip ot snows nowlia liAs behind ailts lilts it w was a voice a fittim voice that tow him round suo suddenly dealy I 1 theman the man wu was a stranger na ho he was younger than hi cTaggArt by ten tea years at least he be look M ho BO more than thirty five or sky aven en with the short growth of blonde beard he wore lie ile was of that sort bort that fiat the average man would like at a glance boyish nod ind yet set a roan man i clear eyes that looked out frankly from under the rim fint cap a form lithe as aa an Ind indians lins add a face altogether that aliat did not bear tile the hord hard lines of the wilderness yet knew before ha hol had spoken that this vain man was of the he that he was heart and soul apart apara af 6 it ills 1118 cap ftp was of at byln aln lie ile wore a windproof coat of softly caribou skin belted at tire waist alst with a 6 long sarp and didion maged alie inside of the coat was tarred furred ile file was traveling on the long slender bush country snow rhoe his pack strapped over the shoulders derp was small and compact lie he was carrying his bis rifle in a cloth jacket and from cap to snowshoes snow shops he was travel worn Taggart Uc sit at a guess would have said that he had traveled a thousand miles in the last few weeks it was not this thought that sent the strange and chilling thrill up his back but the sudden fear that in some strange way a ahl aper of the truth might have found its way down into the he south the truth of what find happened on tile the orny gray loon loan and that this travel worn stranger wore under his caribou skin cont coat the badge of the royal lloyal northwest mounted pollee police for that it was waa almost a terror that possessed him and lie stood anute the stranger had find uttered only nn an amazed exclamation before now he said with his fits eyes on linree god save us but youve got the poor devil in a right proper mt enss ss you there was something in the voice that tant reassured hI cTaggart it was not a suspicious voice find and he saw that the stranger was more interested in the captured animal than la in himself ile ie drew a deep breath A trap robber he said tile the stranger was storing staring still more closely at baree baaree ile he thrust his gun sio stock ek downward in the snow and drew nearer to him god save us again it a dog I 1 he exclaimed from behind was watching the matil man with the eyes of a ferret yes a dog he answered A wild dog half wolf at least lies hes robbed me of a thousand dollars worth of fur this winter the stranger ranger et squatted himself before unree with his hands resting on ills his knees binl and hla his white leoth gleaming in a half smile you poor devil I 1 ia he said sympathetically so youre a trap robber ell eh I 1 an outlaw and the police have got you I 1 and god save us once more they plowed played you a very square game gamel I 1 lie ile rose and faced 1 I hall to set a lot of traps like that the factor apologized tits his face reddening slightly under the 8 teady steady alize of the st strangers blue eyes suddenly his fits animus rose and lies hes going to die there inch by ay inch im going to let litin starve and rot in ID the traps to pay toi for nil all lien hes done lie he picked up his gun and added with his eyes on oil the stranger and his finger ready at the trigger im bush the factor at lae lac palo are you bound that way moeut A few miles im bound upcountry up country beyond the lie barrens Ilar rens Ale Taggart felt again the strange thrill government go eminent lie he naked asked the stranger st nodded the police perhaps persisted Me Taggart why ies of course the police said the stranger looking straight into inte the factors eyes and now maleu ns as a very grent great courtesy to the law im going to ask you to send a bullet through that beasts head bead before we w go on oil or shall it ir its the low law of the line said me mc nt r 14 to let a trap robber rot in the he traps and that beast was a devil listen swiftly and yet leaving out none of the lie tine fine detail he told of the weeks ant and months of strife between himself tin 11 nd babee baree of the maddening utility futility of if nil all his fits tricks and schemes and the still more maddening cleverness of the beast lie he lied had nt at lost last succeeded in fir 1 nipping lipping ile he was a devil that clever he cried fiercely reely when lie he find finished and now would you shoot him or let him film lie ile and ile die by inches as an tile lie devil del should TO DK DE CONTINUED |