The Project Gutenberg eBook of The Lakewood boys in the frozen North, by L. P. Wyman

[Transcriber's note: Unusual spellings are as printed. A Contents has been added for reader convenience.]

"White boy be heap careful," was Lucky's parting
word as Bob started off. (Page 117)
("The Lakewood Boys in the Frozen North")

THE LAKEWOOD BOYS
IN THE FROZEN NORTH

AUTHOR OF
"The Lakewood Boys on the Lazy S," "The Lakewood
Boys and the Lost Mine," "The Lakewood Boys
and the Polo Ponies," "The Lakewood
Boys in the South Sea Islands,"
"The Golden Boys Series," etc.

The Lakewood Boys on the Frozen North
The Lakewood Boys on the Lazy S
The Lakewood Boys and the Lost Mine
The Lakewood Boys and the Polo Ponies
The Lakewood Boys in the South Sea Islands

CHAPTER I.

SHIPWRECKED.

Jack Lakewood stuck his head out from the lower bunk as he almost yelled the question.

A faint sound of voices reached their ears and, a moment later, the sound of hurrying footsteps past the door of their state-room brought Jack out into the middle of the room.

"I tell you we hit something," he cried. "Don't you notice that the engines have stopped?"

"You're right about that anyhow," Bob Lakewood replied as he slid from the upper bunk to the floor. "We'd better get dressed so as to be on the safe side."

"I'll say we had," Jack agreed pulling off his pajamas. "I don't suppose it's anything—"

The order was shouted outside their door to be repeated an instant later further down the corridor.

"And we'd better slip on a life preserver," Jack added as he pulled two of them out from beneath the bunk.

"Wonder what we hit?" Bob asked as he strapped the life preserver over his coat.

Bob pulled the door open and they stepped out into the corridor. The sound of voices some shrill and others low and gruff seemed to fill the ship. As they started toward the stairway, a little way back, a half dressed woman, her arms filled with clothes, rushed up to them.

"I hope not," Bob tried to reassure her. "But you had better get back to your state-room and finish dressing and put on a preserver."

"Yes, all alone. Oh, this is awful. I know the ship is going to sink and we'll all be drowned."

"Come quick," Bob ordered taking hold of her arm and drawing her along. "Is this your room?" he asked as he turned a corner and saw a door half open.

"Then lose no time. Put on the warmest thing you have and, as soon as you're ready, I'll strap on your life preserver."

Doors were opening all along the corridor now and people, some fully dressed and others only half clothed, were rushing toward the stairway.

Some turned back at the suggestion while others in a state of frenzy rushed along the corridor intent only on getting to the upper deck.

The door was pushed open and the boys stepped in. The woman, or rather girl, for she could not have been more than twenty, was now fully dressed and, reaching beneath the bunk, Bob dragged out a life preserver and, an instant later, had it strapped securely about her.

"All my valuables are in this little bag," she replied picking up a small leather bag from the bunk. "I suppose I'll have to leave my trunk here," she sighed.

"I'm afraid so," Bob said. "And you'd better take the bag as we may be separated," he added.

"I'm ready," she cried, and the next moment they were hurrying along the corridor evidently the last of those who had rooms in that part of the ship.

"Do you think we're too late?" she gasped as they reached the foot of the stairway.

"No, they'll have boats enough to hold everybody. Have to since the Titanic went down, you know," Bob told her as they started to mount the stairs.

On deck the scene was one of indescribable confusion. Officers were rushing about shouting out orders and trying to calm the excited passengers, while the creak of ropes as the life boats were lowered added a sinister note to the occasion. Cries of men trying to locate their wives or children and of women separated from their loved ones, added also to the confusion.

The deck was lighted by many lights and the boys could see the captain of the ship, close by the rail, as he endeavored to hold back the swarm of fear crazed men from the steerage as they fought for a place in each boat before it was lowered to the water.

But he might as well have tried to hold back the tide itself. The crowd, many of them foreigners, fought like wild beasts and there was immediate danger that the brave captain would be overpowered.

"Come on, Jack boy, we've got to take a hand in this," Bob said in a low voice as he grabbed the girl by the arm and urged her forward.

Holding her close as possible he pushed into the fighting mob closely followed by Jack.

With a snort of anger the man aimed a blow for Bob's head but he saw it coming in time to duck and the next instant he had planted a beautiful right, with all his strength behind it, on the point of the Swede's chin. The man went down as though a sledge hammer had struck him and, for an instant, the crowd gave way enabling them to reach the captain's side. A boat was just being lowered and, as Bob spied an empty seat close up by the bow, he shouted:

Both boys helped the girl over the side into the boat and, a moment later she vanished as it quickly slid down to the water.

There had been a moment's pause in the mad struggle for a place in the boats but now, as another was swung over the side, the rush began again.

"Back, you men. Women and children first," the captain again shouted waving his revolver.

"I've as mooch right ter save my life as a woman," shouted a big German as he reached for the side of the swinging boat.

"Not on this boat, you haven't," Bob yelled as he seized the man by the coat collar and yanked him back.

The man fell sprawling on the deck and, before he could scramble to his feet, Bob had leaped onto the rail where he stood holding onto a rope. Lifting his free hand high in the air he shouted at the top of his voice.

"Are you all cowards? There are still women and children to go in the boats. Let's be men."

The effect, whether of Bob's short speech or of the man's cheer, was magical and Jack, who was directly in front of his brother, was quick to take advantage of the lull in the mad struggle.

"Make way, now, for those women behind there," he shouted as he urged aside those in front of him.

Like children the foreigners obeyed and in an instant he had opened up a lane and was beckoning to a dozen women and as many children who had been standing back despairing of being able to get to the boat.

They rushed after him and, a moment later another boat load was lowered to the water.

Much the same scene had been taking place in other parts of the ship where the boats were being filled under the supervision of the officers, but nowhere had the confusion been so great as here. And now, it being pretty certain that all the women and children had been placed in the boats, the men were allowed to take their places and boat after boat was quickly filled and lowered. In this work Bob and Jack assisted the captain in keeping some semblance of order and that officer was loud in his praise of their action.

"I don't know what I would have done had it not been for you," he panted as, all the passengers in sight having found a place in the life boats they had a moment's breathing spell.

A single glance was enough to convince even a land lubber that the big ship was doomed. Already the deck sloped sharply toward the bow and in addition there was a decided list to port.

"You boys get into this boat," the captain ordered as two sailors swung the last boat in sight over the side. "I must make sure that no one is left behind." And, before they could say a word he was off down the stairway.

There seemed nothing to do but obey his order and they lost no time in climbing into the boat.

"Is this the last one?" Jack asked one of the sailors who was holding on to the rope.

"No, there's three or four more on the upper deck but I reckon we won't need 'em. Most of the crew has gone already."

"Reckon so. The mates are helpin' him. She ought ter hold up another fifteen minutes or so."

"Nobody knows fer sure, but it must have been a derelict an' a sunken one at that 'cause the lookout swears as how he was on his job an' that there wasn't a thing in sight an' Toby's a good man all right."

At that moment two men came running from the stern of the ship and Bob noticed that they wore the uniforms of first and second mates.

"It's strange. We left him below and he didn't have as much of the ship to look through as we did, and he ought to be here."

"He'll have to hustle or he'll be too late," the second mate declared. "She's going to take her last dive before many minutes."

As he finished speaking all the lights suddenly went out. Fortunately it was moonlight and they could see for some distance.

When the boys had first reached the deck there was only a light breeze blowing, but it had been steadily increasing and now had grown to a strong wind.

"We can't wait much longer," the second mate declared. "What in the world do you suppose is keeping him?"

"Which we're going to do if we're not off in less than ten minutes," the other added. "I tell you she's going down mighty soon."

"You jest watch us, matey," one of the sailors broke in as he sprang over the rail into the boat still holding the lowering rope.

"You go back, Jack," he shouted as he turned at the head of the stairs and saw his brother close at his heels.

"Back nothing," the boy yelled. "Now, don't stop to argue because it won't do any good."

Bob knew his brother well enough to know that it would be useless to say anything more so he leaped down the stairs and Jack followed.

Fortunately the boys had had the foresight to slip into their pockets their flashlights and, with their aid, they quickly located a door on the far side of the large hall, which opened into a corridor leading to the bow. On both sides of this corridor were staterooms and into these they peeped, Bob taking those on the right side while Jack followed suit on the left. But the captain was in none of them and they reached the open deck in the bow without having discovered him. From time to time they had called at the top of their voice without result.

"If he's in this part of the boat he must be dead or unconscious," Bob declared as he threw the light from his flash over the deck.

"Well, there's no use standing here," Jack returned. "There's a passage on each side close to the rail. You take one and I'll take the other."

As Bob reached the right hand rail he noticed with a shudder of alarm that the water was nearly on a level with the deck. "She can't stay afloat much longer," he thought as he pushed open the door of the first room.

He had covered about half the rooms in the row when he heard a faint cry from the other side of the ship.

Like a flash he sped down the corridor and, as he reached the other side of the ship, he saw Jack standing about half way down the passageway.

By this time Bob was at the door of the stateroom and, a moment later, was bending over the body of the captain who was stretched on the floor face up.

"Then we've got to get him up. You take his head and I'll take his feet. Quick now."

Fortunately the captain was not a large man and could not have weighed over one hundred and forty pounds so they had little trouble in carrying him.

A moment later they had reached the middle deck and their first glance was toward the rail where they had left the two mates and the two sailors.

CHAPTER II.

THE STRUGGLE.

Ten days previous to the events related in the preceding chapter Bob and Jack Lakewood were preparing to return East for the fall term at College. They had spent the summer on the Lazy S ranch a few miles from the little town of Cold Springs in the State of Texas, except for a few weeks during which they had been in Mexico, hunting for a lost mine. It was late in October and ordinarily college would have opened several weeks before but, owing to a serious outbreak of influenza, the opening had been delayed, giving them several weeks more of vacation.

The day before they were to start a telegram had come from their father, bidding them to delay their departure until a letter, which he had already sent, should reach them.

The last remark came from a girl with bobbed hair and a slightly turned up nose, who had read the message over Jack's shoulder. Her name was Sue Stebbins and her father, Jeb Stebbins, was manager of the large ranch which was owned by a Mr. Leeds who lived in the East. Sue, who was something of a tomboy when it came to out-of-doors sports, ruled all hands, including her father, with, as the latter often declared, a rod of iron. But her rule was a generous one and she was a general favorite with all the hands from the manager down to the Chinese cook.

"If that was so you'd have been dead long ago," Jack retorted. "You've only got one life, you know, and a cat has nine."

"Well, anyhow, it gives you a few days more before you have to go back to that horrid old college," she smiled.

"I reckon that settles it," Bob broke in laughingly. "But, honestly, Sue, we hate to go worse than you can possibly hate to have us."

"Well, we won't argue the point. Come on, there's just time for a gallop before supper."

It was three days before the letter came and Bob read it with Jack and Sue looking over his shoulder. It was as follows:

My wire undoubtedly was a great surprise to you and, of course, you have been wondering what it was all about.

You will, no doubt, recall hearing me speak many times of my brother, Silas, who lives in the State of Washington. You have never seen him as he is a bit queer and has not been East for nearly thirty years, although he has always been a great rover. About six months ago he wrote me that he was going to take a trip to Alaska and try his hand at mining. Three months later I received a second letter from Nome stating that he was about to start for the upper waters of the Yukon with another man by the name of Long and that they would be gone a month. He promised that he would write as soon as they returned, but I have no word from him and, frankly, I am worried. He should have been back two months ago and I should have heard from him a few days later.

I have wired several times to Nome to find out if he had returned, but each time have received a reply stating nothing had been heard from them.

How would you like to take a trip up there and see if you can find out what has become of him? I know you ought to be in college, but you are well up in your studies and the trip will be a new one for you. I would go myself, but business will not let me get away just now. If your friend, Slats Magee, can go with you so much the better. I am so sure that you will want to go that I am inclosing check for expenses. Wire what you will do. Mother sends lots of love as do I.

"And, of course, that's too bad, but I reckon it needn't stop us from going. Father didn't say for us not to go without him, you know."

"But nothing. Father wants us to go whether Slats can go or not and that settles it."

"Well, of course, I didn't mean it, but just the same, I wish I was a boy and then I could go," Sue pouted.

Mr. Stebbins, or Jeb as everyone called him, shook his head when they showed him the letter.

"Your father has a lot of confidence in you for a fact and I'm not saying that it's misplaced, but I can't help thinking that it's risky for you two boys to go away off up there. If Slats could go along I'd feel better about it but, of course, that's out of the question. Yes, I know your father wants you to go," he added as Bob was about to speak, "and of course, the thing for you to do is to go only—"

Within an hour a wire was on its way to Mr. Lakewood, saying that they were starting as soon as they could get ready. Then followed a busy time looking up routes and making reservations, to say nothing of outfitting themselves with clothing suitable for wear in the far North.

Slats Magee, just beginning to hobble around, on crutches, was loud in his bewailment of the fate which kept him at home.

"If it was only an arm, now," he groaned. "I'd put it in a sling an' go anyhow."

They found that they could get a boat from Seattle on a Monday and as that was only three days off, they were kept busy the most of the time. Finally the moment came to say good-bye and, as the train pulled out from Cold Springs, Sue waved her hand from the platform and shouted:

Hoping that the lifeboat might not have left the side of the ship the boys laid the form of the captain on the deck and rushed to the rail.

"Too late," Jack cried as he pointed to a spot of light dancing up and down some distance from the ship.

"There must be another boat. Didn't one of the mates say there were others on the upper deck?"

Rushing back to the head of the stairway they again picked the captain up and a moment later were on the upper deck. There they were encouraged to find three lifeboats hanging from their davits and, placing their burden gently down, they set about getting it ready to lower.

"Hurry," Jack gasped as the boat gave a sickening lurch. "She's going in a minute or two."

Jack had quickly succeeded in getting his rope clear, but Bob was not so fortunate. His had gotten caught and it took him some time to get it free.

"I'm doing the best I can," he panted pulling frantically at the stiff rope. "There, she's free. Now you hold them while I drag him over."

He handed his rope to Jack and rushed back a few feet for the captain. It was hard work getting him into the boat, but it was finally accomplished and, springing in after him, they quickly began to lower away. As the boat touched the water a heavy wave dashed it against the side of the ship and all but upset it, but Bob grabbed an oar and succeeded in fending it off before the next wave hit them and, a moment later, he was pulling on both oars with all his strength.

They were not twenty feet away from the ship when a loud explosion told them that the water had reached the boilers.

Hardly had he spoken when the stern of the ship rose in the air and a moment later the ill-fated ship slid beneath the waves.

Now that the danger from the suction, caused by the big ship, was over, Bob rested on his oars and looked about him. The sea was rough and the lifeboat danced up and down, but he knew there was no danger unless the wind increased in strength. Far away he could see several points of light which he knew marked the location of the other lifeboats, but the boats themselves he could not see as heavy clouds had obscured the moon.

The form of the captain lay on the bottom of the boat at Jack's feet and the boy slid from his seat and took his head in his lap.

Under his ministrations the man soon sighed and, a moment later opened his eyes.

The captain closed his eyes and for a moment did not move. Then he again opened them and, in a much stronger voice, asked:

"Better wait till you're a bit stronger, sir," Jack suggested as the captain hesitated.

Seeing that he was determined to sit up Jack helped him to the seat on which he had been sitting.

"Well, there isn't much to tell," Jack began. "When you didn't come back we went to find you and—and found you."

"Well, I guess I can see about the way it was and I guess I owe my life to you two boys. But, tell me, didn't they agree to wait till you came back?"

"Well, they said they'd wait five minutes, but I guess we were considerable longer than that," Jack told him.

"I know it, but perhaps it's best not to judge them too harshly. I suppose a man has a right to save his own life."

"But what happened to you, sir?" Bob asked as he rested on his oars for a moment.

"I must have fainted," the captain told them. "You see I was subject to fainting spells some years ago and had to give up the sea for several years but, after I had gone five years without a single one, I thought I was over them and persuaded the owners to let me have a command again. This was my first voyage," he groaned. "But I suppose the excitement and severe strain was responsible for the relapse. I shall never try it again."

"Do we seem to be getting any nearer the other boats?" Bob asked a little later.

"It's hard to say," the captain replied. "But I don't think we're gaining much if any."

While they had been talking the wind had been steadily rising and now it was blowing almost a gale making it difficult to keep the boat's head into the wind.

"Just a minute," Bob cried pulling strongly on his right oar. "It won't do to let her get broadside," he added as he moved over on his seat to give Jack room.

It was a fortunate thing that they were used to boats else it is doubtful if they would have been able to change places without allowing the craft to wallow in the trough, but they finally accomplished it and Bob was glad to rest his aching arms.

"Have you any idea how far we are from shore, sir?" he asked as soon as he had settled himself in the seat beside the captain.

"A matter of twenty-five or thirty miles. As you know we were about twelve hours out, but we've been running not far from land."

In spite of his warm clothing Bob's teeth soon began to chatter as the night was cold and he had been sweating from the violent exercise of rowing. Fortunately the captain had on his heavy coat and, although he acknowledged that he was none too warm, he was not shivering.

The first flake was quickly followed by others and in less than ten minutes they were flying thick and fast driven by the strong wind, and so great was their velocity that they stung like needles as they struck the skin.

"Well, I'm coming anyhow so move over. There's no use in taking too long shifts and, besides, I want to get warmed up a bit," he added as he reached the seat by his brother's side. "We've simply got to take it as easy as we can for goodness knows how long we'll have to keep this up."

The lights from the other boats had disappeared soon after it had begun to snow and now there was nothing to be seen about them save the swirling snow and the white foam of the water as the wind blew off the tops of the waves.

"Wonder if there's anything to eat or drink in this boat," Jack said as soon as he had reached his former seat beside the captain.

"There should be both food and water," the latter replied. "All the lifeboats are kept stocked in case of an emergency such as this."

Jack turned half around and, reaching beneath the seat in the stern lifted the cover of a small box fitted in the narrow space. But it was empty and, with a sinking heart, he turned back.

"It's criminal negligence," the captain declared. "It's the purser's business to see that the lifeboats are kept stocked, but the fellow we have is always neglecting his work, but, as he's some relative of the owners it's been overlooked and now we've got to suffer for it."

The storm seemed to increase and Bob was having all he could do to keep the boat head on. He had lost all sense of direction and had no idea whether he was rowing toward the shore or out to sea. They were running with the wind and he judged that they must be making several miles an hour.

"It's my turn now," the captain shouted a few minutes after Jack had discovered the lack of food and water.

Both boys protested against the move, but the man declared that he was all right and well able to do his share of the work.

"Besides I need to get warmed up a bit," he added as he shifted his position to the rower's seat.

"Looks like we might not get out of this scrape," Jack said in a low tone as soon as Bob was seated beside him.

"Never say die," Bob replied hopefully. "I've seen sicker cats than this get well, and don't forget, Jack boy, that God can take care of us just as well out here as He can on the land."

The dismal night wore on. At times the snow slackened until it had almost ceased only to swirl down harder than ever a few minutes later. The wind kept about the same. Every half hour they changed shifts, as Jack called it, an arrangement which gave each an hour's rest after a half hour of strenuous labor. And each welcomed the chance to row in spite of the hard work as he suffered with the cold while resting.

"It'll be daylight in another hour," Bob announced as he moved to Jack's side to take his shift.

"But I don't believe we'll be able to see much better than we can now unless this snow lets up," Jack declared as he gave up the oars.

Just at that instant, as they were changing places, an extra strong gust struck the boat and Bob, feeling the bow swing off, put all his strength into his left oar in a desperate effort to straighten his course. Snap! The oar broke like a pipe stem and the boat was wallowing in the trough in an instant. Almost instantly a huge wave broke over it filling it half full of water and nearly throwing it over.

An instant later and his words proved true for the very next wave caught the boat just right and over she went.

CHAPTER III.

THE CABIN BY THE SHORE.

The water was icy cold and as Bob went beneath the surface it seemed to him that his blood froze in his veins. Thanks to the cork jacket which he had kept on his head bobbed out of the water almost immediately and, as he rose on the top of a wave, he looked about for Jack, and saw him only a few feet away.

