Pursued by Unknown Enemies
For the better part of an hour Hank led his two comrades across the
snow-clad side of the hill, guiding them between the trees of the patch
of forest land which they had now entered, and keeping always to the
west. Then, without show of hesitation, he plunged into a wide-open
strip across which could be traced, even at a distance, the tracks left
by the two moose they had so recently accosted. Nor did he slacken his
pace till a second belt of forest land appeared, and the trio had once
more dived into cover.
"You kin sit down and rest awhile and get yer breath," he said shortly.
"Me and Beaver Jack'll watch to see what's happenin' to them varmint.
Gee! I'd give a pile of dollars to know who they are and for why
they've taken it into their ugly heads to follow and attack us. You
ain't got no notion, Jack?"
The Indian, who had already thrown himself down beneath an evergreen
with his face turned in the direction in which they had been coming,
merely grunted. It seemed almost as if he considered an answer
superfluous. Then, as Hank repeated his question somewhat
peremptorily, the Redskin swung over on to his right side and looked
back at the hunter.
"Not sure," he said. "Bad men, anyway; half-breeds, p'raps. But want
to kill us; maybe they think there is money."
"Then they're jest makin' an almighty error," grinned Hank, who seemed
to be amused at the idea, and who, in any case, desperate though the
position might be, seemed in no way put out or bereft of his usual
cheeriness and assurance. "They're jest making a tarnation error ef
money's what they're after, for Joe and I ain't got much more than the
price of a tin of 'bacca between us. We've sunk it in land, Jack, land
as thieves like them can't grab. But half-breeds they are, I'd guess;
though why they should follow us beats me hollow. P'raps they're
discharged servants of the Hudson Bay Company, and, happenin' to fall
across our tracks, thought to knock us over the heads and clear all
that we've got. There's two sides to that sort of business. I ain't
never allowed people to give me knocks without rousin' trouble, and
guess them 'ere varmint is in fer a little now. Joe, ha' you got any
sort o' notion who they could be?"
Was it likely that our hero could have even an idea? After all, his
experience of Canada was decidedly limited. It is true that the months
he had spent with Peter Strike had taught him a great deal, while his
stay in the lumber camp, and the unending yarns of the men when
gathered of an evening round the fire, had furnished him with many a
little incident telling of the life of the settlers and also of old
colonists. Indeed, there were men there who had passed to the north as
far as Hudson Bay, and who, when pressed, had spoken of the long, dark
winters, of the sparse population, of the half-breeds to be found at
and about the forts erected by the all-dominating Hudson Bay Company.
But search his memory as he might, there was nothing in those yarns to
give him an inkling as to who these marauders could be; in fact, he had
gathered that life was peculiarly secure even in the out-of-the-way
parts of the Dominion. Why, therefore, should he and his two comrades
have been so suddenly and unexpectedly attacked?
"Beats me, Hank," he exclaimed, shaking his head. "I got wondering
once whether it could be Hurley, who somehow got to learn that you and
I were off for a prospecting tour. But is it likely?"
The little hunter stuffed the bowl of his thin pipe with one firm
finger tip, while he stared away across the open along the tracks which
he and his comrades had made. It was clear that his eyes were hardly
observing his surroundings. He was thinking deeply, and his coon-skin
cap, though it was pulled low down on to his forehead, failed to hide
the deep wrinkles which had suddenly appeared, and which even ran down
over his brows to the corners of the eyes. He struck a match--for that
was one of the luxuries of civilization which he clung to in the
backwoods, though Beaver Jack was above such trivial help--and slowly
lit the weed.
"I never thought o' that," he said at last; "but it ain't likely.
You've got to bear in mind that Hurley ha got a rope round his neck
every day of the week and every hour of his life. He aer likely to be
informed against every time he sets his ugly nose near the settlements;
and sense you may say as he's always in danger of being taken, it
stands to reason that he ain't going to risk his neck jest for the sake
of gettin' quits with two of the chaps who helped to chase him. No, it
ain't reasonable. Seems to me as it aer likely that what Beaver Jack
says aer right. Them 'ere skunks is half-breeds out ter rob. They've
perhaps been huntin'. P'raps they belong to some station north of
this, and has been sent along to get stores or to take a message,
though as a general rule there ain't much of that sorter work done in
the winter. Anyways, they dropped on our trace and, seein' as there
was three of us, made up their minds to wipe us out. But ef they ain't
mighty careful they'll come up agin bad trouble afore they're much
older."