Both boys were expert swimmers and, with the help of the life preservers, they had no difficulty in keeping afloat although the big waves dashed over their heads filling their eyes with salt water.

"I'm afraid he's a goner," Bob gasped as he fought his way to his brother's side. "He didn't have on a preserver, you know."

Bob felt in his heart that Jack was right unless a miracle happened as he well knew that no one could live long in that cold water which seemed to penetrate to the very marrow of the bones.

"Swim hard so as to keep up the circulation," he began and then paused as his eyes caught sight of something floating in the water only a few feet to his right. A few powerful strokes brought him to the spot, but the object had disappeared. With a prayer on his lips he dove and swam downward with all his strength. Down, down, he struggled until he knew that he had reached his limit. Then, just as he was about to turn, his outstretched hand came in contact with something and he knew he had found what he was after. The memory of that awful struggle to the surface haunted his dreams for months afterward. But, although it seemed as though his lungs would burst with pressure and he more than once nearly lost his hold, he finally succeeded and, to his great relief, he came up close beside Jack.

As Jack relieved him he drank in great gulps of air and immediately felt the strength pouring bade info his body.

Holding the form of the captain between them they fought the waves striving to protect him from their fury as much as possible. The wind had swept the overturned boat far beyond their reach and they knew it would be useless to try to reach it.

Bob knew that he himself was in about the same condition, but he would not give up as long as an ounce of strength remained.

"Let me have him while you rest a bit," he said trying to keep his teeth from chattering and the weakness from his voice.

Bob did not have enough strength to insist and so they kept on until it seemed he could not possibly take another stroke. Was this to be the end?

"I—I've got to—give—" he heard Jack cry but, at the same moment his heart gave a great leap for his feet touched something and, the next instant he was standing only waist deep in the water and helping Jack to recover his footing while holding the captain's head above water with one hand.

Between them they managed to drag the unconscious form of the captain through the shallow water to the shore, which was covered to a depth of several inches, with snow.

"What are we going to do?" Jack panted as he looked about him. "We'll all be frozen stiff in a few minutes if we stand here. Suppose we can get a fire going?"

"I've got a waterproof box of matches somewhere but I'm afraid we'll not be able to find anything that'll burn."

"Well we'd better—" Jack began and then uttered a cry of joy. "There comes somebody," he shouted.

Through the gloom they could see a point of light swinging in such a way that they knew someone was approaching with a lantern.

"This way, quick," Bob shouted, and, a moment later a tall, thickset man stood beside them.

"Oui, ver' close by," the man told them and then, putting his hands to his mouth shouted: "Hey Jacques, Pierre, come queek, queek."

It seemed that he had hardly called before an answering shout came through the night and two forms, dimly seen at first, soon joined them.

"You tak' heem to the house queek," the man ordered, and as the others picked up the captain as though he was a child, he turned to the boys.

As they rounded the clump of bushes a good sized log cabin loomed before them and, in another minute, they were inside in front of a roaring fireplace.

"You geet dem wet things off queek now and tak' one bon rub with deese towel," their benefactor ordered as he pulled a couple of coarse, but clean towels from a chest. "Dem boys dey look after heem," he added nodding toward the other side of the fire where Jacques and Pierre were already at work stripping the wet clothing from the captain.

"Oui, heem still breath some, but heem one mighty close call. Mebby heem geet well, mebby not. Eet for the bon Dieu to say. We do the best we can."

"God must have sent you out to us," Jack declared rubbing his body till it glowed.

A few minutes later wrapped in heavy blankets they were toasting their feet in front of the fireplace and drinking hot coffee while the captain, also wrapped in blankets, had been placed in one of the bunks which lined one side of the cabin, after everything possible had been done. He was still unconscious and they knew that his life hung in the balance.

"I never thought I'd be so warm again," Jack sighed contentedly as he sipped his second dipper of hot coffee.

"Nor did I," Bob agreed. "It was little short of a miracle. But what I can't understand is why there wasn't more surf where we came ashore."

"That's so. I never thought of it, but it does seem strange. Maybe we drifted into a cove or something."

"We'll ask one of the men when they come in," Jack said as he listened to the sounds which came from a back room, which he supposed was the kitchen and which indicated that they were getting a meal.

The faint light of the coming dawn was just beginning to steal in through the window when, a little later, they heard a low moan from the bunk where the captain had been laid. Bob hurried across the room, closely followed by Jack, and bent over the bed. The captain's eyes were open, but in them was no sign of recognition.

Just then the door opened and Pierre came in with the announcement that breakfast was ready.

"The captain has recovered consciousness, but he's out of his head," Bob told him.

"Eet tak' long time—too bad—eet thirty mile an heem have to walk, but heem go ver' fast an' come back wid horse, mebby gas wagon."

Had food ever tasted so good as those baked beans and hot biscuit to say nothing of the huge wedge of apple pie which followed? Both boys agreed that if it had they had forgotten when or where.

"If I eat another mouthful I'll burst," Bob declared as he pushed back his chair.

"Well, I can still chew, but that's the limit. There won't another bit go down," Jack added.

Breakfast over they found that their clothes had dried and they were soon, as Jack put it, clothed in their right minds once more. The three Frenchmen, they soon learned, were trappers and had lived here for years as they were brothers and none had married.

The captain was raving as they came again info the big living room and, at times, Pierre was having his hands full to hold him in the bunk.

"Heem ver' bad, but heem got lots strength an' that bon sign," he said as they approached.

As they walked slowly around the clump of bushes and looked out over the tumbling water they saw that their conjecture regarding the surf, or rather the lack of it, had been correct. A small cove, the points of which were only a few yards apart, broke the violence of the waves, making the water inside comparatively still.

"It's lucky we hit the opening," Bob said as he watched the rollers come in and break outside the cove.

"I'll say it was. I doubt if we could have gotten ashore outside without having the life knocked out of us," Jack agreed.

"It's awful when you think what may have happened to the rest of them," Bob said as they turned back.

It was nearly two o'clock when the doctor came in a small touring car with Jacques. After a hasty examination he confirmed their fears that it was pneumonia.

"Both lungs are congested," he told them. "But his heart action is strong and he's evidently lived a clean life, two very important factors in a case of this kind."

"Sure he has," the doctor assured him. "But, of course, you never can tell how pneumonia is going to turn out. Much depends on the nursing."

"You've got one." The doctor nodded toward Pierre who had stepped over to the fireplace. "What that fellow doesn't know about nursing hasn't yet been learned. I'd rather have him than anyone I know."

Bob told him the story of their escape. "Did you hear anything of any of the other boats?" he asked when he had finished.

"Yes, three of them came ashore about ten miles down the coast and the others were picked up early this morning a few miles out."

The doctor left an hour later promising to come again the next day and somehow the boys felt encouraged although they realized that the captain was a very sick man.

"We'll have to stay here till it goes one way or the other," Bob whispered to Jack as the doctor drove off.

But Baptist, the older of the three brothers and the one who had found them, assured them that so far from being in the way, they could do much to help as they had their traps to see to. So they remained and did all they could to help about the place. When the doctor came the next day he found his patient about the same and told them that in all probability there would not be much change for another week at least. When he left the boys asked him to take a message to wire to their father and also to the ranch that they were safe.

Day followed day with little or no change in the sick man. Pierre was untiring in his nursing and the boys soon found that the doctor's praise had not been misplaced. No woman could have been more tender than was this rough appearing Frenchman. Night and day he watched by the bed of the stricken man leaving his post only long enough to snatch a few hours' sleep each day. At times the captain was in his right mind for a few minutes and then he recognized them with a faint smile of gratitude. But for the most part he lay in a stupor. Only occasionally did he rave and then his mutterings were all of the sea.

Once his heart nearly stopped beating and Pierre thought, for a moment that he was gone, but an injection of a powerful stimulant brought him around. Then, a few days later, came the crisis and the two boys waited with bated breath while Pierre bent over the bunk watching for the slightest sign of change.

"Queek. The blankets," he shouted suddenly, and they grabbed from before the fireplace the thick woolen blankets which had been hanging there for several hours.

Quickly he wrapped the man in the warm folds and then sat with his fingers on his pulse.

"Heem will live." Pierre sprang to his feet as he made the announcement and the boys never forgot the look on his face as he closed his eyes. They knew he was praying and they bowed their heads.

Bending over the captain, who lay with closed eyes, they could see the great drops of sweat on his forehead and knew that Pierre had spoken the truth. The fever was broken and, barring the unexpected, the captain was on the road to recovery.

Great was the joy of Baptist and Jacques, when they returned from a trip to their traps shortly before dark, to learn the good news.

"Yes, he'll pull through all right now," the doctor said when he came the following day. "Didn't I tell you he was a good nurse?"

"I owe my life twice to you boys," he said slowly as Bob pushed his chair nearer to the fire.

"I know, and he shall have his reward if he will accept it. I am not a poor man by any means, but what do you think? Can I offer him money?"

It had been arranged that the boys were to leave the next day. Now that the captain was well out of danger they felt that they must not delay longer and the doctor was to take them back to the little town thirty miles down the coast, where they could get a train for Seattle.

CHAPTER IV.

THE BOYS START AGAIN FOR ALASKA.

It was two days after they had left the log cabin by the sea and the steamer, on which they had, for the second time, engaged passage, was drawing slowly away from the wharf.

"And here's hoping we have better luck than last time," Bob returned and he leaned over the rail. "But I might as well confess that I feel a bit squeemish."

"And, by the same token, I don't suppose we're likely to hit that same derelict but there are others, you know," Bob smiled back.

The boys turned quickly at the question and were much surprised to see the captain of the ship standing before them.

"I thought so," the captain smiled, holding out both hands which the boys, although greatly puzzled, were quick to grasp. "I am Richard Blake and, as you have probably noted by my uniform, have the honor to command this ship."

"No, sir, we did not. He told us that his name was Blake and that he had a brother who was also a captain, but you do not look like him." Bob smiled.

"That's true," the captain smiled back. "Frank is light and small while I am dark and rather above the average in size, but he's my brother just the same and more than that he's the best brother a man ever had."

"I can easily believe that, sir," Bob began and then stopped short. "No, I don't either," he corrected. "Make it as good a brother as a man ever had and I won't say a word, but he can't be any better than the one I've got."

The captain again reached out his hand and, as soon as Bob had grasped if, said:

"That's one of the finest things I ever heard, and I'll accept the suggestion. Son," he added turning to Jack whose face was flushed, "you also have a good brother so we might as well make it a trio."

"All I've got to say is that if you've got as good a brother as I have you've got as good as they make," Jack grinned.

"I'm not going to try to thank you," the captain continued after a moment's pause and both boys noticed that his eyes were dim with tears. "There are some things which are beyond thanks and—and I know you know how I feel."

"But, during this trip you are my guests. I have already arranged for you to sit at my table."

"That's very good of you, sir, and we certainly do appreciate it," Bob assured him.

But in some way or other the truth leaked out and before the trip was a day old they, much to their disgust, found themselves regarded as heroes by crew and passengers alike. But, in spite of it, the trip proved most enjoyable. The weather was perfect and the captain seemed to take great delight in showing them the different parts of the ship and in answering their many questions. They, in turn, took him into their confidence as to the object of their journey and he expressed great surprise that their lather had sent them on such a mission.

"Alaska is a mighty big place," he told them, "and in the winter it's a very rough place let me tell you."

"Well, for you two boys to take such a trip at this time of the year would be decidedly dangerous, not to say foolhardy, but if you get a good native to go with you the risk will, of course, be much less."

"I guess there's little doubt about that provided you can afford it. They charge a pretty stiff price these days."

"I'm sure father would want us to have a guide and will be willing to pay whatever is right."

"Not personally, but I know a fellow up there who will know where to get the right man and I'll attend to it."

It was late in the afternoon when, a few days later, the ship steamed up to her wharf at Nome.

"My, it's quite some city," Jack declared as he stood with Bob and the captain in the pilot house.

The captain had invited them to remain on board as his guests while the ship remained in port instead of going to a hotel and they had been glad to accept the invitation.

"The ship will be here for three days and I won't have much to do so we can put in the time together getting your outfit in shape," he told them.

"But don't you think it would be a good idea to see if we can find someone who knew my uncle? You see he was here for several weeks and he must have gotten acquainted with somebody who would know something about where he started for," Jack suggested.

"Of course, and I think I can name the very man to go to. If he got well acquainted with anyone here the chances are a hundred to one that it was Pete Slinger. Pete's a character, but a good reliable man all the same. I don't believe there's a man, woman or child in Nome that doesn't know Pete well enough to call him by his first name and as for Pete—well, he can tell you the life history of about everyone who has spent upwards of two days in Nome during the past ten years."

"He does. He looks like a tramp, but I guess there's little doubt, but that he's a got a good sized roll laid up against a rainy day. We'll go and see him right after supper tonight."

As the three friends walked up the main street of the town that night the boys were much surprised to find that it differed but little from towns with which they were familiar in the northern part of Maine. Except for an occasional Esquimo the people also seemed much the same being largely French Canadians with a liberal sprinkling of Americans.

"Well, here we are," the captain said as they stopped in front of one of the largest buildings on the street. "This is Pete's place."

There were several men and two or three women in the store as they entered, but no sooner did the proprietor catch sight of the captain than he dropped a sugar scoop back in the barrel and, pushing his customers right and left, came rushing up.

"Faith an' yer a sight fer sore eyes so yer be," he cried as he grasped the captain's hands in both of his.

"And, believe me, I'm glad to see you again," the captain laughed. "But I want you to meet my two friends, Bob and Jack Lakewood."

The Irishman, a small man standing not over five feet two or three inches and weighing less than a hundred and twenty pounds, looked at the two boys for a full minute before speaking.

"Don't be after tellin' me thot they're the byes what saved Frank," he said at last.

Without a word the small man threw his arms about Bob's neck and gave him a hearty hug at the same time kissing him on both cheeks. Then, releasing him he gave Jack the same treatment.

"The store's yer's, the house's yer's, bless me heart the whale blamed town's yer's, yes wid all uv Canada throwed in," he cried. Then turning to the people who were standing looking wonderingly on, he shouted: "Did yer hear ut? These be the byes whot saved Cap'n Frank whin his ship went down. What yer standin' thar fer loike a lot uv dummies? Come up here forninst and shake hands wid 'em ivery mother's son uv yer."

The people needed no second invitation and in another moment the boys were busy shaking hands and murmuring their thanks.

"Now git out uv here all uv yees an' let me talk wid me friends," the storekeeper ordered and the boys were amazed at the meekness and celerity with which the order was obeyed.

"Interfere nuttin'. They'll all be back inside an hour," the man assured him as he led the way back to one corner of the store which was fitted up as an office. "Sit down wid yer an' tell me all about it," he ordered.

Bob gave him an account of the wreck keeping himself and Jack out of it as much as he could and when he had finished the storekeeper turned to Captain Blake and said:

"'Tis modest they are as well as brave an' thot's a mighty good combination let me tell yer. I've heard uv thim Canucks down toward Seattle whot took Frank an' the byes in but I've niver seen 'em. Believe me, they're goin' ter git a good presint from old Pete. Can't yer see I'm busy the minute?" This last was shouted at a man who had just come in the store and was noisily drumming on the counter in an effort to attract attention. Without a word he turned and went out.

"They know better'n ter fool wid me," Pete grinned. "Jerry's sick wid a bad cold an' it laves me all alone in the store," he explained. "By the way," he added as though with a sudden thought, "I wonder if you bye's are related iny ter a man what was here a few weeks ago.. His name was the same as yourn, front name was Silas, Silas Lakewood."

"He is our uncle," Bob told him. "And we've come up here to find him. Did you know him?"

"I did thot. He used ter come in a lot an' chin wid me an' a mighty interstin' chinner he was too, let me tell yer. Guess he'd bin about all over the world."

"Yes, Uncle Silas was a great traveler and the funny part of it is that we've never seen him."

"Is thot so? It do seem strange. He's a kinder queer loike feller too: didn't seem half the time ter know jest what he did want, but allys seemed ter be wantin' sumpin'."

"Did you know he was going up the Yukon with a man by the name of Long?" Bob asked anxiously.

"Yep, he told me all about it a few days afore he left an' I did all I could ter keep him from goin'."

"Cause I didn't trust thot man, Long, what was a goin' wid him, not none I didn't. But his mind was made up and thar was no sech thing as changin' him. He thought Long was all thot he made hisself out ter be an' yer couldn't say a word agin him."

"But do you know where they were going? He wrote father that they would be gone only a month."

"An' he told me the same thing an' here he's been gone, let me see, it must be most three months. He told me thot they were goin' up the Yukon as fer as whar the Koynkuk empties inter it an' thin they were goin' ter follow thot river up a piece, but he didn't say jest how fer."

"And he only expected to take a month for the trip. It seems to me that that wouldn't leave them much time to prospect after they got up there."

"Jest whot I told him, but he said Long said they could do ut in thot time an' he sure did trust thot man worse luck."

"I dunno thar's anything agin him thot yer could lay yer finger on, but he's kinder slippery loike an eel an' I niver did cotton ter him. He may be all right, but I'm bettin' he ain't."

"Well, Pete," Captain Blake said after a short pause, "the boys want to go after him and it's up to you to get them a good guide, a man you can trust."

"Sure an' it's meself as knows jest the man if he's at home. I haven't seen him fer two or three days, but he's prob'ly round somewhars. Yer sit here a minute an' I'll find out."

"Lucky Hogan'll be here in a few minutes," he announced when he returned. "He's in town an' it's three men I sent ter find him."

Pete laughed. "Thot's the funny part uv it. Thar's not a drop uv Irish blood in him: he's pure Injun: a full blooded Crow."

"Yer don't s'pose I'd sent fer him if he wasn't do yer?" Pete replied a bit nettled.

"Of course not," the captain hastened to assure him. "I just asked the question without thinking."

"I'd trust Lucky wid me own life an' so would anyone else what knows him," Pete affirmed.

"Why, the sooner the better, I suppose. Let's see, today's Friday. Do you think we could get off on Monday?"

"Sure it is wid five or six inches uv ice on it. If it wasn't fer the snow yer could make foine time on skates, but thar's apt ter be a big snow storm iny time now."

"Well, it doesn't seem possible. It must be mighty dry up here. It would seem colder than this at that temperature in Maine and it's pretty dry there."

Just then the front door opened and a man stepped in and, after looking about for a moment, came over toward the office. That he was an Indian there could be little doubt. Tall and straight as an arrow his coal black hair and piercing black eyes gave to him a dignity which at once caught their attention. At the same time there was that about the man which inspired trust and this they both felt instinctively.

"An' Sam said jest right, begorra. Lucky, this is Cap'n Blake, you've prob'ly seen him, but yer niver saw these two byes afore an' I want yer should understand as how they're particular friends uv mine. They saved Cap'n Frank's life that's what they did."

Both boys had risen from their chairs as Pete started his introduction and now they both held out their hand with a smile.

"Injun heap glad know friends of Pete's an' Cap'n Frank, heem heap fine man. Injun know heem long time. Heem good to Injun."

"Now I remember hearing Frank speak of you," the captain said as he in turn shook the Indian's hand. "It seems rather strange that I've never met you before."

"Sot yerself, Lucky, an' it's meself as'll tell yer what we want," Pete said and explained the situation to him. "You can go, eh?" he asked when he had finished.

"I'd rather trust these byes ter you than ter iny man I know," Pete said and the boys could see that the Indian was pleased at the compliment although he tried not to show it. "Your dogs in good shape?" he asked.

"I'll bet he's a fine fellow," Jack declared as soon as the Indian had left the store.

"Well, Pete, we won't keep your trade away any longer," the captain said as he got up from his chair.

"Faith an' I'll be thar wid bells on. Have ter close up store, but thot don't matter iny."

They had stopped at the telegraph office long enough to permit the boys to send a wire to their father telling of their safe arrival and that they had secured a good guide.

"And that Indian," Jack added. "He may be a Crow, but here's betting that he's a man and a mighty good one."

"If Pete recommends a man you can bank on it that he's all right," the captain assured them. "As I said awhile ago I remember hearing Frank speak of him as one of the most trustworthy Indians he had ever met."

CHAPTER V.

OFF FOR THE NORTH.

Monday morning dawned bright and clear with the temperature fifteen below zero. Late Saturday night and nearly all day Sunday it had snowed and nearly eighteen inches were added to the little which had covered the ground when they had landed. The intervening days had been busy ones. What with getting everything in readiness for the start and spending as much time as was possible with Captain Blake, who seemed loath to let them out of his sight, their time had been fully occupied. They had seen much of Pete Slinger and had come to love the little Irishman. And not only that, but their respect for him grew by leaps and bounds as they had frequent exhibitions of his wonderful ability along many lines.

"I wonder if there's anything he can't do," Jack said after he had seen him put a barrel of flour on to his shoulder with apparent ease.

Pete, on his side, fairly seemed to worship the boys and there was nothing too much for him to do for them.

The ship was to sail at noon that day and Captain Blake had said the night before that he was glad as the place would seem very lonesome to him after they had gone.

It was only a few minutes after seven o'clock and still dark when they reached the store. As they approached they saw a long narrow sled loaded nearly three feet high with all sorts of packages. Hitched single file to it were six dogs who growled ominously as they came up.

"Those dogs don't seem very much pleased to see us," Jack declared as he followed close at his heels.

"Here yees are," Pete greeted them as the captain pushed open the door. "I was jest tellin' Lucky thot he'd have ter go an' pull yees out uv bed."

Everything was all ready for the start and the good byes were quickly said. Outside once more Lucky grasped one of the handles, which stuck out breast high at the rear of the sled, with one hand while with the other he swung the long raw hide whip which cracked with a report like that of a forty-five.

"Mush," he ordered and the dogs started off up the street while the boys fell in behind.

Lucky Hogan had explained the night before that they were to cut across country for a distance of some 250 miles where they would strike the river at about the same distance from the coast. As they left the town the stars above were just beginning to pale while in the east a faint glow told of the coming day.

Although they had started fairly early several teams had left ahead of them and the trail was in fairly good shape. Nevertheless it was hard traveling from the start. The snow was light and dry and the footing anything but secure, and inside of an hour they were both puffing hard.

"That fellow must think we're used to this all right," Jack panted, glancing back over his shoulder at Bob who was a few feet behind.

The Indian stopped the team as soon as Jack called to him and waited for them to catch up.

"Just a little," Jack told him. "You see, we're a bit soft and it'll take a few miles to get our muscles hardened up."

"Hope he doesn't think we're lazy," Bob whispered as Lucky started up the dogs again after allowing them to rest for a few minutes.

About nine o'clock the sun came up and it began to warm up a little and soon the boys were forced to discard their heavy mackinaws. The country, through which they were passing, was hilly and Jack declared that they were going either up hill or down all the time and he was not far wrong. About every hour the Indian stopped the team and allowed the dogs to rest for some ten minutes and the boys were glad of the breathing spells.

When noon came they halted at the foot of a long steep hill and ate their lunch which Pete had provided, washing it down with hot coffee from a thermos bottle.

The Indian, before eating, had fed the dogs, giving each a frozen fish, and they were now lying in the snow. Jack, as soon as he had finished, went toward them thinking that it would be a good time to get acquainted. But an ominous growl caused him to stop and look back inquiringly.

"Better wait," the Indian cautioned him and he came back. "Them dog heap bad when them no know you. Them know you ver' soon then you touch um," he explained.

"Then I reckon I'll wait," Jack grinned as he sat down on the snow beside the trail. "But, I say, Lucky, they look like fine dogs."

"Them heap best dogs ever was," the Indian replied proudly. "They all one litter, oui. Injun had der father an' mother, raise um."

"No got. Heem break chain one night, go off an' no come back. Mebby geet shot. She geet seek ver' soon an' die, seex moons gone."

They had met no one all morning, but they were only about half way up the hill when, almost without warning, a team swept around a bend in the trail. Coming down the hill they were traveling fast and, before Lucky could get his team out of the way, the two leaders had met. The boys were some thirty feet behind the sled and by the time they reached the scene of action the air seemed, as Jack afterward declared, full of dogs. The yelps and growls of the combatants drowned the voices of the Indian and the driver of the other team as they shouted orders to which the dogs paid not the slightest attention. There were six dogs in the other team and, for a moment, they seemed well matched so far as the boys could see, but soon even they could tell that the strangers were getting far the worst of it.

But the fight was over almost as quickly as it had started. The stranger's dogs, evidently realizing that they were outclassed, soon gave up the combat and shrank back whining piteously. Lucky's dogs did not press their advantage being apparently satisfied with the result. But the driver of the beaten team did not show as good judgment. He was a large burly man whose dark skin and high cheek bones indicated that he was a half breed. No sooner had the dogs separated than, with a snarl of rage, he drew an ugly looking revolver from his belt and aimed it at Lightning.

Then an amazing thing took place. Lucky was about twelve feet from the breed when the latter drew his gun and, with a movement of his arm incredibly swift, his whip lash darted out and the end wrapped itself about the barrel of the revolver. Another quick movement and the gun was snatched from the man's hand and sent flying through the air to fall in the snow twenty feet away. The entire scene took place so swiftly that it was all over before the boys realized what had happened.

But before Jack could answer the breed had leaped for the Indian with a hoarse cry of rage. The boys held their breath wondering what was coming next, but they did not have long to wait. They had suspected that the Indian was possessed of great strength, but what they saw amazed them. As the breed rushed toward him the Indian bent his body slightly to meet the attack and the next instant they saw the stranger lifted bodily and thrown several feet to fall sprawling in the snow.

The breed was slowly picking himself up a look of blank amazement on his face. First he looked toward the boys and then turned to Lucky who stood with a look of calm stoicism on his face.

There was something in the Indian's voice that gave the other pause for he stopped and, for a moment stood as though undecided what to do. Then he turned and started toward where the revolver had fallen.

"Injun geet eet," and he sprang from the trail and a moment later picked the revolver from where it had fallen in the snow.

Removing the cartridges he threw them away and then, stepping close to the breed, handed him the gun. For a second it seemed that the breed was about to jump at the Indian's throat in spite of the lesson he had already received, but he evidently thought better of it for he snatched the gun from his hand and, thrusting it into his belt, turned and went quickly back to where his dogs were lying in the snow. Lucky followed and at his command his dogs rose and soon, with the help of the boys, the team was out of the trail enough to permit the other team to pass. Low rumbling growls came from the throats of the dogs of both teams as they passed, but there was no move toward another attack.

"Do you know that fellow?" Bob asked as soon as the stranger had gotten out of hearing.

"But he tackled the wrong customer when he tackled you," Bob said with an admiring glance at Lucky. "That was the prettiest throw I ever saw: wish you would teach me how to do it."

Lucky examined the harness, but found it had not been injured during the fight and, at his cry of "mush" the dogs were off again.

"Well, he looks like an Indian and he acts like an Indian and we have it from no less authority than the great Pete Slinger that he is an Indian, but he talks like a Canuck and has an Irish name. Can you beat it?"

"But he says heap once in a while and just a minute ago he referred to you as a white boy. That's Indian all right."

At last they reached the top of the long hill and the trail dipped down on the other side in an almost endless reach. It was four o'clock when they reached the edge of a thick growth of trees and, as it was nearly dark, Lucky proposed that they make camp for the night. Both boys greeted the suggestion eagerly for, although they would hesitate to acknowledge it, they were tired. Beneath the broad branches of a giant spruce, which stood just within the edge of the forest, the ground was nearly bare of snow and Lucky choose it as a good place.

"White boys cut plenty boughs while Indian unpack stuff," he suggested as he pulled two small, but sharp axes from beneath the canvas which covered the load.

By the time they had enough of the fragrant boughs cut to satisfy him, the Indian had the dogs fed and fixed for the night, what they needed unpacked and a fire started.

"Talk about efficiency," Jack declared as he brought in his third armful of boughs.

But their fears were groundless for in less than an hour from the time they had reached the woods the Indian announced that supper was ready. Venison steak and potatoes baked in the camp fire constituted the main part of the meal and both boys declared that nothing had ever fasted better. The Indian seemed pleased at their words of praise and urged them to eat until both declared that they could not get another mouthful down. They washed the dishes in melted snow water which had been heating in a large iron kettle set in the hot ashes.

"You think it's going to storm?" Bob asked a little later as they sat by the fire.

The wind had been increasing slowly, but steadily and now the moan of the trees, as their tops swayed to and fro, filled the night. For an hour or more they sat by the fire while, at Bob's invitation, the Indian entertained them with stories of his early life. He was a good story teller and they listened with bated breath as he told of one adventure after another.

The Indian hesitated a moment. "Wind getting round Nor East, mean snow," he finally declared.

From the sled, which had been left beneath the branches of another spruce near by, he brought three sleeping bags, huge canvas affairs, lined with bear skins and fitted with a flap, which could be drawn completely over the head, but which was equipped with air holes so that the sleeper would be able to breath easily.

How long he had been asleep Bob did not know but, sometime in the night, he awakened with a sudden start. For an instant he wondered where he was and then, as memory returned, he wondered what had disturbed him for he rarely woke up in the night unless there was a cause. But, after listening intently for a moment and hearing nothing save the sighing of the trees and an occasional low growl from one of the dogs, he decided that he had been mistaken and was about to go to sleep again when, far off in the forest, he heard a low but distinct howl.

And then, from a direction more to the right, came an answering howl a little louder than the other.

He was lying close to Jack who was between him and the Indian and, as the second howl rang through the forest, he felt his brother stir.

Then came the answer from the first wolf and now it was apparently much nearer. Low menacing growls from the dogs indicated that they too had heard the ominous sounds.

So Lucky also was awake. Bob had thought it a bit strange that the Indian had not been awakened as he knew that most forest bred men were light sleepers.

The fire, as Bob could see from where he lay, had not entirely died out and, as Lucky had said, there was plenty of wood, and soon it was blazing up brightly the fight casting weird shadows.

As they could tell by the sound of the howls the wolves were coming nearer and, in spite of the Indian's assurance, the boys were unable to go to sleep again.

The dogs were getting more and more uneasy as the wolves came closer and soon the boys heard the Indian again moving. He threw some more wood on the fire and then, going to where the dogs were stationed, he spoke to them in a low tone as if fearful that he would awaken the boys. At his words the dogs ceased their growls, but a low whining told that they were not fully reassured.

"How many of them are there should you say?" Jack asked as the Indian came back beneath the tree.

Howl now answered howl in rapid succession as the wolves came nearer and, a few minutes later Bob, who was sitting up, thought he could see a shadowy form on the other side of the fire and some twenty feet away from it.

But before he could get out of his bag at his automatic, which was in his belt, the wolf had disappeared.

That the roaring fire had been too much for the wolves to face was evident as their howls grew; fainter and fainter and finally died out altogether.

"I'm mighty glad they were educated wolves," Jack sighed as he snuggled down in his bag.

CHAPTER VI.

A NORTHERN BLIZZARD.

It was still dark when Bob awoke again, but the smell of frying bacon, which came to his nostrils as he raised his head, told him that it was morning and time to get up. The wind was blowing hard as he could tell by the sound of the tree tops and a fine snow was drifting in even beneath the tree and he saw that both Jack and himself were nearly buried in it.

"Oh, all right," and in another minute Jack had wiggled out of his bag. "Gee, it's storming all right, isn't it?"

"It must be coming down pretty fast," Bob agreed as he noticed that even in the thick woods several inches had fallen.

It was eight o'clock when they started and still dark. The going was much harder than the day before as the newly fallen snow made the footing even more insecure.

"We'll be lucky if we make twenty miles today," Bob told Jack before they had gone a mile.

Although the thick trees sheltered them to a large extent from the fury of the storm, which had now nearly assumed the proportions of a blizzard, yet the sharp particles of snow stung their faces like needles whenever an open space allowed the wind to reach them with anything like its full force. The snow was also getting deeper and deeper and for the last half mile the Indian had been breaking trail ahead of the team.

"It must be fierce out in the open," Jack declared as they paused for a rest shortly after nine o'clock.

"And it seems to be getting worse instead of better," Bob added as he glanced up through an open space between the trees.

"I think you better put on snow-shoe now," Lucky advised as they were about to start off again. "White boys know um?"

"You bet," Bob assured him. "We were raised in Maine you know and, believe me, they have some snow up there."

"Not now, he won't," Bob insisted shaking his head as Lucky held out a pair of snow-shoes which he had taken from the pack on the sled. "You put them on, I'm going to break trail for awhile."

"I know, you'd do all the work if we'd let you, but we're going to do our share," Bob insisted.

Seeing that the boy was determined the Indian did not insist further, but thrust his feet into the straps and motioned Bob to go ahead. There was still enough of the trail left so that he had no trouble in keeping the path, but it was filling rapidly and in places the snow was already drifted even across it. He had expected to find it hard work, but it was harder than he had thought it would be. But he was strong and not afraid of hard work so he kept at it until Jack sang out that it was his turn.

"It's getting pretty hard to see the trail and you'll have to be careful," he advised as he slipped his feet into the shoes which Jack had been wearing.

Bob judged that they had been making about two miles an hour and the Indian agreed with him when he mentioned it.

"And I reckon we'll go slower before we go faster," Jack said. "Just listen to that wind."

"Do you suppose those wolves are following us?" Bob asked the Indian a few minutes later.

Bob was not frightened, but he always liked to know just what he was up against and he had read so many stories in which wolves, and especially timber wolves, had attacked men that he was a bit worried.

At noon they halted in a sheltered place for dinner and several times while eating they heard the howls of the wolves, but they were at some distance and the Indian assured them that there was no danger.

During the afternoon the storm increased in violence but they kept steadily on breaking trail by turns in short shifts. The old tracks had disappeared sometime ago and the Indian was obliged to continually shout directions when either of the boys were in the lead. In spite of the fact that one or the other always went ahead of the dogs it was hard work for them to drag the sled along and at three o'clock Lucky decided that they had better call it a day.

Although still early in the afternoon dusk was already beginning to creep over the forest and they knew that it would be dark in another hour.

As on the previous day the boys cut boughs for the beds while the Indian attended to the dogs and started the fire.

"We geet heap plenty wood," he told them as soon as they had brought in enough boughs. "Fire burn plenty fast in wind."

"We'll get it while you're getting supper," Jack told him and the Indian nodded assent.

But it was not so easy to keep his promise as he had thought. The snow was now so deep that all the dead underbrush was buried out of sight and the darkness was rapidly increasing.

"Looks kind of dubious," Jack said after they had been hunting for several minutes.

"I'll say it does, but we've got to find some and that's all there is to it," Bob replied. "I don't want those wolves nibbling at my toes tonight."

"I reckon they'd nibble more than your toes if they got that close," Jack declared. "But here's what we want so I guess your tootsies are safe."

He had found a dead tree almost ready to fall over and, as he spoke he gave it a shove and down it came.

A quick examination proved that, although the tree had been dead for some time, it was still fit for firewood and they set to work to cut it up so that they could drag it to the camp some fifty feet away.

But by the time they had dragged the different parts of the tree up to where Lucky had started a fire with some dead branches which he had found close by, he told them that they had enough.

"Come on, Jack," Bob said as he started back. "I think I saw another dead one close by that one."

It was now so dark that they could see but a few feet ahead of them and they were obliged to be very careful with the axes to avoid an accident, but they finally got the other tree cut up and dragged into camp.

"Supper heem ready," came the welcome announcement just as they were putting away the axes.

All that night the storm raged. Several times during the night they heard the howls of wolves above the noise of the storm, but they did not come very near thanks undoubtedly to the fire which the Indian kept burning brightly all the time. It was eight o'clock when Lucky awoke them to find that the storm had nearly blown itself out and that breakfast was ready. Over a foot more of snow had fallen and they knew that their progress would be slow that day.

"It's almost as bad as the case of the frog jumping out of the well," Jack declared as he poured himself a cup of coffee.

Four more days passed and Saturday night came. In spite of the deep snow they had on the whole made fairly good time as their muscles were hardening and they were able to maintain a faster pace. There had been no more snow and that which had fallen had drifted so hard that in most places it held the sled and dogs though, of course, Lucky and the boys were obliged to wear snow-shoes. In view of the fact that they were on a trip where time might mean a man's life they had decided that they were justified in traveling on Sunday although under other circumstances they would not have considered it. The weather had been cold, the thermometer rarely getting above ten below zero and one morning it had sunk to thirty below.

Each night they had heard the howls of timber wolves and a number of times they had caught sight of a slim gray form in the distance. The knowledge that the pack was still following them was far from comforting but, being well armed with both rifles and revolvers, they had no real fear.

Thursday morning Jack had shot a small buck deer and the meat was a very welcome addition to their larder as they had brought with them only enough fresh meat for a couple of days. Their respect and liking for the Indian increased every day for they found him not only abounding in resourcefulness, but he had proved, as Jack put it, a mighty likeable fellow.

"I always thought Indians were solemn and never laughed or anything of that sort," he said to Bob one day as they were some distance behind the sled, Lucky leading the way.

"They usually are more or less that way, but Lucky can laugh as well as the next fellow."

"We heet river one more day," Lucky told them that night as they were washing up after supper.

Besides the Canuck they had encountered their first day out they had seen but two men and these they had met the day after the storm. They had seemed well disposed Canucks and, learning that they had come from up the river, they had inquired if they had seen anything of their uncle. But neither of them had.

It was just as dusk was beginning to settle the next day that they came in sight of the river. For a couple of miles they had been climbing a gentle slope, and, as they reached the top, they could see two rivers about a mile away.

"Big one heem Yukon an' leetle one Kayakuk," Lucky told them pointing with his hand.

"But how do we get down to it?" Bob asked. "It looks as though it went off almost perpendicularly here and it must be a drop of nearly a hundred feet."

Bob was about to turn back when a startled cry from Jack, who had been standing a few feet nearer the edge of the hill, made him look around just in time to see his brother disappear over the edge together with a vast smother of snow. For an instant he was petrified with fear.

But there was no answer. The Indian had said nothing, but Bob could see that he was shaking as with the palsy.

The question seemed to galvanize the Indian to action and, leaving the dogs, he led the way a little to the right where a more gentle descent offered.

"White boy be careful," the Indian cautioned as Bob started down, but he had no thought but to get to the bottom as quickly as possible.

It was very steep even here and several times he lost his footing and fell, once turning over three or four times before recovering himself. Only one thought was in his mind—Jack was in danger, perhaps dead. It seemed to the frantic boy that ages passed before he reached the bottom, but in reality it was only a few seconds. The last twenty feet or so was the steepest and, in his rush, he tripped and rolled to the bottom. But he was not hurt and, quickly picking himself up, he started as fast as he could go for the place where Jack had gone over. A projection cut off his view until he was within a few feet of the spot.

With his heart in his mouth he rounded the turn and the next instant a low cry of joy burst from his lips. There, not twenty feet away sat Jack rubbing his eyes as though he had just woke up. At Bob's cry he turned.

"Thank God," Bob breathed as he hastened to Jack's side. "Jack, boy, I—I thought you were killed," he sobbed.

"Well, I haven't had time yet to take account of stock, but so far's I know I'm all here."

"Oh, I don't know. You see, so much snow came down with me that I lit as light as a feather." Jack grinned.

"No. You see I was about six feet more or less underneath when I landed and about the time you were yelling I reckon I was pawing my way surfaceward."

"White boys stay here Injun git team, git shovel." Lucky turned and was gone before they had time to say anything.

"Believe me, he was one scared Indian when he saw you go over that cliff. Don't ever tell me that Indians have no feelings or that they never show them. If ever I saw fear and sorrow on a human face if was then."

"And, of course I wouldn't want anything to happen to bring it there. I didn't mean that. Only I've always thought that Indians never did show their feelings, you know."

It was nearly half an hour before Lucky came around the bend with the team as he had to go some little distance before finding a place where he could get the sled down safely. Stopping the team he quickly got a shovel from the stores and in a few minutes had recovered the shoes. As Jack had thought they had not come off as well as he. One of the frames was broken and several of the strips of rawhide had snapped in the other.