That was the utmost that one could say of this mystery. After all,
what difference did it make who these strangers might be? It could not
help Joe and his friends to be sure of their names, not in the
slightest. But still Joe puzzled. Could it be Hurley?
"Nonsense!" he told himself. "Hank must be right. The man would never
risk his neck just on the offchance of killing a couple of the men who
helped to arrest him. All the same, I wish he'd never escaped, and in
any case, I am awfully sorry about that envelope he took from me. I've
bothered about it a whole heap; for though I feel sure that the
contents were of no actual monetary value, yet there was some message
of great importance which Father wished me to have once I had made some
sort of a place in the world. What could it have been?"
What, indeed? Of what use to worry, seeing that Hurley had relieved
our hero of the missive, and then, when that rascal had been captured,
though his dollar bills were forthcoming, there was no trace of the
letter? It was gone. Perhaps even Hurley was already captured, while
the men following at that moment, and still out of sight, had
undoubtedly no connection with the outlaw who had so nearly ended Joe's
attempts at settling in this vast dominion.
"Guess they've been bothered by the trees, and has had to climb out of
the sledges and walk quiet," chuckled Hank, when a quarter of an hour
had passed without a sight of the enemy. "Now see here, mates, our
game aer as clear as daylight. With this here snow all around we can't
hope to smother our tracks and get clear off. Ef it war springtime, or
summer, a babe could do it. There's fifty ways more or less. We could
climb a tree, sneak along from branch to branch in a wood same as this
and then drop into a river, takin' care to land somewhere whar there
was rock. In course, ef it snowed jest now that'd help us. But then
it ain't goin' to snow. There's nary a cloud in the sky, so it simply
comes to holding them off as long as we're able, and this here aer jest
the spot to work it. Guess me and Joe'll have a bite while Jack
watches. When we've done, he can have a turn."
It was an excellent proposal on the hunter's part, and Joe seized upon
the opportunity, for the brisk air and the excitement of the day had
given him a keen appetite, and our hero had become somewhat notorious
for that since he came to this glorious country. He and Hank sat down,
therefore, and, pulling some of their ready-cooked food from their pack
bags, made a hearty meal. Then Beaver Jack was relieved, while Joe
took his place.
"Jest keep yer eyes skinned, and follow every inch of the line of the
wood 'way across the open," said Hank. "I'm goin' to take a look round
on either hand and in front. It wouldn't do to sit tight here waitin'
and waitin', and have them skunks round us up and come along towards us
from the opposite direction. You kin never say what sort o' tricks a
half-breed will be up to, so jest look lively."
He went off through the trees for all the world as if he were a ghost,
his snowshoes making not so much as a sound. Joe lay flat on his face
in the snow, taking the same position that Beaver Jack had selected.
Placing his rifle a little to one side and somewhat in front, he stared
steadily across the open, watching the edge of the wood from which they
had themselves lately emerged, and then gazing to right and to left.
But not yet could he detect the presence of the enemy, and since they
were not there, he fell again to wondering who they were, from whence
they had come, and for what purpose they had attacked a party of
hunters who could by no possibility have done them harm, and who, in
any case, could not be the possessors of great wealth. As to his own
feelings on the question of personal danger, he had not so much as a
qualm. Perhaps, if he had been warned that an attack was to be made,
he would have been thrown into that curious condition which is neither
caused by fear nor by anxiety, but merely by that natural agitation of
spirit which comes to the average man when danger threatens. But here
Joe had been, as it were, suddenly pitchforked into the midst of
turmoil. At one moment he had been facing a charging moose, a
situation requiring nerve, and the next he had found himself the object
of bullets sent by an enemy from behind. Ah, there they were! The
irregular line of the forest was of a sudden broken; Joe had been
gazing in that direction but a second earlier and had seen nothing.