"Not much bust," the Indian told them as he held them up. "Injun got one more pair an' heem feex dees in queek time tonight."

If was almost dark by the time the Indian had found the extra pair of snow-shoes and they were ready to start once more. About a mile up the smaller river from where it emptied into the Yukon they had seen a small piece of woods and the Indian told them that they would make camp there for the night.

"Leetle town 'bout twenty mile up river," Lucky told them after they had eaten supper and were sitting around the fire.

Jack described the moving picture as well as he was able, but it was evident that the Indian did not get a very good idea of what he was talking about.

CHAPTER VII.

A NEW KIND OF BED-ROOM.

It was shortly after noon the following day when they reached the town of Red Shirt. The half dozen or so log cabins were huddled closely together at the foot of a fairly high mountain and the first person they saw, a huge bulk of a man with a thick shaggy red beard, wore a shirt of the brightest red.

The man was standing on the porch of the largest of the cabins which, somewhat to the boy's surprise, proved to be a store well stocked with goods.

"Why, eets Lucky Hogan," the man said as he recognized the Indian who's back had been turned until he spoke.

"Oui, it's me," he said holding out his hand which the other grasped. "An' them boys dey Bob an' Jack Lakewood. Heap fine boys."

"Ver' glad know yer," the big man smiled shaking hands with them in turn. "Come in where eet be warm."

A huge stove, its sides red hot, in the center of the room made the heat seem almost stifling to the boys after the long continued cold outside.

"We hardly know," Bob told him. "You see, we are looking for my uncle who came up here ten or twelve weeks ago and has not been heard from since. We thought you might have seen him."

"That heem, Jeem," Lucky broke in. "You know Jeem," he added turning to the big man.

"Thees Jere Laduc," the storekeeper introduced him. "Heem jest come from up river. Mebby heem seen 'em." Then turning to the new-comer he asked: "Yer see Jeem Long up river, Jere?"

The Canuck, a small wiry looking man, with a smooth face, took off his cap and scratched his head thoughtfully before answering.

"I guess that's about all the information we'll get here," Bob whispered to Jack.

The storekeeper invited them to stay over a night in the settlement but, after a brief conference, they decided that time was too precious and that they would push on. So, after thanking him and purchasing a few things they needed, they said good bye and started off up the river. Altogether they had stopped an hour and, although they had learned nothing which was very definite except that their uncle had really been there, somehow the boys felt slightly encouraged.

"Evidently that man Long's a bad egg," Jack said as they trudged out of the village.

"The inhabitants of this burg seem to keep pretty close indoors," Jack remarked just as they struck the river.

On the river the traveling was good and they made twenty-five miles before camping for the night.

"River tak' heap beeg bend leetle way above here an', in the mornin' we go east, cut off mebby twenty mile," the Indian told them.

For the past three days they had heard nothing from the wolves and both boys hoped that they had given up following them. Lucky shrugged his shoulders when Bob mentioned it as if to say that it did not matter to him one way or the other.

"Any fish in this river, Lucky," Jack asked as soon as they had cut the wood for the night.

"Well, I've got a hook and line and I'm going to make a stab at it. Fresh fish won't go bad."

They were camping in a clump of woods just a few yards from the river and, taking one of the axes, Jack was soon cutting a hole in the ice. This took longer than he had thought for the ice was nearly eighteen inches thick and it was pretty dark by the time he was ready to drop in his hook which he had baited with a piece of pork.

His hope was quickly realized for before the bait had sunk more than five or six feet he felt a strong yank and pulled in a trout nearly fifteen inches long. Quickly he rebaited the hook and dropped it back through the hole. This time he had to wait a little longer, but inside of twenty minutes he had landed three more trout and two salmon of about five pounds weight each.

"Not bad for the first time," he chuckled as he strung them together on a bit of line which he found in his pocket.

"Yer catch um feesh?" Lucky asked as he came whistling up in the gathering darkness.

"Well, when I go after fish, fish is what I bring back. Ask Bob if you don't believe it." And he held up the string in the light of the fire.

"He always does," Bob assured him. "That boy could catch fish in a water bucket."

Soon the two salmon were sizzling in the frying pan and they proved a very welcome addition to their fare.

The next morning they were up early and just as day was breaking, they left the river and struck off due east. The sun came up thickly overcast and Lucky gave it as his opinion that it would snow before noon.

"You're a good weather prophet, Lucky," Jack said when, a little after ten o'clock, the first flakes began to fall.

There was no wind and the snowflakes at first drifted lazily to the earth as if in no hurry to get there. Soon they were coming in greater abundance and, although there was still no wind, the boys noticed that the Indian was casting an anxious eye toward the sky.

"Well, the snow has held off for a good while for this time of year so I suppose we ought not to kick if we do get it now," Bob said philosophically.

"I reckon it's going to blow some at least," Jack said an hour later as he felt a slight breeze fan his face. "Those flakes aren't coming down straight any more."

It was snowing hard and there was a fairly strong breeze when they stopped for dinner at twelve o'clock although it was not yet strong enough to cause the snow to sting.

"About how far from here is there a piece of timber," Bob asked as they were getting ready to start off again.

Enough snow had already fallen to make it hard going and within an hour they were taking turns breaking trail for the dogs. The wind was steadily increasing in force and the snow showed no sign of abatement.

"Non, we no mak' heem. We look for bon place mak' camp. Heem goin' blow heap hard soon."

Lucky was right again for they had not been traveling an hour before the wind had risen to the force of a gale and was driving the sharp particles of snow against their faces with stinging violence.

"Whew, but this is work," Jack panted as he came back from breaking trail to allow Lucky to take his turn.

It was impossible to see more than a few feet ahead and it was a mystery to the boys how the Indian could keep a straight course especially as the wind seemed to change its direction frequently. But he seemed sure of his way and the boys had no reason to doubt his judgment.

By half past two the dogs began to show signs of distress and the Indian gave it as his opinion that they had better stop.

"I'll say we mustn't, but how are we going to camp here in the open?" Bob asked.

All day they had been traveling over a flat country and there was not even a hill to give them the slightest protection. Still they felt sure that Lucky knew best and if he said camp why, camp it was.

"We mak' um house," he said as he pulled the shovels from the sled. "We sleep all right, but have eat cold supper, no got wood."

The prospect was anything but pleasant, but the boys were not unused to hardships and there was no grumbling as they set to work digging a hole in the snow under directions from the Indian.

"Mak' heem 'bout eight feet long an' seex wide," he told them, as he turned to care for the dogs.

There was now about four feet of snow on the level, and, as the old snow was packed down very hard, it took them some little time to complete the task.

"Reckon it'll drift in about as fast as we can shovel it out," Jack grumbled as he threw out the last few; shovelfuls of snow.

Thanks to Lucky's thoughtfulness in bringing along a small alcohol stove they were able to make coffee which made the supper seem a little more cheerful.

It was only a little after four o'clock when they finished supper, but it was already dark. Not that it made so much difference, as Jack declared, seeing that the snow was coming down so fast that they could only see a short distance anyhow.

"You shovel um out again and we feex roof," Lucky said as soon as the meal was finished.

The snow was already several inches deep in the dugout, as Jack called it, but they made short work of it and finished just as the Indian dragged up a piece of canvas about twelve feet long and eight wide.

When spread over the dugout the canvas overlapped about three feet on each side and on it they shoveled snow, stamping it down good and hard with their feet.

"Now heem hold some snow," the Indian declared when they had two feet or more of hard packed snow on either end.

It was very cold, but after they had crawled info the dugout and into their sleeping bags they were plenty warm.

"If we only could have gotten some boughs," Jack complained. "This ground was laid hard side up."

"Just hear that wind," Bob said a few minutes later. "I can't help feeling sorry for the poor dogs outside."

"Well, I'm glad to know that they won't suffer. It's snug as a bug in a rug in here," Jack declared.

For more than two hours, while the storm howled and blew outside, the Indian entertained them with wonderful stories of the North Land. He was a splendid story teller in spite of his broken English and they could hardly believe it when he announced that it was nearly eight o'clock and time they were asleep.

"Injun shovel off snow an' den we go sleep," he said as he wiggled out of his bag.

In spite of the hard ground they were soon fast asleep. Bob awoke some hours later and felt the Indian moving at his side.

"Injun shovel off snow one time more. Roof heem sag some," Lucky whispered back.

Bob was asleep when the Indian returned and did not hear him. Some time later he dreamed that he was lying at the foot of a high precipice. Overhead, jutting out from the top of the cliff, hung a volume of snow which he knew was about to fall on him. And yet he was unable to move try as he might. He could see the immense mass, slowly slipping at first, and then gathering speed as it approached. He wondered why it did not fall more rapidly. It seemed to take a fearful long time getting down, but, finally it was just above his head and he closed his eyes as he realized that he would be buried in another instant. Then it struck.

Realizing at last that he was awake and that his dream had, in a measure, come true almost before it was over, he began to paw his way out. But the others were also pawing and soon they were all tangled up in a mass of canvas and snow.

After what seemed an interminable time, and during which Jack urged him to hurry, he succeeded in getting hold of an edge of the canvas and crawling out from beneath it Then he quickly pulled it from off the others and soon they were all standing up. It was still snowing hard and the wind seemed to be blowing hard as ever.

It was very dark, but they had flashlights with them and by their aid they quickly located the shovels in one corner of the dugout and the two boys fell to work while the Indian busied himself getting the strip of canvas straightened out.

It took the better part of an hour to get their home cleaned out and the roof on again, but it was finally accomplished and they were once more, as Jack put it, stowed away again. None of them were inclined to sleep so they fell to discussing the situation.

And this time was no exception to the rule for, shortly before seven o'clock, the Indian, after sticking his head out, declared that it was only snowing a "leetle" and that the wind was dying down.

Their progress that day was distressingly slow to the boys who were ever fearful that, if they found their uncle at all, it would be too late. But they were obliged to consider the dogs. They were willing to do all that could be asked of them, but there was a limit to their endurance and dragging the heavily loaded sled through the deep snow was no easy task. Still, as Jack put it, they were more than holding their own and, about four o'clock they came to woods and here they decided to make camp, cheered by Lucky's assurance that they would reach the town the next day.

They had brought the rest of the fish Jack had caught, with them and how good a hot meal did taste.

"I tell you, you never appreciate a thing till you have to do without it," Bob declared as he readied for his third helping.

CHAPTER VIII.

TIMBER WOLVES.

The town of Batzahakat is very much like Red Shirt. A few log cabins, one of which serves as a store, huddled together on the bank of the river. It was growing dark when two very tired boys and six nearly played out dogs and an Indian, who acknowledged that he had been more rested, dragged themselves up the bank and made their way along the single short street to the store.

"Do you know the man who keeps the store?" Bob had asked the Indian earlier in the day.

"Oui, Injun know heem. Heem name Jules Lamont. Heem Frenchman, no breed," Lucky told them.

And now they soon found that he was again right for, as soon as they had entered the store, Jules Lamont gave them a hearty welcome and assured them that he had plenty of room for them in his cabin just out behind.

Jules Lamont had a wife who was fully as kind in her welcome as was he and she was a splendid cook as they soon learned.

"Gee, but it seems kind of good to get into a bed once more," Jack said when, soon after supper, their host had shown them to a well furnished room above the living room. There were two beds in the room and Lucky occupied the other.

Yes, he remembered Silas Lakewood very well and the man Long as well, he told them the next morning when, while eating breakfast, they told him of their errand.

"Do you remember just how long ago it was they were here?" was Bob's next question.

"Pretty hard say. Time goes ver' slow up here an' I forget. Mebby seven weeks, mebby eight or nine, but no more than nine sure."

"He's sure got a bad reputation," Jack said. "We haven't heard a single good word about him yet."

"After breakfast over we go see some other men an' ask them what they know," Jules told them.

He had urged them the night before to stay over a day and they had agreed after Lucky had assured them that a day's rest would be of great benefit to the dogs and that they would more than make up for the lost time.

By noon they had interviewed probably nearly everyone in the village, Jules going with them and introducing them. They found the people universally courteous and eager to be of service, but they learned no more than they already knew. It was evident that neither their uncle or Long had confided in anyone, keeping their destination a secret.

The next morning they got an early start. Although it would be several hours before the sun would make its appearance, it was not dark as the moon was full. The dogs had indeed profited by their day's rest and had fully recovered their eagerness or pep as Jack put it. It was twenty-five degrees below zero when they drove off after thanking their host and hostess for their kindness.

"We ver' glad to have you an' hope you find your uncle all right an' hope you stop longer time on way back," Jules Lamont told them as he shook hands.

"If you've got any more friends like them up this way just lead us to them," Bob told Lucky.

Their way now lay straight up the river and, as the snow had settled, they were able to make better time especially as they found that two or more teams had been ahead of them and broken a fairly good trail.

They had been traveling for about three hours and the sun was just beginning to show itself when Jack, who was walking slightly ahead of the Indian, turned to ask him a question. Instead of answering him, to his surprise Lucky grabbed up a handful of snow and the next instant he was vigorously rubbing Jack's nose with it.

"That's the frost coming out of it. It'll be all right after a bit," Bob assured him.

"And I'm much obliged," Jack grinned realizing now that the Indian had indeed done him a good turn.

They were two days making the next town about eighty miles farther north. This was Arctic City, so called because of being situated exactly on the Arctic Circle. The weather had held clear and cold and they had made good time and were in good spirits as they entered the town about three o'clock. Although only the middle of the afternoon it was dark enough for lights in the cabins. Indeed there was only about five hours a day during which the sun was above the horizon.

Arctic City much resembled the other towns through which they had passed and they found the people much the same type. They were kindly received and secured a comfortable room for the night. During the evening they interviewed several of the men of the place most of whom were known to the Indian. But it was just as they were about to start off the next morning that they received their first real clue.

The dogs were harnessed and Lucky had already given the order to "Mush" when a very small man dressed in a heavy bearskin coat shouted to them to wait a minute.

"Oui. 'Bout seex week ago me go up dar hunt bear. No find heem an' stay long time, ten day, mebby two week. Go round ver' mooch. One day I see leetle cabin an' smoke come out heem. I been dar before an' never see cabin so I know heem new. I go up an' go to knock on door when I hear mad man talk. I leesten an' hear heem say 'you sign dat paper or you no go away from here. I leesten an' hear nodder man say, 'I no sign heem'. Den odder man heem sware ver' mooch an' I come away. I think eet not my beeseness an' I stay mebby I geet hurt."

"But what makes you think they were the men we are after?" Bob asked when he had finished.

"Then I reckon they were the men all right," Bob said turning to Jack and Lucky.

Instead of replying the Indian turned to the small man and asked: "You tell me where heem be, eh?"

Bob pulled a five dollar bill from his pocket and offered it to the man, but he shook his head.

"Please take it," Bob urged. "Your information is worth a lot to us and I want to make you a little present. Just take it and buy yourself something."

After a little hesitation the man accepted the bill thanking Bob with a great display of feeling.

"Well, it looks as though we had something definite to go on now," Jack declared as soon as they were once more on the river.

"Then I reckon it's all right. We'll take it for granted anyhow until we find out to the contrary."

Greatly to their disappointment they got no more information in the little village of Beaver which they reached late that night. No one seemed to have seen the men although they found several who said that they knew Long, but none of them had seen him for more than a year.

"Looks as though they had given this burg the go-by," Jack said when they were in the little room which they had secured for the night.

"But the farther north we go the worse that man Long's reputation seems to get."

They camped the next night at the beginning of the pass which led between the two mountains which reared their snowy summits far up toward the sky.

"Cabin not more'n 'bout two mebby three mile from here," Lucky told them as he halted the team. It was only two o'clock, the place not being so far from the town as they had thought from what the little Frenchman had told them. Lucky had told them when starting out that morning that he thought the man was mistaken as to the distance but, as he had not been there for a number of years, he was not sure.

They had found a splendid place for a camp. Beneath an overhanging rock, the ground was almost free from snow as a circle of thick spruce trees in front and about twenty feet away had protected it on the open side. Here they made beds of thick spruce boughs and a roaring fire soon warmed the face of the rock by its reflection so that it seemed impossible that the temperature outside was nearly forty below. Before leaving the river early the preceding day, they had stopped long enough to cut a hole in the ice and allow Jack to catch a dozen large trout and five or six salmon, enough, as Bob said, to last them a couple of weeks.

After supper was over they sat for some time in front of the fire and discussed plans for the morrow.

"We got be ver' careful," Lucky told them. "Dat man, Long, heem bad man an' heem get mad he shoot, oui."

"Lucky's right, Jack," Bob declared. "We must play it safe. Of course there may not be any trouble and everything may be all right and I sure hope it is but if he's keeping Uncle up here against his will, the way it looks, he's probably playing for big stakes."

"That's what we've got to find out. According to what that man said he was trying to get him to sign some paper. Now, if that's right, my guess is that they've found gold and he was trying to get him to sign away his rights to it. Of course, that's only a guess."

"But I couldn't help finding it if it's between these mountains. You see, it's this way. That man Long knows you and if he should see you he'd smell a mouse, but he's never seen me."

Although the Indian saw the force of the argument and made many objections to the plan he finally gave in and it was settled that as soon as it was light enough to see Bob should start to spy out the land.

That night, for the first time in several days, they heard wolves, but they were far off and Lucky did not think that they had scented them.

"White boy be heap careful," was Lucky's parting word the next morning, as Bob started off just as it was beginning to get light. It was nearly ten o'clock and he had waited impatiently several hours for the time to start. Besides his automatic he took with him a 38 Remington with which he was an expert shot. It was his favorite rifle and he was very choice with it. More than one buck had fallen before it in the woods of Maine and once it had brought down a large moose. With it he felt safe.

Although he could hardly believe it the thermometer said forty below when he left the camp, but so clear and dry was the air that it hardly seemed cold at all.

The passage between the mountains was very narrow, in fact, there was hardly any level ground between them, one seeming to rise at the foot of the other, so he had little fear of missing the cabin provided it was really there. The dry snow creaked pleasantly beneath his snow-shoes as he strode along humming a favorite song. Tall trees grew so closely together that he was unable to keep to anything like a straight course, but this gave him no worry. He had the day before him and there was no hurry.

He had gone perhaps three quarters of a mile when he was brought up short by a long drawn out howl, seemingly not very far away.

The howl was answered almost immediately from the side of the other mountain and, for a moment, he wondered if he would not be wise to turn back.

But even as the thought passed through his mind a third howl broke the stillness and this one was surely behind him.

Whether there were more than three of the wolves he was unable to tell, but that they were coming nearer there was no doubt. Soon, peering through an opening in the trees, he caught sight of a skulking gray shape just as it raised its head and sent its mournful howl through the forest. But that howl was its last for, before it was finished, he had raised his rifle and sent a bullet crashing through its head. The wolf dropped in its tracks, gave a convulsive kick or two and was still.

"One less anyhow," Bob muttered as he ran forward to where the wolf was stretched.

About ten yards from where he was standing was a large tree with low branches and, as another howl rang out not hundred yards away, he ran toward it resolved to make a stand there knowing that wolves could not climb a tree and that, if worst came to worst, he could find temporary safety at least in its branches.

By this time he knew that there were more than three of the beasts and, by the sounds he judged that there must be nearly a dozen. Soon he caught sight of another gray form and, quickly raising his rifle, fired his second shot. The wolf fell but, almost before he was stretched on the snow, from all sides, gray shapes sprang upon him and in an incredibly short time the dead wolf was torn in pieces and devoured. A moment later and the first one killed was discovered and had shared a like fate. And still the ravenous beasts were not satisfied and in less than ten minutes from the time he had fired the second shot the pack was gathered in a semi-circle about twenty-five feet away, snapping and snarling and gradually closing in. He had not fired again hoping that they would be satisfied with the feast already provided and go away. But their appetite seemed only to be whetted and he fired again.

"Here's where little Bobby seeks safer quarters while they're busy," he muttered as he swung himself up onto the lowest branch of the tree. "I imagine Jack and Lucky'll hear the rumpus and come to my rescue," he thought. "Anyhow I'm safe enough and can pick them off at my leisure, if they choose to stay around."

The third wolf was quickly dispatched and the pack, about fifteen in number were soon gathered beneath the tree voicing their disappointment in mournful howls. Taking careful aim at the largest beast he pulled the trigger but, to his surprise, only a slight click resulted. Thinking there might be a defective cartridge in the rifle he pulled back the ejector. But to his dismay it stuck when half way back.

"Now I am in a fix," he said half aloud. "Mighty funny the thing had to stick at just this time especially when it's never done it before."

All this time he had been working feverishly in an effort to remove the cartridge, but he soon found that, without the aid of a screwdriver, it could not be done.

Then the thought that he had his automatic came to him and he took new heart. But his joy was short lived for the revolver was gone. He couldn't understand it, he told himself over and over again. He distinctly remembered shoving it into place in his belt just before starting. Then he remembered that, a short time before he heard the first wolf, he had tripped and fallen headlong.

"It must have dropped out when I fell," he told himself. "Wouldn't I have been in a nice fix if there had been no trees anywhere around?" And he shuddered as he looked down at the hungry beasts only a few feet beneath him.

He knew that he was safe so far as the wolves were concerned, but the intense cold was beginning to work through his clothing. Hustling along on snow-shoes at forty below zero was one thing, but roosting up in the branches of a tree at the same temperature was quite another, he told himself. He wondered why Jack and Lucky had not put in an appearance and then, for the first time he noticed that a strong wind was blowing and that it was coming from the direction of the camp.

"Perhaps that wind's so strong that they haven't heard the wolves or the shots," he thought.

It seemed that his last thought must be correct for a full hour passed and there was no sign of his friends. He knew it would be of no use to shout for if they had not heard the wolves and his shots it was dead certain that they would not hear him. If they had heard anything to give them the idea that he might be in trouble they would have had no trouble in following his tracks as they were the only ones visible. Hence, he reasoned, they had heard nothing. He did not know whether it was growing colder or not, but he was quite sure that he was, and, having a firm seat in a crotch, he spent much of the time beating his body with his arms in an effort to keep out as much of the cold as possible.

The wolves showed no signs of giving up. To be sure they were no longer leaping and howling, but had assumed an attitude of what he called watchful waiting. It was, he knew, only a question of being able to stand the cold long enough. Jack and Lucky would be after him when he did not return soon after they would expect him.

Another hour passed and he began, for the first time, to be really frightened. For a long time he had been shaking with the cold, but now he did not feel nearly so cold and a peculiar drowsiness was stealing over him, an almost overwhelming desire to sleep. He knew what that meant and, with all the force of his will, he fought against it. For awhile he kept changing his position, but now he feared to move for fear he would fall. So he wedged himself in a crotch between the trunk and a large limb in such a way that in case he lost consciousness his body would be held.

"God grant that they may come in time," was his last conscious thought and then he drifted off into nothingness.

CHAPTER IX.

THE RESCUE.

"And it came from up that way." Jack indicated the direction which Bob had taken.

Throwing some wood on the fire so that it would last until they should return they quickly tied on their snow-shoes and, taking their rifles, were off at the fastest pace they could muster.

They had gone but a short distance when Jack's quick eye caught sight of something lying nearly concealed in the snow. Stooping he picked up Bob's automatic.

"Sure he did, but I don't see how he could have lost this gun. But it won't do any good to stand here talking about it."

They had heard the mournful howl of the wolves several times since they started, and Jack grew more and more alarmed as they advanced and he could see that the Indian was not entirely easy in his mind although he was doing his best to conceal it.

"We ver' near where wolf be," Lucky declared as a long drawn out howl came from only a short distance ahead.

They hurried along for a few minutes and then Lucky, who was a few feet ahead of Jack, suddenly stopped and raised his rifle. Instantly a shot rang through the woods followed by a loud yelp of pain. Jack hurried to his side and from there could see the pack as they gathered about the foot of the tree. But at that moment they were engaged in a mad fight to see which should get the choicer portions of their fallen comrade.

"Let heem have eet," Lucky shouted, and Jack began pumping lead into the pack as rapidly as he could work the ejector.

Wild yelps of pain mingled with the fierce growls of combat filled the air. Then, just as Jack had emptied the magazine of his rifle, one of the wolves saw them and with a sharp bark of anger left the pack and sprang toward them. Jack saw that the wolf would be upon them before he could get his rifle loaded and cast a quick glance at the Indian. But he too had exhausted his magazine and was hurriedly loading. The wolf was now only a few feet away and behind him were several others and he knew there was not an instant to lose. Dropping his gun he snatched his automatic from his belt and, just as the leading animal was about to take the final spring, he fired. The huge wolf fell dead at his feet a bullet in his brain, but another was upon them almost instantly. Jack fired again, but this time he must have missed for the wolf did not stop and before he could fire again he was upon him. As they came to the ground Jack succeeded in getting a firm hold on the long hair at the beast's neck and, pushing with all his strength, he was able to keep the huge jaws away from his throat. Over and over they rolled in the snow, but almost at once the boy heard the crack of Lucky's rifle and knew that the Indian had loaded and was firing again.

After what seemed a long time and just when it seemed that he could not hold those terrible jaws away another instant he heard a muffled shot close at hand and instantly he felt a convulsive shudder pass through the wolfs body and the head fell forward in his grasp. Flinging it from him he sprang to his feet.

Jack quickly glanced toward the tree, but only the still forms lying on the snow met his gaze.

"Bob must be up that tree," he said as he looked about for his automatic which had fallen from his hand when the wolf hit him. He located it almost at once and, shoving it into his belt, he picked up his rifle and started for the Indian who was already nearly to the tree.

But there was no answer and his heart almost stopped beating as he joined Lucky beneath the branches of the tree.

"Take my rifle and I'll have a look," Jack said as he handed over the gun and swung himself up.

"Heem no dead," he declared after he had laid his ear over his heart. "We geet heem down an' back to camp queek."

It was hard work getting the heavy body down out of the tree, but they did it quickly knowing that a moment more or less might well mean his life. The ground seem literally covered with the bodies of the wolves, but they took no heed of them as they quickly fastened on their snow-shoes and started back, the Indian carrying Bob over his shoulder. Fortunately Jack's shoes had not been damaged in the fight and he went ahead carrying their rifles. Not once did the Indian stop and he refused to allow Jack to carry him or to help, asserting that they could make better time that way. Jack was amazed at the Indian's strength and the speed which he was able to maintain with such a heavy load.

Arrived back the Indian laid the still form on a blanket over the bed of boughs and started rubbing his limbs while Jack hurried to get out their medicine case. For fully fifteen minutes they worked before the first sign of returning life rewarded them. Over and over Jack moaned that he was dead, but the Indian insisted that it was not so and they kept on. Then Jack noticed a slight twitching of one eyelid and fell to work with renewed hope.

A low moan followed Jack's words and Bob opened his eyes. A faint smile played about his mouth, but he was too weak to speak.

They continued to work on him for some time and as the color returned to his face Jack thanked God over and over again for His great goodness.

Jack did as ordered and had the great satisfaction of seeing the color come slowly back.

"Them be heap sore for 'while, but them geet well," Lucky declared after a few minutes.

By this time Bob was able to whisper a few words, but the Indian cautioned him to save his strength and soon he fell into a deep sleep.

They took turns watching by his side through the long hours of the night fearful lest the dreaded fever develop. But Bob slept nearly all the time, waking only to ask for water. Once Jack was sure that he had a temperature and awakened the Indian. But he thought not and a little later slight drops of moisture on his forehead proved that he was right.

Morning came at last and with it the glad news from Lucky that the danger was passed and that Bob would be all right.

Bob was very weak, too weak in fact to talk much and the Indian insisted that he keep perfectly quiet. With the light came the first flakes of snow presaging the coming of the storm which the Indian had been expecting.

He took one of the axes and went off into the woods to return a few minutes later dragging a number of long poles which he had trimmed clear of branches. With these and a lot of spruce boughs he quickly fashioned a rude, but strong tepee large enough to accommodate the three of them.

"You think it's going to be a bad storm?" Jack asked after they had placed Bob inside.

In less than an hour if was evident that they were in for another blizzard and they spent the greater part of the day getting in a large supply of firewood. Fortunately they found a number of dead trees only a short distance off and by dark Lucky was certain that they had enough to last for at least three days. Bob had slept most of the time and seemed stronger every time he awoke. About four o'clock he awoke and wanted to know if it wasn't most time to eat. He ate all the Indian would let him and then declared that he was strong enough to tell them of his adventure.

"I know I was going to sleep, simply couldn't help it, and I was almost equally sure that I wouldn't wake up in this world," he told them when he had finished.

"We didn't stop to count them," Jack laughed. "But we must have shot all of a dozen. What do you think, Lucky?"

"None of that stuff now," Bob said quickly. "I'd have been all right if I hadn't been clumsy enough to lose my gun and that wasn't your fault."

All that night and all the following day it snowed and blew. How the wind did blow outside, but beneath the overhang of the cliff where they had pitched the tepee it was comparatively still and thanks to the thick circle of trees, only a small amount of snow found its way to them. At one side, but beneath the overhang, Lucky had constructed a rough shelter for the dogs and they were, as Jack had said, "well stabled."

Long before both Jack and Bob had made warm friends with the members of the team and although it would be extremely dangerous for a stranger to touch any of them, they found they could do anything with them. In fact, as Lucky declared, "Them dog adopt you white boys ver' queek."

It had been the Indian's intention to start out on a reconnoitering expedition himself the morning following Bob's adventure, but so fierce was the storm that he knew it would be folly to attempt it. Bob passed a good night and in the morning insisted that he was all right and wanted to get up, but Lucky would not hear of it.

"All right, you're the doctor," Bob laughed good naturedly, but he chafed at the restraint.

It was still snowing hard when they went to bed that night, but Lucky declared that the wind was working around into the west and that it would clear before morning. And he was right for the morning dawned clear and cold.

"Forty below," Jack announced as he looked at the thermometer which he had placed on the other side of the tepee.

"That's kind of chilly around the edges," Bob laughed as he pulled on his moccasins.

He had insisted on getting up and Lucky, after a show of reluctance, had given in.

"How much snow has fallen?" Jack asked the Indian who just then entered the tepee.

"Heap lot. Eet drift ver' much, but must be four feet on level. Breakfast heem ready."

They left in about a half hour just as the sun was casting its first rays into the defile. They found the traveling extremely hard as the snow was light and their snow-shoes sank several inches at every step. But they took it easy, Lucky in the lead, for he was afraid, that, in spite of Bob's declaration, the boy had not as yet fully recovered his strength. It took them the better part of an hour to reach the scene of Bob's adventure and he was unable to prevent a shudder as he caught sight of the tree in the branches of which he had so nearly perished. The bodies of the wolves were, of course, buried deep beneath the snow and there was nothing except remembrance to recall the terrible experience.

"No can say. Eet may be mile mebby two, mebby three. Fellers up here no sure of distance."

"In which respect they haven't a thing on a lot people back home," Jack laughed. "Remember that farmer, Bob, up near Jackman, who told us it was only a little over a mile to town when it was exactly four and a half?"

After a short rest they started off again, Bob taking the lead with strict orders from Lucky to go slow and not get tired. Not a breath of wind stirred the branches of the trees and not a sound save the crunch of their snow-shoes on the dry snow. All nature seemed at rest and, although the sun was low in the sky, its rays had raised the temperature noticeably since they left the camp.

"My, but it's getting real hot," Jack laughed as he took off his cap and went through the motions of fanning himself. "I don't believe it's much more than thirty below."

They had stopped again for a breathing spell and Bob, in spite of his efforts to conceal it, was breathing heavily.

But another long mile lay before them before they came to the end of their search. Bob was again in the lead and he suddenly stopped and held up one hand as a signal for the others to come to a halt.

Without waiting for them to object the Indian started off and was almost at once lost to sight amid the thick trees.

"If there was no smoke it looks as though there was no one there, I should say."

In another moment they were through the fringe of trees and in plain sight of the little cabin which stood beneath the branches of one of the largest spruces they had ever seen. Lucky was standing a few feet from the door and they could see that the snow was banked nearly half way to its top.

"It's going to be some job to get that door open without a shovel," Jack declared.

There were but two windows, one on each side, and they consisted of a single pane of glass about fourteen inches square.

"Going to be a pretty tight squeeze even if we can get it open," Bob said as they halted after making a circuit of the cabin.

"But I reckon we can make it," Jack declared as he stepped close to the window and began to examine it. "It's nailed fast," he announced a moment later.

"Which we haven't, but there's a pile of wood out back. You wait a minute till I see what I can find."

He was back shortly with two sticks of wood one about a foot long and an inch or more thick while the other was nearly four feet long and about three times as thick.

"Here we are," he said as he handed the small piece to Jack. "Now, you hold that against one corner and I'll see what I can do."

Jack did as directed and Bob began to hammer the end of the stick with his club, gently at first and then harder as the frame showed no sign of yielding.

"Guess they must have used spikes," he said as he paused to examine the frame after he had struck thirty or more blows.

"Not a bad idea," Bob agreed. "Come on, Jack, perhaps that one isn't nailed so hard."

"I'm going to get in there if I have to break the glass," Jack declared as he followed the others around to the other side.

"She's giving a bit," Jack shouted after Bob had been hammering away for about five minutes.

"That's enough. I think I can push it out the rest of the way," Jack told them after a few more blows had made a large crack between the window frame and the sill.

Jack pushed with all his strength and finally had the satisfaction of forcing the window completely out.

"Don't see anything to be afraid of," he announced a moment later. "So here goes."

Jack and Lucky had little difficulty in getting in, but Bob was thicker and with him it was indeed a tight squeeze and they had to help him. But finally they were all in and ready to inspect the cabin.

To be sure the small windows admitted but little light, but they were able to see well enough after the first few minutes. The cabin consisted of but a single room and was meagerly furnished. An old rusty cook stove in the center, a rough table and three old straight backed chairs together with a couple of rude bunks filled with spruce boughs about completed the inventory, with the exception of a rough closet at one end which contained a few pots and pans and a few cracked dishes and three or four knives, forks and spoons. The floor was of dirt.

"Gee, it doesn't look as though anyone had lived here for a good while," Jack said after they had made the complete circuit of the big room.

All this time the Indian had been moving about examining each object with the utmost minuteness in an effort, he explained a few minutes later, to get a clue as to what manner of men had last occupied the cabin and how long ago they had been there. But he was forced to acknowledge that it was too much for him and that he was beat.

Bob was at the other end of the room from the others as he spoke and they hastened to where he was closely examining one of the logs which was about on a level with his shoulders.

"They could, of course, but don't forget that they could also stand for a good many other names as well. It doesn't look to me as though those letters were cut there very recently. What do you say, Lucky?"

The Indian looked at the letters for a long time before he made any reply, but he finally turned to Jack and said:

"Heap hard tell, but Injun tink them not ver' old, mebby three, mebby four week."

"Well, I think it's a pretty safe bet that he's been here anyhow," Bob declared.

"But we knew that before," Jack said. "Or at least we have that man's word for it."

"It kind of looks to me as though we're at the end of our rope so to speak," Jack declared.

"Eet not bon—what you call heem—situation," the Indian began after a moment of deep thought. "We no can track heem in fresh snow, Lightnin' heem bon tracker, but no bon here."

"And mebby they won't," Jack added. "But I guess that's as good a plan as any. What do you say, Bob?"

"I reckon it is. To try to follow them under the circumstances would be mere guess work unless we can find some clue on the outside."

"That's a mighty good idea. I never thought of that," Jack said. "Let's get at it."

"Better wait till 'nother day," Lucky advised. "Eet geet dark time we geet back now an' we got nothin' eat."

So, after a little discussion it was decided that they would go back to the camp and come again early in the morning and hunt all day if necessary for a clue.

CHAPTER X.

THE ESKIMO.

The sun was not yet up although it was after ten o'clock and they were once more standing in front of the cabin. The night before they had seriously considered the plan of moving all their stuff into the cabin and making it their headquarters, but Lucky had not been in favor of it, pointing out that they would have to build a fire in the stove and that the smoke would betray their presence in case the man should return. So the final vote had been against it.

It was Bob who made the above statement and both Jack and the Indian readily agreed with him.

"Which way do you think they most likely went?" Jack asked looking first at Bob and then at Lucky.

"North, I should say," Bob replied and Lucky nodded agreement. "You see, if they had gone south we would probably have run into them or at least heard from them from someone who did," he explained.

Both the boys, having spent a good part of their lives in the great woods of Northern Maine, were very expert in reading the signs of the forest and, as Jack had more than once declared, the Indian forgot more about such things every night than they ever knew. But in spite of all this several hours of hard searching told them next to nothing. To be sure they found plenty of signs which told them that someone had been there not many weeks previous but, as Jack put it, there were altogether too many of them, for they found them not only to the north, but on all other sides as well, and there was absolutely nothing to indicate the direction they had taken when they quit the cabin for the last time.

"Looks like a case of heads you win and tails I lose," Jack said a bit discouragingly as they finally stopped to swallow the lunch they had brought with them.

"Well, if we stay here we're not likely to find them and if we don't we're not."

"Oh. Well, your comparison is very poor. In fact it is not applicable to the case in hand at all."

They were only a short distance from the cabin and it was but a moment's work to gather up the remains of their lunch and slip around to the other side of it.

It was but a few moments before they heard a loud voice calling on a team of dogs to stop and Lucky whispered:

They at once stepped out from behind the cabin, the Indian in the lead, and saw that he had been right in his estimate of the nationality of the stranger. He was a short fat man completely swathed in furs and was accompanied by a team of four dogs with an nearly empty sled. He was busily engaged in examining their tracks and they were within a few feet of him before he was aware of their presence.

It was a grunt, but whether meant to be pleasant or hostile the boys were unable to tell.

The Indian repeated the question this time in French, but he again shook his head at the same time saying something in a language entirely new to the boys. But Lucky understood him for he immediately answered in the same language, and, for several minutes they carried on a spirited conversation helped along by many eloquent gestures on the part of the stranger.

"Heem say heem live three hundred mile nor' of here," Lucky told them when the man stopped for a moment.

"Heem say oui," Lucky announced as soon as he had given the invitation and received his answer.

They arrived back at camp just as it was getting dark and Lucky directed the stranger to make himself at home. The Eskimo took in the location of the camp at a glance and then drove his dogs to a thicket a few yards away where he quickly located them for the night.

"He seems to be a sort of a grouch," Jack declared a little later as he noted how the stranger persisted in keeping much to himself.

But his shyness vanished quickly as soon as supper was ready and he ate with great relish the food which Lucky heaped on his plate.

When it came time to turn in, Lucky, at Bob's suggestion, offered the Eskimo a place in the tepee, but he declined on the ground that it would be too warm.

At Bob's suggestion the Indian had questioned the man further regarding the two men they were hunting, but it seemed that he knew no more than he had told them at first. He had seen them as he came by, but had stopped only to pass the time of day.

Shortly after six o'clock the following morning, Bob awoke with a strange sense of impending disaster. Had he heard someone prowling about in the night or had he only dreamed if? Careful not to disturb the others, who were still sleeping, he wiggled out of his bag and crept noiselessly outside. For a moment he stood gazing into the North where streamer after streamer sent an almost dazzling light far up into the heavens.

"I never saw such a display of the Northern Lights," he murmured as he gazed at the scene at most spellbound.

The fire was burning low only a few embers showing a dim light, but it was not dark and he could see plainly for some distance. There was no sign of their guest and he concluded that he must have slept over near his dogs. Moving quietly he made his way toward the thicket stopping every few feet to listen. He did not want the man to suspect that he was spying on him, but some inner sense told him that all was not well. And a moment later his suspicions were strengthened when he found that both man and team were gone.

"It's strange," he thought as he looked at the place where they had huddled together.

Then he turned and ran quickly over behind the tepee where their stores were packed on the sled. And now his suspicions were confirmed. He had heard someone prowling behind the tepee during the night and he was disgusted with himself that he had not awakened sufficiently to make an investigation. Their stores had been rifled and, it seemed to him, the greater part of them were gone.