Now, when his eyes swung once more to that quarter, two sleighs stood
out prominently, their dog teams sprawling out ahead of them. The dark
figures of five men moved about the sleighs, and it was clear from
their movements that they had been marching through the forest, and
were now about to mount their vehicles again.
"Slipping off their snowshoes and getting ready for a burst of speed
across the open," said Joe to himself. "That'll be the time to read
'em a lesson, and seems to me they deserve one."
He turned his head for a moment and beckoned to Beaver Jack; then,
picking up his rifle, he laid the sights on one of the sledges and
waited for a forward move on the part of the enemy. Nor could it be
said that our hero had the smallest doubt as to what his action should
be, or the slightest compunction at the thought of firing on these
strangers.
"It's they or us," he told himself, "and they have a bigger party. Ah!
what's that? More of them!"
No wonder he gave vent to a cry of amazement, for a hurried inspection
of the party aboard the pursuing sleighs had given him the impression
at the beginning of this strange encounter that there were only four or
more in the party. Now he knew that the sleighs bore five. But just
as that number had embarked, he was thunderstruck to see four more dark
figures issue from the irregular line of the forest and move out on to
the open snow. At the same instant there was a slight noise beside
him, so, turning his head, he found Hank had returned and had taken up
a position. He lay full length, his rifle to his hand, his eyes glued
on the enemy.
"The tarnation skunks!" Joe heard him growl. "I ain't surprised to see
more of 'em. That jest explains why they've been so slow in following.
The sleigh party went ahead, hoping to drive right up to us and finish
the business. T'others followed afoot, and when the fust lot was
disappointed, why, they halted for a while so as they could all come
along together. This aer mighty awkward. Yer see, ef they breaks up
into several lots, we can't hope to keep 'em back. There's enough
hollows and trees out there in the open to give 'em shelter, and in
course of time they're bound to close in on us. This aer a tarnation
fix."
There was little doubt, in fact, that Joe and his comrades were face to
face with a dangerous dilemma. For, as Hank was not slow to point out,
if merely the two sleigh parties attempted a dash across the open, he
and Joe and Jack might very well hope to pick some of the enemy off,
and even to force them to retreat; but with four others added, and they
on snowshoes, it would be next door to impossible to hold them at a
distance.
"It aer come to a council," said Hank, scratching his head. "To me it
seems likely enough that them cusses aboard the sleighs'll try a dash.
Wall, that won't help 'em overmuch, for in a jiffy we'll teach 'em
something worth learnin'. What bothers me is to say how we should work
ef they makes across, taking advantage of every bit of cover. Where
are we to go? We can't keep runnin' away for ever. 'Sides, I ain't so
sure as I'm ready to show my heels to skunks same as these."
There was a resentful, threatening note in his words, and, glancing at
the little hunter, Joe saw that his face was flushed, while his little
eyes were flashing dangerously. After all, in spite of his somewhat
diminutive proportions, there was quite a lot of the bull dog about
Hank. Those who knew the hunter knew him to be a cunning and
courageous tracker, a man to be depended on, a friend worth having, an
enemy more than difficult to make--for Hank hated quarrels, and was for
ever ready to forgive and forget--and yet an enemy to be duly feared
and placated. Those who had been so unfortunate never to have had the
opportunity of meeting this remarkable little man, save on one
occasion, were none the less impressed. Hank's was a personality that
bred confidence. Strength of character, honesty of purpose, bull-dog
determination were written plainly on his face, even while it was
wreathed with the most cordial smiles. Joe had felt the very same
about his friend. Hank had impressed him from the first. Sometimes he
imagined that long acquaintance had disclosed all the hunter's points,
good and bad, to him. But even now he had something to learn. He had
never seen his friend in a similar position to this; he had never known
him when he was the object of an unprovoked attack, and when the odds
were opposed to him. But seeing his firm face now, the strong
determination on every feature, his own chin took on something of the
same aspect. Looking at the two as they lay side by side, one would
have said at once that while the elder man could be relied on whatever
the position, his youthful comrade was not one whit behind him.
"Wall?" came from Hank dryly, while the lock of his rifle clicked.
"Ain't you goin' to speak?"
Joe looked sharply across at him. "Eh?" he asked. "I thought you were
speaking to Beaver Jack and asking his opinion."
"And mighty nice of you, lad," came the answer. "I like to see a young
chap as keeps his mouth shut till his elders has spoken. But there
ain't too much time before us, and 'sides, I know that Jack would ha
spoken already ef he had anything to say. What's your idea? You've
reckoned the position. You ain't ready to go on runnin' away from a
set o' skunks same as them, aer you?"
"No!" came emphatically from our hero. "Partly because I couldn't.
I'd soon be done, for this snowshoeing is heavy work to one who is not
hardened. Then I don't see why I should. Who are they that we should
run from them? Let 'em prove that they are stronger."
"Gee! You'll do!" cried Hank. "That's the sort of spirit. Wall, now,
you've some sort of idea?"
"None." Joe was bound to confess it. "But," he went on, "it seems to
me that we ought to look out for some place which we can hold. Of
course it could only be for a short while, as we have no large supply
of food; but it would bring this business to a head. Perhaps these
fellows would make an attack and give us a chance of beating them. If
not, why--well something might turn up to help, and in any case it
would be better than this constant running."
"And I'm with you," cried Hank; "only jest now there's not so much as
the sight of a place where we could hold 'em, and till one turns up,
why, in course, it's run we must. But we'll keep a bright lookout.
See here, and jest you listen, Beaver Jack. We'll give them fellers a
dusting ef they try to cross, and then we'll trail arms and slink off
through the forest. Something'll turn up soon to help us."
It was perhaps two minutes later that there was a general move on the
part of the enemy. The leading man aboard each sleigh was seen to
stand, gripping the reins in one hand while he swung a short-handled
whip with the other, one which boasted of an enormously long and heavy
lash that even a moderately skilful operator could cause to crack with
the sound of a rifle report.
"Ay, and more'n that," Hank had observed on one occasion. "I've known
men who could swing a whip so as to cut in two anything that was
anywheres within reach. One half-breed from 'way up north could stand
on his head even and cut slick through a chunk of bread, while there
ain't one of them that's used to the whip and has dogs to drive that
couldn't set a pal up afore him with a cigarette in his mouth and jest
flick the cigarette away as easy and as sartin as winkin'. Then, too,
the cut of a heavy lash same as they use is that keen, they say some of
'em could nearly divide a dog with it, ay, cut him in two, while they'd
easy whip a chunk out o' the poor beasts. Cruel! In course them whips
is cruel, and so's the men. But then you ain't dealing with ordinary
dogs; them critters is fierce, and ef they was hungry ain't above
tearing a human to pieces."
But this was not the moment for discussing the pros and cons of dog
whips, nor the prowess of the men who wield them; for the enemy were on
the move. It seemed almost as if they had made up their minds to
ignore all thoughts of danger; or perhaps they imagined that Hank had
led his two comrades steadily forward, and was not lying beneath the
trees beyond the open space waiting with loaded rifles for them. In
any case, the drivers sent their whips cracking over their teams, while
the dogs responded by leaping into their harness and speeding away from
the irregular line of the forest. At the same moment the four men on
foot, who were shod with snowshoes, shot out from the cover and,
dividing till a wide interval separated each man, came speeding across
the snow.
"Beaver Jack takes 'em to right," said Hank steadily, not a waver in
his voice. "I take the critters in the centre; Joe pays partic'lar
attention to the varmint on the left. Fire as you get 'em in line with
your sights."
A spurt of flame issued from his own muzzle a second or so later, Joe
peering out across the snow to see what effect the bullet had; and once
more he was witness of the effect of a missile striking a glancing blow
on the snowfield. A cloud of white particles suddenly leaped up in
front of the foremost sleigh, hiding the men aboard it, while a shout
came from the enemy.
"Missed 'em by a pip," observed Hank, ramming in a fresh cartridge.
"You, Joe."
Our hero lined his sights on the second sleigh, followed the moving
object for a moment, then pressed his trigger; and all the while as he
aimed he was wondering at his own coolness. He might indeed have been
firing at inanimate objects. The idea that he was aiming at living men
hardly seemed to trouble him in the slightest, while if he had any
qualms at the thought that his bullet might slay a fellow being, he
never showed them.