There was no answer and he yelled again this time louder, and was rewarded by a "huh" from Jack.

"Where's the fire?" Jack asked sleepily a moment later as he poked his head out of the tepee.

"Well, why make such a fuss over a little thing like that?" Jack was out of the tepee with the Indian close behind him.

"But we've got to have those things back. He's taken nearly everything we had," Bob declared after he had investigated a moment.

"You'll take the dogs?" Bob asked without arguing the point for he knew Lucky was right. They were no match for him when it came to speed.

"Oui. Tak' dog, bring back stuff." The Indian was already hurrying toward the dog shed and in less than five minutes he was ready to start.

"And I hope it will be soon," Bob said turning to Jack. "I'll be mighty uneasy until he returns."

"Same here. There was something about that guy that I didn't like a little bit. He had a bad eye."

"Well, I hope Lucky gets him and gets the stuff back. It'll be very inconvenient for us to say the least if he doesn't."

"He'll do it if anyone could, and I don't imagine it will take him very long to catch up with him as our dogs are well rested and his must be tired."

"That's hard to say. And, by the way, it's kind of strange that none of us heard him."

"You did? Well, why in the name of common sense, didn't you stop him or do something?" Jack demanded.

"Well, you see, I didn't get awake enough to really know that I had heard anything. I remember wondering if I had really heard it or had just dreamed it. It's too bad, of course, but there's no use crying over spilled milk."

"Don't think I was blaming you, old man," Jack hastened to assure him. "It wasn't your fault. But I'm hungry. Let's get something to eat if he's left us anything at all."

Jack had the fire going in good shape by the time Bob was back with a can of condensed milk and a small package.

"This is all he left us in the eating line. I don't know how he came to overlook these."

"If he was in need of food and had taken a little I wouldn't have blamed him so much, but to strip us clean up here in this wilderness—well, it's little short of murder."

"You said it. Believe me I would like to be with Lucky when he gets him. I'm afraid he won't do the case justice."

The flapjacks proved pretty dry eating without coffee to wash them down, but they managed to make out with melted snow.

"Let's go hunting," Bob suggested. "We ought to be able to get a deer; goodness knows we've seen plenty of tracks and we need the food."

"Goodness knows that too," Jack laughed as he crept into the tepee for the rifles and snow-shoes.

They struck out toward the north and had not been gone more than a quarter of an hour when they came upon the tracks of a deer. It was yet dark and not for another two hours would the sun show itself, but the moon, which was nearly full, gave sufficient light to see for a long distance.

"They look pretty fresh," Bob announced after he had carefully examined the tracks.

The tracks crossed their trail at right angles and led up the side of the mountain to their right. At this point, however, the assent was not steep and, although they plunged at once into thick woods, they found the going easier than they had expected.

"Yes, we ought to catch up with him before long unless the tracks are older than I think."

They had been climbing for the better part of an hour when the tracks turned and lead parallel with the side of the mountain. At first they welcomed the change in direction, thinking that it would be easier but, before they had gone a hundred yards farther, they found themselves on a part of the mountain where it was much steeper and, owing to the slant, it was extremely difficult to keep their balance. But they went on as rapidly as possible, now and then falling headlong in the snow as a shoe slipped and threw them off their balance. But they each time picked themselves up with a laugh and hurried on confident that they must soon sight their quarry.

"It's beautiful," Jack declared as he watched the edge of the sun, looking like a huge ball of fire, creeping over the top of the opposite mountain. "But there's something even more beautiful just at present," he whispered a moment later as he clutched Bob's arm and pointed to a spot about a hundred feet in front.

There, on a slight rise in the ground, stood a magnificent buck facing them. The animal stood up to its knees in the snow and did not seem at all afraid.

"It's a shame to shoot him," Jack replied. "But we've got to have the meat so let's get it over with."

Raising their rifles they took careful aim and both fired at the same time. The deer fell in its tracks and never moved.

Both boys knew how to dress a deer as they had many times hunted in the Maine woods and, in the course of an hour, they had selected the choicest pieces and hung the rest well up in the branches of a tree where it would be out of the reach of the wolves.

"So far so good," Jack said as they were fixing the meat so that they could fasten it to their backs. "Now if we get back all right and find that Lucky has returned without stuff—"

"Hold on there," Bob interrupted. "Don't tempt providence too far with your ifs."

"Well, there's nothing like being optimistic as I've heard you say many a time."

When they were ready to start each boy had nearly fifty pounds of meat strapped to his back and the load made traveling doubly hard as they soon found. But their success had made them again light hearted and they did not mind the hard work.

"I reckon Lucky'll be some surprised when he sees us come in with all this meat," Jack said when they were about half way back to where the trail had turned.

It was about one o'clock when they reached the place where the trail had turned and both agreed that they had better take a rest before starting down the mountain.

"I don't know how you feel about it, but I'm all in," Jack panted as he unslung his pack.

They rested for a half hour and then started off again Jack taking the lead. They had taken but a few steps when Bob spoke to him and in turning his head to reply Jack carelessly tripped himself and pitched headlong into the snow. It was by no means the first time it had happened and Bob broke into a roar of laughter. But the mirth died on his lips as he heard Jack utter a loud groan.

"Maybe it's not so bad as you think," Bob encouraged as he put his hands beneath his shoulders and helped him to get to his feet.

Bob unfastened the thongs which held the foot to the snow-shoe and carefully unlaced the moccasin.

By the time he had drawn off the heavy sock the ankle had swollen somewhat and, as carefully as possible, he examined it. First aid to the injured had been taught them at the military college and both boys knew not a little about such injuries.

"I'm pretty sure it's not broken, but it looks like a pretty bad sprain and that's almost as bad," he announced as he started to draw on the sock.

Seeing that his brother was determined Jack made no further objection and, as soon as Bob had cached the two packs of meat in the branches of a nearby tree, he set about getting ready for the start.

It was hard work getting the injured boy onto his back without hurting him, but finally it was accomplished and, as Jack declared, without hurting a bit.

Even he had not fully realized how hard it would be. The extra weight caused his snow-shoes to sink much deeper in the snow and going down hill made each shoe push itself forward into the snow thus rendering it very difficult to lift it up for the next step. But he knew that it had to be done. With the temperature nearly thirty degrees below zero and getting lower all the time as he thought, he knew it would be death to leave him for any length of time.

"Jack, heem heap heavy, as Lucky would say," he panted as he carefully lowered him to the trunk of a fallen tree.

"Not a bit of it and that's three bits in two sentences. I didn't say I could carry you all the way in one jump."

He made the foot of the mountain in the next spell but was obliged to rest again before going farther.

Bob was resolved to make camp without stopping again, knowing that the sooner he got Jack where he could treat the injured ankle with hot water the better it would be. So he took as short a rest as he dared and, despite Jack's protests, he was soon on the go again. As he had said it was easier now, but it seemed as though every muscle in his body was at the breaking point when finally he carefully lowered him onto the boughs in the tepee.

"Now I'll get a fire going and heat some water as soon as I can," he assured him. "Is it hurting much?"

"I'll bet it is just the same," Bob muttered under his breath as he hurried out of the tepee.

He had a fire going in a few minutes, but it took considerable time before the water was boiling hot.

"Now then," he said cheerfully as he re-entered the tepee with a kettle of the steaming water.

"It seemed a long time to me. I thought the water would never come to a boil," Bob told him as he began to unlace the moccasin. "Yell if I hurt you."

When he had removed the sock he found that the ankle had swelled to an alarming extent and he could not repress a sigh.

Wringing out a towel in the water he bound it as tightly as Jack could stand about the ankle.

For an hour he continued the treatment changing the towel as soon as it became cool and putting on a hot one and, at the end of that time, had the great satisfaction of knowing that the swelling had subsided considerably.

"There, I reckon we'll have to let nature take its course," he said as he finished.

"Great Scott, I haven't given him a thought since we got back. Let's see, it's just one o'clock and I hardly expect him before dark. Now, I'll get us a bite of flapjacks and then I must go back and bring in that meat."

"Maybe, but a venison steak will go pretty good for supper tonight, don't you think?"

"Tired your grandmother. I'll be back almost before you know I'm gone. It isn't far."

By a quarter of two they had eaten of the scanty fare and Bob was ready to start.

"I'll leave your rifle right here by your side," he said. "Now don't you move that foot while I'm gone and I'll be back just as soon as I can make it."

CHAPTER XI.

LUCKY BRINGS BACK THE "BACON."

Although Bob had tried hard to conceal his fears he had been much worried since Lucky had left them. To be sure he had unbounded confidence in the Indian, but he also realized that he was not infallible and he had little doubt regarding the character of the Eskimo who had stolen their food. Any man who would do a thing of that sort would not be likely to hesitate at even murder were his safety threatened. Should anything happen to prevent his return they would be in a pretty desperate situation especially now that Jack was helpless.

These thoughts filled his mind as he started off, but he whistled a merry tune until he knew he was out of hearing.

He found the packs of meat as he had left them and decided to leave one where it was as he was, in spite of his assurance in Jack's presence, pretty tired and fifty pounds was about all he cared to lug back under the circumstances.

Although it was not yet three o'clock when he stumbled into camp, tired through and through, darkness had fallen. He had started whistling as soon as he knew that he was in hearing distance and Jack's voice, as he shouted a welcome, assured him that all was well so far as he was concerned.

"Lucky's not back yet," he said as he swung the pack to the ground and entered the tepee.

"Oh, well, he's likely to come any minute now," he said trying to speak cheerfully. "How's the foot?"

There was still a good bed of coals and in a very few minutes Bob had a huge steak sizzling in the frying pan.

"Thank goodness he didn't take both bags of salt," he said to himself as he found a small sack of the precious material which the thief had overlooked. "Now, if he'd only left us a few spuds it wouldn't be so bad, but perhaps Lucky'll be back with them by the time the steak's ready."

But he was not and they had to eat it straight, as Jack put it. However hunger is an excellent sauce and the thick juicy steak, cooked to a turn, went down with no urging.

"Best thing I ever tasted," Jack declared after he had eaten all he could manage.

Although Jack objected strenuously Bob insisted on giving the ankle another hot water treatment and it was close to six o'clock when he had finished, and the Indian had not returned.

"I hardly think so. You see, there's no telling how far he had to chase him and you know Lucky."

During the past half hour Bob had been conscious that the wind was rising steadily and the fact caused him no little uneasiness. If they should have another blizzard before the Indian returned it would make their lot doubly hard. As he went outside to replenish the fire he cast an anxious eye upward and his fears were increased when he was unable to see any stars.

"I believe it's going to snow again," he muttered as he threw a big log on the fire.

As he again looked up a flake of snow struck his face and he turned back and entered the tepee with a sinking heart.

"Bad, but not desperate. We've got food enough, thanks to that buck, to last a good while so we won't starve and, thank goodness, we had sense enough to keep our ammunition in the tepee so he didn't get away with that. I don't see that we're in any great danger."

"Well, you'd better put that light out. All the oil we have left is in those two lanterns."

Bob blew out the light and for a long time they sat in the darkness and talked. The temperature had risen during the past few hours and the heat reflected from the fire, which Bob kept going, made it very comfortable in the snug tepee. Each did his best to appear cheerful but each knew that the other was far more anxious that he let on. While they knew that they were in no great danger the thought that their friend might be lying dead or wounded somewhere out in the storm made the situation almost unbearable. Several times Bob had been out to replenish the fire and each time he reported that it was snowing. To be sure the storm had not as yet reached the height of a blizzard, but each time he went out he realized that the wind was stronger and the snow was coming down faster.

Bob lit the lantern and helped Jack get into his sleeping bag. Then he went out and fixed the fire so that it would last for several hours.

"It's going to be a blizzard all right," he muttered as he crept back into the tepee and into his sleeping bag.

He blew out the light and for several moments there was silence and each boy knew that the other was in communication with Him who is conscious of the sparrow's fall.

Although very tired it was long before Bob slept. Over and over again he asked himself what could have happened to Lucky, and as often came the thought that it must have been something very serious or he would have returned. He could tell by the sound of Jack's breathing that he was asleep and he was glad. That the storm was increasing in violence he knew and the knowledge that it might last for days added to his worry. Finally he was almost off when the faint, but unmistakable howl of a wolf, far off on the mountain side, brought him wide awake.

But second thought convinced him that they really had little to fear from wolves. The fire would keep them away and even though they should brave that they had their guns and plenty of ammunition. So he put that thought from his mind and soon was asleep. How long he slept he did not know, but it must have been several hours for he could not see the reflection from the fire as he reached out and pulled aside a branch from one of the thick boughs. The wind was howling with almost demoniacal fury and, as he listened a moment, above the noise of the storm came the dismal howl of a wolf and he knew that the animal must be near.

"Five o'clock," Bob told him after a glance at the luminous dial of his wrist watch.

But Bob was already out of his bag and creeping from the tepee and what Jack said was lost in the fury of the storm. As soon as he was on his feet he saw that only a small bed of coals remained of the fire.

"And the snow would have put them out if it wasn't for the protection of that cliff," he thought as he hurried to where they had piled the supply of wood. "I'll have to get in some more wood tomorrow whatever happens," he muttered as he noted the small amount left.

The fire was so low that it took him some little time to get it to blazing again, but he finally accomplished it with the aid of some light stuff and had turned to get more when an angry snarl caused him to glance over the fire. There, about thirty feet from where he stood, but plainly visible in the light of the fire, was the largest wolf he had ever seen. It was evident that the great beast feared the blaze and dared not approach nearer, but it was also clear that it was loath to retreat. So it stood there baring its cruel fangs and uttering snarl after snarl.

Bob had stood his rifle against a tree only three or four feet from where he was and in another instant it was in his hand and he was pressing the trigger. Had it been daylight it would have been an easy shot but the flickering fire must have disturbed his aim for the wolf, with an angry snarl, either of rage or pain, he was not sure which, turned and bounded off into the forest.

But it was some time before he had the fire going to his satisfaction and he would not leave it before. He could hear, now and then, the snarl or howl of the beasts and knew that there must be quite a number of them around but, although he kept close watch, he saw no more and, finally, he crept back into the tepee.

"No, you need it and I don't. You've been doing all the work and may have to do it all for a day or two longer if this bum ankle of mine gets to cutting up."

"I would if I could, but the sleep's all knocked out of me and I couldn't go to sleep if my life depended on it."

When Bob's watch told him it was seven o'clock he declared that he was going to get breakfast wolves or no wolves.

"I haven't heard them for the last half hour and they've probably gone," he told Jack.

The wind was still blowing a gale and the snow was driving with unbated fury outside, but within the fringe of trees it was not so bad and, after he had replenished the fire with almost the last of the wood, he got the meat from where he had hung it in a tree and cut off two thick steaks. Then he melted some snow and mixed up a batch of flapjacks with the water as the condensed milk was all gone.

"Venison steak and flapjacks," he announced a half hour later as he brought the food in to Jade. "What more could you want?"

"That would go good, but we'll have to make out without it this morning, I reckon."

After they had eaten, Bob made an examination of the injured ankle and was gratified to find that the swelling had nearly vanished.

"Don't you think, Bob, that you ought to go hunt for Lucky?" he asked a little later.

"Well, I've got to get some more wood in first anyhow, so we won't decide till that's done and perhaps he'll be back then."

The sun would not be up for another two hours or more, but it was not so dark that he felt obliged to wait. But once outside the fringe of trees where the full strength of the storm struck him, he doubted his ability to accomplish his purpose. But he knew that there was plenty of dead wood where they had been working before and it was only a short distance away. At every step he sank nearly to his waist and, before he had gone twenty feet, he decided he had better go back and put on his snow-shoes. Fortunately the wind was directly in his face and he knew that, although it took about all his strength to make headway against it, it would be of great help when it came to dragging the wood back.

He remembered a large spruce which had fallen a little to the right of where they had obtained the wood before and which they had not touched and he felt sure that, could he but find it, he could get enough to at least last through the day and the next night.

He located the tree without much trouble and was glad to see that the snow was not quite up to the trunk. This made it comparatively easy to chop off the thick branches and he set to work after standing his rifle, which he had not dared to leave behind, against the butt of the tree. He forced himself to work with exceeding care as he well knew the danger of a slip of the axe under the circumstances and should he cut himself they would be in a plight ten times more serious than at present. When he judged that he had cut as much as he could drag he hastened the butts of the branches together with a piece of rope and, picking up his rifle, started back. It was only a little over a hundred feet back to the fire, but he was all but winded by the time he got there with his load.

"Coming along fine," he shouted sticking his head into the tepee before starting back for a second load.

While working Bob had been trying to make up his mind what he ought to do. Lucky was undoubtedly in trouble and he felt that he ought to go to his aid in case he could find him. Then, on the other hand, was his duty to his brother. Would it be safe to leave him in his present condition? Suppose the wolves should come back while he was gone and make an attack on him. He shuddered as he thought what might result in case he was not able to keep them off. Then again, suppose something should happen to him and he be unable to get back. Jack would surely die and again a shudder ran through him. It was a situation which sorely taxed his mind, and he was unable to decide where his duty lay.

He had dragged in his third load and was back at the tree and about to start cutting again when he heard a sound which sent the blood racing through his body. At first he thought it was a wolf and then, as it came again, he knew he had been mistaken.

"That's Lightning, or I'm a Dutchman," he cried as he put his hands up to his mouth and gave a loud yell.

The yell was answered almost at once in the welcome tones of Lucky's voice and for an instant Bob raised his eyes and thanked God. Then, grabbing up his rifle, he hastened back and burst through the fringe of trees just as the dog team swept around the farther end.

"Thank God," he cried and the next minute he was hugging the Indian as though he never intended to let him go.

By this time he was inside the tepee where he received a welcome fully as warm as Bob's.

"That can wait, Jack," Bob broke in. "Can't you see he's tired and hungry?" Then, turning to the Indian, he said: "Now you lie down here in your bag and I'll see to the dogs and get you something to eat."

But the Indian would not hear to it insisting that he was all right although he acknowledged that he was pretty hungry.

"Then you see to the dogs and I'll get you something to eat. We got a buck yesterday and I reckon you can get outside a good sized steak."

Bob had the steak cooking in almost no time and Lucky declared that it was the best thing he had ever eaten. As soon as he had finished they went inside the tepee where Jack was waiting impatiently.

"Oui, Injun tell. Injun geet up with heem leetle past noon. Heem goin' ver' fast, but Injun's dog heem go faster, oui. Heem no hear me till I geet most up to heem. Then heem see an' mak' to draw gun, but Injun have gun out an' Injun tell heem hand up or heem geet keel queek.

"Injun come close an' mak' heem put stuff back on sled. Heem ver' mad' an' watch ver' close chance to geet—what you call um—drop, but heem no geet."

"When heem stuff all put on my sled Injun tell heem start off ver' queek. Tell heem no look back an heem ver' glad go heem see heem no geet drop on Injun. Injun watch heem till heem geet long ways off an' then Injun turn heem dog around an' we start back."

"Eet 'bout ein o'clock. All go bon till we geet most half way back an' then that Slack dog heem geet seek, ver' seek, an' we have stop. Injun no know what matter with dog. Heem act like heem got belly ache ver' bad. Got no medicine so have to rub heem belly ver' long time an' tink mebby heem goin' die. Injun no want dog die, dey too bon dog. So keep on rubbin' an' when eet begin geet dark dog begin geet better, but heem still some seek. So put heem on sled an' start, but een leetle while Pete dog heem geet seek and have stop rub heem long time. When heem geet better have go ver' slow an' begin snow, have go slow some more. No geet here till leetle while ago. But Injun geet here."

"I don't see why it doesn't make a continuous performance of it and be done with it. Then one would know what to expect," Jack growled.

"Don't be pessimistic," Bob advised. "Now that Lucky's back we can stand a little snow, I reckon."

It seemed good to have a variety of food once more and they made a bit of a feast of the dinner opening a number of things which they had been saving for some special occasion. In the short afternoon they cut some more wood and dragged it in and as darkness was falling the storm showed signs of breaking.

CHAPTER XII.