"It's they or us," he repeated for the tenth time at least. "They've
made an unprovoked attack, and must put up with the consequences."
Bang! His own weapon spat forth a bullet, while a cloud of white smoke
belched from the muzzle, to die away at once. All eyes went toward the
sleigh he had aimed at, and once again the tell-tale spray of snow
showed exactly where the missile had landed, and precisely by how much
it had missed the enemy.
"Not bad shootin'," said Hank. "Them sleighs is moving fast, and you
want to give 'em at least a yard ahead when you're aiming. Beaver
Jack, jest you see what you're made of."
There came a grunt from the Redskin. Joe watched the seamed and lined
and strangely-impassive face of the Indian go down towards the butt of
his rifle. He saw the hooked nose settle itself against the wood of
the stock, while one of the keen eyes seemed to become rather more
prominent. There came a sharp report, and almost at once an answering
scream from the distance.
"Good fer you!" cried Hank. "Guess you got the man aboard the leading
sleigh, and in falling backward he aer pulled the team in. Jest sit
tight while I give 'em another, and you follow quick with your bullet,
Joe lad."
In rapid succession the two shots were fired, and it seemed more than
probable that they had hit their mark, for the men aboard the leading
sleigh were thrown in great confusion. One was seen to stand and grip
at the reins which his wounded comrade had allowed to fall. Then the
team of dogs was headed round, the whip cracked, and in a trice the
sleigh was being steered for the forest. Meanwhile a shot from Beaver
Jack had caused one of the men gliding across the snow afoot to dodge
suddenly to one side, and that, with the evidence the enemy now had
that Hank and his friends had them under their rifles, sent the
remainder of the band retracing their steps at a pace which was
furious. Shouts escaped from them as they raced for cover, and in
little more than a minute all had disappeared from view.
"That aer lesson number one," said Hank grimly, as he slid a fresh
cartridge into position. "Ef them 'ere critters thought they was going
to slit our throats without our kicking up a rumpus, why, they've found
out the error. It'll make 'em a trifle more cautious now that one of
'em's gone under, and they kin see that we are able to shoot; but it
won't turn 'em, I'm thinkin'. A half-breed ain't easily frightened,
and ef it's gain they are after, why, this'll make 'em all the keener."
"What will they do, then?" asked Joe, who still lay on his face, his
eyes glued on the distant forest. "It seems to me that if we can only
stay here and hold them, they cannot get nearer. Of course, when night
comes we shall be unable to see them, and nothing will prevent their
getting closer."
"Guess that aer solid truth," agreed Hank. "But there's more besides.
I've been takin' a good look round, and I've kinder put myself in the
place of them critters. Wall, now, it aer clear that we can't climb
over the ridge to our left. It rises quickly, and the snow lies in
deep drifts; so we've got to go dead straight ahead or cut away down to
the valley we left this morning. That being so, ef they believe we
mean to lie here and hold 'em from crossing the open, they'll leave a
man just to show himself every now and then, while the rest of the
party strikes downhill and gets abreast of us. Then they'll come
climbing up, and ef we stays they'll have us hard up agin the hill
before we know what's happened. Leastwise, that's what I should do ef
I was their leader."
"So you advise that we move on at once?" asked Joe, rising to his feet.
"Perhaps farther along we shall come upon some place which would offer
good shelter, some sort of natural fort in which we could take cover.
I've an idea that----"
He came to a sudden stop and pointed out across the snow-covered ground
before them.
"One of them critters," growled Hank. "Seems as ef I might be right.
He's showing clear, and--yes, there ain't a doubt about it. He's got
one arm hung in a sling."
There came an instant response from Beaver Jack, a deep-toned grunt.
His keen eyes had evidently taken in all that was passing. "Same man
as sit on the sleigh and tumble backwards," he grunted. "Not badly
hurt. Bullet make hole through the arm, and that nothing."
"Only it jest makes him useless for the moment. See here," said Hank,
"I'll move into the open and give him a shot. Likely as not he'll
signal to his comrades."
On second thoughts the little hunter refrained from using his rifle.