VISITORS.

As Lucky had predicted the storm blew itself out during the night and the stars were shining in a clear sky when they ate breakfast shortly after seven o'clock.

"Fine's a fiddle," Jack assured him and to convince him that he was telling the truth he took a few steps with only a slight limp.

"Lucky's right, old man, and you know it. As long as it hurts at all it would be foolish to think of trying to walk on snow-shoes," Bob added.

"Well, of course, I don't want to do anything like that, but I sure do hate to be wasting time here. By the time we get up there we'll probably find they've left for the North Pole."

During the day Jack growled off and on at the enforced delay although he knew that the Indian was quite right. But the ankle was improving rapidly, thanks to Bob's treatment, and he was resolved that it should not keep them from starting out the next morning.

The next morning came at last and, although the Indian shook his head and Bob advised waiting over another day, Jack insisted that the ankle would stand it and, against their better judgment, they finally gave in.

"You no keep on that ankle heem hurt," Lucky ordered as, shortly after eight o'clock, they were all ready to go. "That ankle heem no strong an' you hurt heem some more mebby you no use heem again for ver' long time."

The weather had continued warmer than was usual and the snow, which had been heavy when it fell, had settled rapidly and was so well packed in most places that the dogs sank in but a little and the sled hardly at all.

"You bet," Bob replied. Then, turning to Jack, he asked: "Does that ankle hurt any?"

"You tak' heem easy. I tink snow packed 'nough so you can ride some on sled when you geet tired," Lucky told him.

The Indian had set a slow pace, knowing that Jack would not be able to maintain a fast one for any length of time, and it was nearly ten o'clock when they reached the scene of the accident and retrieved the meat which Bob had cached there.

Lucky had estimated that they had made about twenty-five miles when they stopped for the night shortly after five o'clock. It had been dark for several hours, but not dark enough to prevent them from traveling. Jack had rode a good part of the way although he had protested strongly every time Lucky or Bob had proposed it, and his ankle was in fairly good shape although he confessed that "it didn't feel as good as new."

All day their way had led through the defile between the two ranges of mountains and, for the most part, they had been ascending although at no time had the way been at all steep. They were off to an early start the next morning resolved to make a long day of it, provided Jack's ankle permitted, and when the sun showed itself over the top of the mountain, Lucky declared they had covered not less than fifteen miles. Jack had walked nearly all the time, resorting to the sled only a couple of times and then only for short distances.

Shortly after noon they emerged from the defile and found, stretching out before them and sloping gently downward, an unbroken waste of snow reaching as far as they could see.

"Great Scott!" Bob burst out. "How are we ever going to keep a straight course across all that?"

"Mebby heem not so far heem look," Lucky told them. "Eet ver' what you call hazy. Mebby not ver' far 'cross."

His hope was realized for just as it was beginning to get dark they sighted a thick growth of trees and in another hour they were once more traveling through woods.

"But how do you know that he was telling the truth. Any man who would do what he did wouldn't hesitate to lie."

How the Indian could keep anything like a straight course through the deep forest, in which they were now traveling, and where he had never been before, was a mystery to the boys. But he never hesitated as he led the way and they knew they were making good time. It was about half past five when he finally called a halt for the night and both boys were glad to hear the order, Jack especially as his ankle, which was still far from being strong, had been giving him considerable pain during the last hour.

"We mak' eet tomorrow, mebby," Lucky told them as he set about making the dogs comfortable for the night.

The temperature had been falling ever since morning and now the mercury in their thermometer stood thirty degrees below zero and was still falling.

"It's going to be a bit cold around the edges tonight," Bob declared as he took the axe and started to hunt for firewood.

"How cold you ever know it to get up here, Lucky?" he asked a little later as they were sitting around the fire eating supper.

They reached Colville River soon after dark the following day and made camp in a thick clump of trees close to the bank.

"I 'spect um thar, but you find eet plenty hard work cut hole een ice," Lucky told him.

"Do you fellows want some fresh fish for supper enough to do the work here while I'm trying to get some?"

If he had realized what it meant to get a hole through the ice it is doubtful if Jack would have proposed fish for supper, but once started he was resolved not to give up. But it was all of an hour and a half from the time he started before he was ready to drop in his line. However he felt amply repaid when he carried six good sized salmon back to camp.

"Sure did, but I thought I'd hit the bottom of the river before I struck water," Jack told him.

The fish proved a very welcome addition to their rations and they had a good, if a rather late, supper.

Lucky and Bob had dug a hole in the snow and had covered the bottom with an extra thick layer of spruce boughs as the night bid fair to be the coldest they had yet encountered. The sleeping room, as Jack dubbed it, was long enough to permit a good sized fire to be built at one end and, as the walls were nearly five feet high, it was really cozy by the time they were ready to turn in.

"Forty-eight below," Bob announced as he glanced at the thermometer just before crawling into his bag.

Jack was a sound sleeper and seldom awoke during the night unless disturbed. But this night it seemed to him that he had hardly fallen asleep when he awoke with a sudden start. For a moment he lay wondering what had happened. He could hear Bob breathing steadily on one side of him while the Indian was snoring quietly on the other, and knew they were both sleeping. The fire had died down to a bed of coals by which he knew that he had been asleep for some hours at least. He was about to shut his eyes again, convinced that he had awakened without cause, when a low threatening growl reached his ears.

For some moments he heard no other sound and drowsiness was stealing over him when the sharp snap of a twig brought him wide awake. Reaching over he touched his brother lightly.

"I hear it now," as another twig snapped, answered by an angry snarl from one of the dogs which awoke Lucky.

"What matter with dog?" he whispered as soon as he saw that the boys were awake.

There was only a small rim of the moon showing, but the sky was filled with stars and it was not dark. In fact Bob could see for some distance through the woods as he carefully raised his eyes over the edge of the snow. At first he saw nothing to cause him any alarm, but after a moment of watching he caught sight of a shadowy form stealing from behind a large tree about thirty feet away to the security of another some ten feet nearer.

"It's a man," he whispered. "And there's another and another," he added a moment later.

"Six so far," Bob whispered, and a moment later added: "They're working around where the dogs are."

For a moment there was silence broken only by the snarls of the dogs, then, from behind a tree, only about ten feet from where he stood, stepped a man. The boys could see that it was a man of large frame standing well over six feet, but it was not light enough to guess at his nationality until he spoke.

"What you want in night here?" Lucky snapped the question in a tone they had never before heard him use.

"Your name Irish, you talk lik' breed an' say you Injun. Eet too mooch. You step out here whar I geet good look. You try funny beesness an' my man heem shoot."

For an moment Lucky hesitated as though trying to make up his mind whether or not to obey the order.

"My man heem got you on de sight," Lucky said as he took a few steps forward in the deep snow.

The other, who was on snow-shoes, advanced to meet him and in a moment they were close together. The stranger carried a rifle, but he bore it over his shoulder as though he had no idea of using it at present. On his snow-shoes he towered nearly two feet above Lucky.

"Tree, mebby four day ago," the stranger answered somewhat evasively Bob thought.

"What for you ask question so mooch?" It was plain that the man was rapidly loosening his patience of which he probably had no great store.

"You see some man yes'day?" the stranger next asked without replying to the question.

He turned and stole silently back into the forest and the boys could see others slipping from behind trees and following him.

"What do you make of it?" Bob asked as soon as the Indian was back in the "bed room."

"Well, it's after three o'clock now. I reckon we'd better keep an eye open, eh?"

But both declared they had had enough sleep and could not go to sleep again anyway, so they built up the fire and, for the next two hours the Indian entertained them with his stories of which he seemed to have an inexhaustable supply. But every few minutes one or the other would get up and take a look around, not that they thought it at all likely that they would return so soon, but they wanted to be on the safe side.

"How about eats?" Bob asked when his watch told him that it was nearly six o'clock.

"Injun scout 'round leetle 'fore we geet eats. Mebby they hide somewhere, take shot, oui."

While talking the Indian had jumped out of the hole and was fastening on his snow-shoes.

"He seems to think of everything," Jack said. "You and I would have gone right out and started breakfast and made a fine target of ourselves without giving it a thought."

A half hour passed and they were beginning to get uneasy when the Indian returned.

"Now we got be mighty careful," Lucky cautioned as they were about to start off up the river an hour later.

"Since—since—well, since I got a good look at that half-breed," Jack stammered.

They had intended to travel on the river as it was much easier than through the woods, but Lucky told them it would be safer to keep to the woods declaring that they would make altogether too good a mark out in the open.

"Injun goin' keep leetle way ahead an' white boys follow heem track. No can geet lost."

When all was ready the Indian ordered them to give him a start of five minutes and then to come on with the team. Both boys had, during the trip, taken turns at driving the dogs and, although they still lacked much of Lucky's skill, they could manage very well. The Indian took a course nearer the river than that taken by their visitors of the night so they had no trouble in following his tracks.

They had been on the way a little over an hour when, suddenly, the sound of a rifle shot broke the silence of the forest.

"If he did he'll be coming back in a minute because he'll know we won't know what to make of it."

"Well, if he doesn't show up pretty soon I'm going on. Perhaps he's in trouble."

The five minutes were just up when they caught sight of the Indian coming toward them at a rapid lope.

"Not mooch tell. Injun go 'long like when bang go gun, but no geet heet, so come back."

"Do you think he meant to hit you?" Jack asked before the Indian could reply to Bob's question.

"Then I move we go on. I don't belive they intend to kill us and anyhow they can do it about as well in one place as another up here if that's what they are after."

But as it happened it was not left for them to decide for just then another shot rang out followed by the thud of a bullet as it buried itself in the trunk of a tree over Jack's head.

In answer to the question a man, whom they all recognized as their visitor of the night before, stepped out from behind a tree about thirty feet away. Instantly Bob had him covered with his rifle.

"Well, that last one was a bit too close for comfort," Bob told him still keeping his rifle leveled.

"That's different." Bob lowered his gun as he had little doubt, but that the man was speaking the truth. "What do you want with us?" he demanded.

Instead of replying to the question the breed stepped forward after giving a shrill whistle. Then they saw that he had indeed spoken the truth for instantly, from all sides, five other men stepped from behind the trees and came toward them.

"You come wid us," the big man ordered as he motioned to his men to start north.

Jack was never one to be bossed unless the one who did it had a good right and he was mad clear through.

"Oui, me boss." It was clear that the man was pleased with the acknowledgment. "You do what me say no geet hurt. Try funny beesness an' you better not."

He ordered them to follow after his men and he brought up the rear keeping a few yards behind them.

"What do you make of it, Bob?" Jack whispered after they had gone a short distance.

They noted that they were traveling in a direction which made an angle of some forty-five degrees with the river and the way was up a gentle rise for more than an hour.

Suddenly, when they were nearly to the top of the hill, a large but low log cabin loomed up ahead.

The five men, all breeds, were standing about the door, as they came up, as if awaiting further orders from their leader. He spoke some words to them, in a French dialect, which the boys, although they were fairly conversant with the language, failed to understand, but it was evidently an order for one of them to show the Indian where he was to stable the dogs. The man motioned for Lucky to follow him around back of the cabin and, without a word, he drove the team after him. The leader pushed open the door and, after slipping off his snow-shoes, told the boys to enter.

The cabin was roughly but almost luxuriantly furnished and consisted of at least two rooms. The front room, in which they found themselves, contained a large massive table in the center and a half dozen roughly built, but comfortable easy chairs, four of them being rockers. A huge fireplace occupied nearly the whole of one end while the side away from the door was lined with bunks. Several bear and deer skins were on the floor and above the fireplace an enormous moose head was fastened to the logs, the antlers touching the top of the room. Many skins of different animals adorned the walls. Altogether it was a most homelike appearing room and, for a moment, the boys gazed about spellbound.

Evidently the man did not intend to enlighten them as to the means by which he had secured possession of the cabin and Bob quickly decided that it would not be wise to press the matter. Instead he asked:

For a moment the man did not answer then, then with a slight shrug of his massive shoulders, he said:

Before Bob could speak again the door opened and Lucky, followed by the five breeds, entered the room. The Indian seemed as much astonished as had the boys at the room, but they could see that he was trying not to make any show of his astonishment.

"Deese boy no promise not to geet away," the leader said turning to Lucky. "You mak' 'em promise, oui?"

Lucky shrugged his shoulders as much as to say that the incident was closed so far as he was concerned, and the leader turned to one of the men and gave an order.

"You mak' home," he said not unpleasantly turning again to Lucky and the boys who were standing close together. "Dinner be ready een jest leetle while."

Evidently the big living-room served also for the dining-room for the cover, a huge bear skin was removed by one of the breeds and dishes substituted.

"Reckon they don't intend to starve us," Jack whispered a little later as one of the breeds brought in a huge roast of venison and placed it on the table.

But in this he was mistaken for, after the table had been loaded with food of many varieties, they were invited to sit up and eat.

"They've got a good chef that's sure," Jack whispered soon after they started eating.

Great as was the quantity of food provided it disappeared rapidly before the attack of the half-breeds who ate voraciously and with little regard for table etiquette. There was no conversation except a whispered word now and then between the two boys who sat side by side. The Indian, whether by accident or design they could not tell, had been placed on the other side of the table. Two large logs were blazing in the fireplace and, as Bob looked about the room, he was reminded of the many tales he had read of the old Norsemen and their crude, but rugged civilization. It seemed that history had been turned back a thousand years.

As soon as all had finished eating two of the men began to clear the table while the others, with the exception of the leader, began a game of cards at a smaller table in one of the corners near the fire.

The leader shot the question at them so suddenly that both boys gave a sudden start. Bob cast a questioning glance at Lucky and tried to read in his face whether or not he ought to divulge the object of their trip. But the Indian's face gave no sign and, after a moment's hesitation, he decided that it could do no harm to tell him.

"It will probably seem strange to you, but the fact is we have never seen him," Bob replied and went on to tell how it had all come about.

"Dat bon story," the man said when he had finished. "You say dat man's name what come wid heem ees Long, eh?"

A little later he joined the others at cards and the three friends were left alone at the farther side of the room where they could converse in low tones without danger of being overheard.

"It's a queer thing that they haven't taken our revolvers away from us," Bob declared.

"I was just thinking that same thing," Jack added. "What's the matter with holding them up right now?"

But the Indian shook his head as he whispered. "Eet no go. Dey watch us all the tam. You reach for gun an' they geet you first."

"He's right, Jack," Bob agreed. "I have an idea they wouldn't object to an excuse for shooting us. We'd better sit tight for the present and play it safe."

"But I'll bet my last year's straw hat that that guy was lying when he said he hadn't seen Uncle or Long. Didn't you notice how he hesitated when you asked him?"

About an hour later the other two men came in from the back room and joined in the game which lasted until nearly six o'clock. Then another two set about getting supper while the others continued to play. Not a word had been said to the three prisoners during the afternoon after their first conversation with the leader and, to a casual observer, it would have appeared that they were taking no notice of them. But they knew that not a single motion escaped observation and they were very careful to make no move which could possibly be interpreted as hostile.

The supper, although not as elaborate as the dinner, was a good one and, although they had eaten a big dinner, they did it full justice. The meal over the game of cards was resumed and again the three were left to their own resources.

"My, but this is getting monotonous," Jack declared when a clock on the mantle over the fireplace struck nine. "If we only had something to read it wouldn't be so bad."

But there was neither paper nor book anywhere in the room so far as they could see. But soon after the game broke up and it was evident that bed time had arrived.

"You geeve promise we no tie you up," the leader said, crossing the room to their side.

It was an order they had been expecting and, knowing it would be useless to refuse, they complied, after which the man searched each one carefully. Then he spoke a few words to one of his men who at once left the room returning a few minutes later with some pieces of rope about the size of clothesline.

"You geet een deese bunk," the man ordered pointing at the end of the room away from the fireplace.

With no protest they complied and the man proceeded to tie their hands behind their backs and their feet together. Then he covered them each with a heavy blanket and said:

In another five minutes the lights had been extinguished and only a feeble flicker from the dying fire illuminated the room. Bob had chosen the lowest of the three bunks and he knew that Jack was in the one next above while the Indian occupied the top one. He had expected they would be tied during the night, but was not sure whether or not a watch would be kept on them. He had, for several years together with Jack, practiced the art of freeing himself from bonds and both boys were about as expert at the trick as the Great Houdini himself. During the evening he had cautioned Jack to be on the watch for the move so, while the man was tying their wrists together both boys were straining every muscle in order to get as much slack as possible when they relaxed. But Bob had sensed during the tying that the man was no weakling at the job and he was not at all sure that he could free his hands when the time came.

For an hour he made no effort to get his hands free and he had cautioned Jack to wait until he should give him the signal. When the clock struck eleven he gave a slight cough which a moment later was answered from the bunk above and he knew that Jack understood. He was certain that they had stationed no watch, relying on the security of the ropes, and he was also quite sure that they were all asleep and he knew that, as a rule, these breeds were sound sleepers.

From the feel of the rope about his wrists he knew he was in for a long job even if he succeeded. Although he had done his best there was mighty little slack so tightly had the man tied the rope. He hoped that Jack had been able to secure more, but did not dare whisper to find out. The half hour struck and he was still striving and about ready to give up the task as impossible when he felt rather than heard Jack slip from his bunk.

With Jack's assistance his hands were soon free and he quickly released his feet.

But, although the Indian had made no movement he was wide awake and, as soon as Bob had freed his hands and feet, he slipped to the floor beside them. The room was in darkness as the fire had gone out all but a few live coals which gave no light.

He knew that their rifles had been stood in a corner to the right of the fire and he stepped across the room in that direction his moccasins making not the slightest sound. In a moment he was back with the guns and they lost no time in opening the door and stepping outside.

"It would be a big item in our favor if we could take all their rifles and revolvers away from them," Jack suggested as they moved away from the door.

"You may be right but it seems to me that it would be worth the risk for we'd then have them at our mercy."

"But they'll sleep till six o'clock and that'll give us about six hours' start."

"And he's up here somewhere and something tells me that that man Long has some kind of a connection with this gang." Jack declared as they reached the rear of the cabin.

That they were in a predicament was evident to all. To be sure they had made good their escape for the time being, but they well knew that, as things stood then, their recapture was only a matter of a few hours and their captors would undoubtedly see to it that they did not make their escape a second time. If only their mission was completed and they could leave at once, the chances were greatly in favor of a complete get away, but, come what might, all three were agreed that such action was out of the question. While the men had, in a way, treated them kindly they knew that they were men who would hesitate at nothing to accomplish their purpose whatever that might be.

"Well, we've got to do some tall thinking and do it quick," Bob declared. "What's your opinion, Lucky?"

"That's easy to say," Jack said. "But how are we going to help it? We can't move a foot in this snow without leaving tracks and they're six to our three and in a rough and tumble we wouldn't be in it for a minute."

"Then what can we do? It seems to me that my plan of getting all their weapons is the only thing left for us."

"Their rifles are hanging on the walls and I reckon we could get them easy enough," Bob said thoughtfully, "but when it comes to their six guns it's a cat of another color. They've got them in their belts and it would take a miracle to get them all without waking any of them. If it was only one or even two it might be done, but six—it's practically impossible."

"My idea is for all of us to go in and for one of us to frisk them while the others stand guard with the rifles ready. If one of them wakes up we could simply tell them that the first one to move out of his bunk would get a hunk of lead in his skin."

"But it's dark in there and we couldn't see them and they could shoot from their bunks," Bob objected.

"Let's see," Bob mused aloud. "They've probably all got at least one gun and with our three it makes nine and even then we couldn't be sure we had them all. What do you say, Lucky?"

"No use to argue on that line, old man. Either we all go in as Jack proposed, or we try some other plan."

"If it was only light enough in there so that we could keep them covered—" Bob began.

"But it isn't, so there's no use wishing it was," Jack interrupted. "I tell you it's our only chance."

"I grant you that but I still stick to it that it's the thing to do. The way I look at it is this, if one of them wakes up and starts shooting the chances are that he wouldn't hit us and, if it got too hot, we could bolt the door and once outside we'd be no worse off than we're going to be when they catch us in the morning as they're going to do if we don't get those guns."

CHAPTER XIII.

LUCKY ACQUIRES AN ARSENAL.

Bob was far from convinced that the move, proposed by Jack, was a wise one but, for the life of him, he was unable to suggest anything else and, after a few more objections, he gave in.

"All right then. We'll stand guard and, mind now both of you, if they start any shooting make for the door as quickly as possible."

It was a desperate chance they were taking and Bob's heart beat rapidly as they retraced their steps and once more stood before the door.

"It's up to you, Lucky," he whispered as the Indian reached out his hand to push the door open.

Another instant and they once more stood in the room. They could hear the heavy breathing of the men and one of them was snoring loudly enough, Jack afterward declared, to wake the dead. The two boys at once took their position by the big table and the Indian approached the nearest of the bunks. It was so dark that they were unable to see a hand before their eyes, a fact that Bob was undecided whether to regard as an advantage or otherwise. Plenty of light would undoubtedly be to their advantage should any of the men awake for it would enable them to keep them quiet in their bunks, but a little light, perhaps, would throw the advantage to the other side. Maybe, on the whole, it was just as well that it was dark. Not a sound save the breathing of the men and the stentorion tones of the snorer broke the silence. Lucky was doing his work with absolute silence and, as minute after minute passed, Bob began to breath more easily. Perhaps they would succeed after all.

It seemed to him that a long time had passed when he felt a touch on his arm and he knew that Lucky was thrusting revolvers into the pockets of his coat. He longed to ask him if he was through, but did not dare and then he knew he was not for he did not give the signal to leave. Carefully feeling with his hands he counted six revolvers and wondered if he had put any in Jack's pockets. Then, suddenly, his heart skipped a beat as he heard a movement in the direction of the bunks.

He reached out a hand and touched Jack's arm as a caution for him to keep silent.

"Shut up you feller," came in louder tones which Bob recognized as the leader's.

The minutes passed and he wondered if the Indian was again at his work. He knew he would wait some time to permit them to get to sleep again. Then, suddenly, he was conscious of a new sound which seemed to come from the room at the rear. It was so slight a sound that he strained his ears uncertain whether or not he had really heard anything. It sounded like a very feeble groan and was repeated several times so that finally he was convinced that it was no trick of imagination.

Would Lucky never finish? It seemed to the anxious boy that hours had passed since they had re-entered the room when he at last felt a tug at his sleeve and knew that the Indian was telling him that it was over.

"Thank God," he breathed as he reached out his hand and caught hold of Jack's arm.

"Did you get them all?" Bob whispered as soon as they were well away from the door.

"That's one apiece and one over," Jack said. "Now what do you think of my plan?"

"I'll say they did and I was just on the point of ordering hands up when you touched me."

"Now you speak of it seems as though I did. Yes, I remember wondering what it could be."

"Well, I'm convinced that there's someone there and I think we ought to investigate," Bob declared.

"You can't be, so what's the use of wishing? Let's go out back and see if there's a rear door."

"You didn't get hold of a flashlight did you, Lucky?" Bob asked as they started around back.

"Oui, I geet one," and the Indian pulled it from his pocket and handed it to Bob.

They found a door at the rear as they had expected and, as they reached it, Bob said:

"No need of more than one going in. You two stay here and I'll see what there is there."

The door was not locked and yielded readily to his touch and he quickly stepped inside leaving it wide open as the Indian had ordered. It was pitch dark inside and, for an instant, he listened. Soon he was conscious of heavy breathing and, pressing the spring of the flashlight, he threw its beams about the room. As he had expected it was the kitchen and in one corner, near the stove, lay the body of a man. As Bob bent over the form he perceived that it was a man slightly past middle age. He bent over and touched the man lightly on the shoulder.

Bob knelt on the floor and in a moment had untied the piece of rope with which the man's hands were tied behind his back. Then he released his feet which were also tightly bound together.

He turned off the light and thrust it into his pocket and then, putting his hands beneath the man's shoulders he helped him to his feet.

"Not that bad," Bob assured him. "You see we've got all their guns, that is, we think we have and—" Then he stopped short. "Well of all the dumb—"

While talking they had been walking toward the shed which stood about forty feet to one side of the cabin, Bob and Jack supporting their uncle one on each side.

"We'd better start now as soon as we can, eh Lucky?" Bob asked as they stopped in front of the shed.

The Indian had gone ahead to make sure that the dogs made no noise and assured them that he would have the team hitched in "a leetle minute."

Among their stores were several bottles of malted milk and Bob quickly rummaged in the pack and found one which he emptied into a dipper and brought to his uncle.

"I reckon this is the best we can do just now," he told him, "and I'm not sure, but that it's about the best thing you could have if you haven't eaten for five days."

Mr. Lakewood drank the milk eagerly and declared that nothing could have been better suited to his needs. He had hardly finished when Lucky announced that the team was ready to start. Their snow-shoes were quickly secured, having been stuck in the snow by the door of the cabin and, as soon as they had arranged a place on the sled for their uncle and had wrapped him in heavy blankets, they were ready for the start.

"Where did you put their rifles?" Bob asked the Indian as the latter picked up his long whip.

But at that instant, just as Lucky was about to give the word to the dogs, Jack grabbed Bob by the arm and whispered:

At the same time he pointed toward the cabin and Bob's heart skipped a beat as he saw that there was a light in the big room.

"But it isn't burnt, not yet," Jack told him. "If Lucky got all their guns they can't do much."

"What'll we do?" Jack asked turning to the Indian who stood staring at the cabin, his hands on the handles of the sled.

"We go," he said stoically. "Mush," he gave the order in a voice little above a whisper, but the dogs heard it and bounded forward in the traces.

In order to keep in the trail they were obliged to pass within a few feet of the front door of the cabin and, as the two boys, who were walking ahead of the sled, came opposite it, it flew open and the big leader of the gang rushed out. But he was not off the step before both Bob and Jack had him covered.

The order evidently was no new one to the man for he obeyed without an instant's hesitation.

"You—you—" he started, then stopped as though at a loss for words as he caught sight of the sled and the man seated on it as it passed them.

"That's telling. Hands up there," he ordered sharply as another of the breeds appeared in the doorway.

Instead of obeying the man dodged back into the room and Bob's heart almost stopped. What if the fellow had a gun? He could easily shoot them both from a window.

He was beginning to take courage again for no shot had come from the room and he now was almost convinced that Lucky had indeed secured them all. Already the sled was some distance down the trail, and, turning to Jack, he said:

"Let's go." Then, turning back to the man who still stood "reaching for the stars," he remarked:

"Yes, we've got your guns and I'd advise you not to follow us for, believe me, we shall be on the watch and, after seeing how you have treated that man you had in the back room, we'll not have the slightest scruples against protecting ourselves."

Seeing that his appeal was having no effect the man changed his attitude and became threatening.

"I have no doubt but that you will if you can, but let me tell you once for all that if you follow us we'll shoot the first man we see and don't you forget it. Come on, Jack."

Jack started off down the trail and Bob followed, keeping his head turned and his gun trained on the man until they were some hundred feet away. Then he quickened his pace and quickly caught up with Jack who was some distance ahead.

"Talk about your minutes of suspense," he said. "When that guy dodged back I expected to feel that sting of a bullet any second."

"So did I, but I reckon Lucky must have made a clean sweep of them," Jack declared.

"There's no telling. I reckon they're a bit of a coward when the cards are stacked against them."

"Unless they find a gun which he overlooked I don't see, but we're safe enough. All we've got to do is to be on our guard every minute of the time."

While talking they had been hurrying along as rapidly as possible and in a few minutes they had caught up with Lucky.

"I hardly think so," Bob told him. "I tried to make in plain to him that it would be dangerous to do so."

"They'll follow us." Mr. Lakewood made the last statement in a tone that left no doubt as to his feelings in the matter.

"Then that's why you didn't meet him. You see there's another trail back from the river and, as it's a bit shorter, he probably took it."

"It'll probably be four at the least, as he'll stay in town for a day to rest the dogs and to fill up on booze."

They had not stopped while talking, but had kept on at a slow pace but now Lucky snapped his long lash and the dogs sprang forward at a smart trot.

While there was no moon the sky was studded thickly with stars and, in the north great streamers of light flashed from horizon to zenith giving them plenty of light to travel by. Hour followed hour and the boys were beginning to wonder if Lucky was never going to stop for a rest and for breakfast when he finally ordered the dogs to halt in the middle of a large open space the first they had encountered for some time.

"Have go some ways geet wood but no dare stop whar woods thick. Bad mans may be follow."

"We'll get the wood all right," Bob said as he and Jack started for the edge of the clearing after Lucky had pulled an axe from the pack and handed it to them.

They were fortunate in finding a dead tree almost at once and inside of half an hour from the time they had reached the place a fire was sending its dancing flames into the darkness. They still had left three of the fish Jack had caught and soon they were sizzling in the frying pan while beside it a pot of potatoes was boiling.

"Is this breakfast? It's dark so much of the time up here that it's hard to tell which is which."

Lucky, as soon as he had fed the dogs, had found another bottle of malted milk and their uncle sat by the fire, slowly sipping the beverage.

"I suppose you are wondering how I came to be in that fix," Mr. Lakewood said as, a little later, they started to eat.

"We sure are," Bob assured him. "But you'd better wait till you get a bit of your strength back before you tell us about it."

"This food is putting strength into me at the rate of a mile a minute," he laughed, "and I'm plenty strong enough to talk. Besides I'll cut it short."

"Well, you probably know all about why I started up this way so I won't go into that. Oh yes, I was warned as to what kind of a man Long is, but somehow I was drawn to him and didn't believe half that was said against him. But now I know it was all true and more. He's a rascal if ever there was one. Everything went all right for several weeks except that we didn't find any gold. That didn't worry me particularly as I came up here more from a love of adventure than for the sake of the gold. You see, I've got more money now than I know how to spend, not that I mean to brag about it, you understand, but I've always loved to hunt for gold and other things. But our failure to find any gold seemed to be gradually changing Long's nature. He became morose and actually abusive at times.

"I stood it for some time and then one day told him what I thought of his actions and that, unless he cut it out, we'd part company. Well, he seemed to go almost crazy and, to make a long story short, he finally blamed me for bringing him up here and swore that I must sign over to him my interest in a very valuable gold mine in Colorado. Of course I refused and he knocked me down with his fist when my back was turned. I struck my back somehow in falling and have been nearly helpless ever since although it's been getting better all the time and is nearly well now."

"But what's his connection with those breeds?" Bob asked as he paused. "I suppose they're trappers."

"Yes, they're trappers and mighty good ones, judging from the stack of pelts they've taken so far this year. But, as to Long's connection with them, I only know that he has some sort of hold on them and that, strange as it may seem, they're scared to death of him. We stayed in that cabin you probably saw about half way between here and Arctic City for several weeks and then he brought me up here. I don't know why. We had been there about two weeks and the breeds were kind enough to me when he wasn't around, but he tried in every way he could to force me to sign that paper. Why he even beat me with a whip. Finally he declared that I'd not get another mouthful of food till I signed it. That was five days ago."

"You mean brute. The breeds are really not so bad. Two or three of them are what you'd call good fellows and I know they wanted to help me but they didn't dare."

"Not even after he'd gone. I suspect that they thought he might cut short his trip or get back sooner than they expected and catch them if they did for me what he'd ordered them not to do. Oh, he owns them body and soul all right but, as I said before, I don't know how or why."

"It saved my life for I'd have died before I'd have given in to him. Oh, I know that sounds foolish and I reckon it is, but I'm made that way and can't help it."

By this time they had finished eating and Lucky declared that they had better be on their way. The Indian had not said a word while Mr. Lakewood had been telling his story, but the boys knew that he had not missed a sentence and that he was deeply impressed. Mr. Lakewood asked if they had an extra pair of snow-shoes, declaring that he was strong enough to walk, but neither the boys nor Lucky would listen to it and he finally consented to ride a little longer.

CHAPTER XIV.

HOMEWARD BOUND.

It was about an hour later when, as they were passing through a particularly thick bit of woods, Lucky spoke softly to Bob, who was striding close by his side.

Jack was walking some distance ahead of the team and it was a half hour later when he glanced back and missed the Indian.

Bob told him where the Indian had gone and for what purpose and Jack agreed that it was a wise move but added:

"He can if anyone can," Jack agreed. "But you've got to remember that, if they're all following us it's six to one."

"I'm not, only we don't want to take too much for granted, not this trip we don't."

Since the Indian had turned back Bob had permitted the dogs to gradually lessen their pace as he did not wish to get too far ahead and, for the past few minutes they had been moving at a slow walk.

"I would," Jack replied. "You see, if he doesn't show up soon we'll have to go back and see what's happened to him and the farther we go on the farther we'll have to go back," he explained.

Bob at once ordered the dogs to halt and the willingness with which they obeyed the word showed that they were far from rested. There was probably no stronger team in the state, but they had a heavy load and for several hours Lucky had urged them on at a rapid pace so it was not surprising that they were tired.

Another half hour passed and they were on the point of turning back when, without warning, the Indian stood before them.

They traveled at a slow pace until noon when they stopped to cook dinner and to give the dogs a couple of hours rest, and at four o'clock Lucky announced that they would make camp for the night.

Seven o'clock found them ready to turn in with the exception of Bob who was to stand the first watch. They had decided to divide the night into three watches of four hours each and Bob was to take the first. Mr. Lakewood had insisted on taking his turn but the others had ruled him down, declaring that he needed the sleep and rest and finally he had reluctantly given in.

"But beginning tomorrow I want it distinctly understood that I'm going to do my share of the work," he told them.

At eleven o'clock Bob called the Indian, who was to take the second watch and reported that nothing had happened. His watch also passed without incident as did Jack's and seven o'clock found them once more on the trail all, including the dogs, well rested and in high spirits.

If was about two o'clock when Jack, who was some distance ahead and out of sight of the others because of a clump of bushes, suddenly appeared running back.

"Must be nearly a mile. There's a big open space just ahead and he's about half way cross it."

"Oui, that bon plan. You geet on sled an' cover all up an' heem no see you till we geet ready," Lucky agreed.

Mr. Lakewood had refused to ride except at short intervals where the going had been exceptionally good, but now he quickly took off the extra pair of snow-shoes and got on the sled, and the Indian covered him up with a blanket so that one would never have suspected that the sled bore human freight.

As they swept out into the open space they saw the other team coming at a rapid pace and not more than a quarter of a mile away.

"Hello, Lucky, what you doing up here?" Long sang out as soon as he was in easy speaking distance.

"Where you been?" was the next question, and it was plain that he was much disturbed in his mind at meeting them.

"But he started back for Nome more'n six weeks ago. You knew he came with me, didn't you?"

"We came on a prospecting trip, but we didn't find a thing and he got cold feet. I wanted him to keep on with me up to my trapping camp, but he wouldn't do it and so I had to let him go. He ought to have got back to Nome long before you left."

The words came in a loud tone from the sled as Mr. Lakewood threw the blanket off and got to his feet.

"Never mind how," Mr. Lakewood interrupted. "I'm here and do you know what I'm going to do to you?"

"No, but seeing it's four to one, I suppose you'll take me back and file a complaint against me."

"And that's where you're wrong. Bob," he said turning to the boy, "cover him with your gun. Now, Jack, you frisk him," he ordered as soon as Bob had obeyed. "Now you can put up your gun," he added after Jack had taken two revolvers from the man's belt. "Long, you struck me once when I wasn't looking and in falling I hurt my back, a fact which put me in your power for a long time. But the back's well now and I'm going to give you the sweetest licking you ever had in your life. Then you can go your way and I'll go mine and the score will be settled."

"No, it's no use. I never had much use for the law when it came to a thing of this sort and this is a pleasure I've been promising myself for a long time."

As he spoke he had removed his heavy coat and now he ordered Long to do the same.

"I give you my word of honor," he told him, "that this fight will be between you and me alone and if you get the best of me you can go on your way and I'll never take any action against you for what you've done to me." Then, turning to Lucky and the boys, he ordered: "Don't one of you interfere whatever happens."

Long was several inches taller than his opponent and the boys knew that his height would give him a big advantage especially in the deep snow. But they were soon to learn that their fears were entirely without foundation. The lanky trapper undoubtedly would have been able to give a good account of himself pitted against almost any one, but he was no match for Silas Lakewood. Although nearing his fiftieth year he had always kept himself in the prime of condition and, as Jack after told Bob, what he did not know about boxing simply did not exist Three minutes after the contest started Long knew he was licked, but he had grit enough not to beg for mercy and he got none.

As Mr. Lakewood had promised the licking was thorough and most beautifully administered, as Jack put it, and when it was over one of Long's eyes was closed completely and his face was battered almost to a pulp, but he was not seriously injured.

"I didn't want to hurt him so that he couldn't travel," Mr. Lakewood explained as he drew on his coat.

As for Long, he stood by his sled slowly wiping the blood from his face. "I hope you're satisfied," he grunted.

"I reckon I've taken action enough," he smiled. "No, I'll never bother you if you keep away from me."

"No. And we're going to see if you have a rifle and if you have we're going to take that too."

"No buts about it. I don't trust you not for a minute and we're not going to take any chances. You may as well know that we have all the guns of your friends which probably explains why they are not following us. And for that matter they may be and we figure that should you meet up with them and had a gun you'd be too dangerous. No, we'll leave the guns at Pete's store when we get back and you can get them any time."

Long made no further remonstrance and they searched his sled finding a rifle which they added to the others beneath their pack.

"Gee, but you did it easy," Jack declared as he looked at his uncle with admiration in his eyes.

"When we get back you'll have to teach me some of those blows," Bob said. "I thought I knew something about boxing, but after seeing you the conceit is all knocked out of me."

"I'll teach you all I know gladly," his uncle promised and added: "and when I get time I'll tell you how I just missed being a prize fighter."

It was shortly after dark one afternoon about ten days later that Lucky halted his team in front of Pete Slinger's store in Nome. They had made the return trip without noteworthy event. Long's gang of breeds as well as the man himself, evidently having decided to let well enough alone.

As they entered the store, Pete came from the office to meet them but, as he was at the same time, reading a book he did not see who it was until he was close to them.

"Well, begorra, an' it's yerselves, so it is an' ut sure is a sight fer sore eyes ter see yer. An' yer found yer uncle, eh?" he added as he caught sight of Mr. Lakewood who entered the store last.

"We sure did," Bob laughed as he grasped the man's hand. "You know him don't you?"

"But where can I leave these things?" Mr. Lakewood asked as he dumped an armful of rifles and revolvers on the counter.

"Fer the luv of Mike, whar did yer pick up the arsenal?" Pete gasped as he shook hands with Mr. Lakewood.

"That's a part uv the story," Mr. Lakewood smiled. "When you get time we'll be glad to tell you all about it."

"Whin I git time, eh. Sure an' it's meself as would like ter ask why I haven't got time right now," and, striding to the door, he turned the key in the lock and led the way back to the office saying: "This store is closed fer business till I get that story."

The story was soon told and when Bob, who, at Mr. Lakewood's request, had acted as story teller for the party, had finished, Pete burst but with:

"Sure an' it's meself as knew thot man Long was a bad one but I niver thot as how he was thot bad. I told yer not ter go up thar wid him yer remember."

"Cap'n Dick got in two days ago an' I reckon he'll be goin' out aboot day after ter-morrow an' it's barely possible he'll let yer go along," Pete grinned.

They found Captain Blake on board his ship an hour later and the reunion between the friends was warm indeed. The captain confirmed Pete's statement that he would sail the next day but one and assured them that he would be most happy to have them as passengers.

"Sure you will if we have a fair trip down the coast," the captain assured them. "But have you wired your father?"

"What do you know about that?" Bob asked. "Never thought of it, but I'll go right up town and attend to it."

Two days later, after an affectionate parting with Lucky, who, in spite of his protests was obliged to accept a handsome present in addition to his wages, from Mr. Lakewood and the boys, they sailed out of the harbor just as the sun was peeping over the edge of the ocean.

"We'll have to come up here again sometime," Jack declared as he stood leaning on the rail for a last hand wave to Pete Slinger who was waving them good bye from the wharf.

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