"I might hit him," he said, "and that ain't what I want. I'll jest let
him get a squint at me, so as to make him feel sartin we're remaining
here; then I'll hop back till he shows agin. Ah! Ain't that given him
pleasure? He's gone into cover, but ef you look close you kin see him
just inside the line o' trees wavin'. Gee! Don't they take us fer
soft 'uns? As ef a baby wouldn't guess what was up."
There was no doubt now that the enemy, whoever they might be, had taken
the course which Hank guessed at. Their design was clear and apparent,
for the wounded man made repeated appearances during the next ten
minutes, diving into the trees again on each occasion.
"You was sayin' that you had an idea," said Hank at length, stretching
himself beside our hero. "What aer that idea?"
"I was thinking of the sort of place that would suit us," began Joe.
"It occurred to me that there must be many little hollows which might
serve our purpose, provided that they could not be overlooked; for it
wouldn't do for these beggars to climb higher and pitch their bullets
down upon us."
"That aer sense," agreed Hank. "Wall?"
"But----"
"There aer always a but," asserted the little hunter. "It aer there
that gumption always comes in. Nothing goes right and straight in this
world unless you help it. A man has to use his wits and his strength
most always. What aer this but?"
"Just this," said Joe. "What's the use of a fort--a natural fort I'm
meaning, though the same thing applies of course to one built by human
hands--what's the use of such a place if you can't live in it?"
"Eh?" Hank pushed back his coon-skin cap and scratched his head. This
argument was getting somewhat beyond him. He was a cute and cunning
little fellow, stuffed full of worldly experience and of forest lore,
but subtle argument was beyond him. "See here, Joe," he cried,
somewhat testily; "plain words are wanted jest now. What's the meaning
of this here fort that you've mentioned? Are you propounding a sorter
puzzle?"
That set Joe grinning for the moment; but almost at once he became
serious. "I'm in dead earnest, Hank," he said. "But this is what I'm
driving at. We've no grub to speak of."
"Precious little."
"And no pots nor pans."
"I'm a-getting through with the argiment," declared the hunter.
"And it's likely to be mighty cold when we're cooped up in some hollow
and unable to move about as we are now doing. In fact, blankets are
wanted."
"All that aer sense," said Hank, jamming his hat back into place and
staring closely at our hero. "Wall?"
"Well, my idea is this. Since we can't climb away to the left, as the
ground rises so steeply, and as we can make the pace hot if we happen
to be going downhill, why not strike in that direction at once, sweep
to the right, and make back for our camp? That'll give us food and
pots and pans and blankets. We'll be better able then to look about us
for some sort of place that will give us cover. Tell you straight,
Hank, I'm getting more worried at the thought that the supper'll be
small to-night than I am at the knowledge that those rascals are after
us."
Hank grinned widely; his queer little lips, usually pursed close
together, parted in a capacious smile which he only indulged in on
occasion. A deep-throated grunt came from him, and almost at once his
rifle leapt across his shoulder.
"That aer solid sense," he cried at length. "Guess we'll make slick
back to our camp, and then, when we've collected our traps and had a
feed, why, we kin give some sort of attention to this other business.
I'll step out agin so as to allow the critter yonder to see me. Then
we'll face downhill, wait till the enemy ha' crossed in front, and go
away over their tracks straight back to the spot where our traps are
lying."
It was not by any means certain, of course, that this plan of procedure
would improve their lot and aid them in escaping from the half-breeds
who had so unwarrantably attacked them; but at least, if they were
successful in reaching their camp, it would provide them with a hearty
meal, and that was something.
"A full stummick makes a man look differently at troubles," observed
Hank, as he slipped on his snowshoes. "Difficulties seem to slide away
as soon as you've a good supper tucked behind your waistcoat. Joe,
we'll reach the camp even ef there's a hundred critters between us and
the place. Jest sling yer rifle, and don't forget, ef you hear a sound
or see one of the varmint, jest drop as ef you was dead. Silence and
cunning will help us heaps more'n bullets."
With rifles slung, and Hank in advance, the trio once more set
themselves in motion. The little hunter went straight on into the wood
till he was sure that none outside could see them, then he turned his
face downhill, and, setting an easy pace, led his comrades towards the
valley.