CHAPTER V A MAD MOOSE
Johnny Thompson was tired. He was hungry, and was feeling down on hisluck. He had hunted the rugged hills since early morning, yet no game hadgone into his bag save one great white owl.
"I wonder where Faye is?" he thought to himself. "Hoped I'd meet her onthis ridge."
He still hoped this. It was a long, lonely tramp back to camp, and he wasa sociable being. Besides, he felt rather sure that she, like himself,had met with little luck, and misery loves company.
On the morning of that second day after the momentous decision they foundthemselves below the fork of the river, standing on the bank of atumultuous stream. Beyond this ice-rimmed torrent lay Gordon Duncan'spromised land. How were they to bridge the chasm? It seemed certain thatGordon Duncan was right. Once the stream left the high, rocky hills, itsmad rush must be abated. They might then cross upon the ice, or at leaston a raft.
But their supply of provisions was low. The way was long. Gordon Duncanwas not yet restored to his full strength. Having found a rocky shelfwalled in by nature on three sides, they decided to give the day over tohunting. Gordon Duncan would make camp and prepare a supply of wood.Johnny and the girl would hunt with bow and arrow. The ground seemedsuited for the chase. Here and there were treeless spots overgrown withblueberry bushes. Where the wind had swept the snow, frozen berries clungstubbornly to their stems. Ptarmigan might be feeding here. Willow bushesclose to the river bank showed fresh markings done by snowshoe rabbits.Once during the previous day they had chanced upon a spot where a caribouhad come gliding down a steep slope to swim the river.
"He may have recrossed lower down," Johnny had said.
So they had gone hunting, the two of them, but not together. A narrow runled away to the left from their camp. It was agreed that Johnny shouldtake the left slope of this run and Faye the right. They might meet onthe ridge above.
Since he was ready first, Johnny had struck out alone up the slope. Hehad heard nothing, seen nothing of the girl all day.
Little game had come his way. Once a ptarmigan had gone fluttering outfrom a clump of blueberries. He had lost himself at once in tall brush. Agreat white owl hooted at him. He had bagged him at once, not for food,but because of his broad feathers. He must make more arrows. There was anabundance of wood. Gordon Duncan had offered him steel points. He mustprovide his own feathers.
The land where he stood was rough, rocky and rolling. In places darktamarack stood so thick in the narrow bottoms that it was impossible topass. To his amazement, as he stood there looking, listening, the soundof a tremendous tearing and thrashing suddenly smote his startled senses.No sound came to him save the crashing of brush and rending of branches,yet even as he looked he caught a gleam of bright red among the tamaracktrees.
"That's strange," he told himself, involuntarily tightening his grip onthe six foot bow. "Can't be a bird. Too big. I'll see what's going on."
Catching at a branch here, another there, without a sound he let himselfdown the slope. As he dropped lower the spot of color was lost to hisview. This did not disturb him. His sense of location was splendid. Atree taller than its fellows, a branch twisted off by some storm, a pinesquirrel's nest, these were his beacons. If he needed further guidance,the surprising tumult continued.
Then of a sudden as he rounded a clump of trees he saw it all at aglance. With a checked cry of surprise he stepped swiftly back to griphis bow and draw an arrow.
His movement was not missed. For a space of ten seconds silence reignedin that bit of northern wild. Then, as his bow sang taut a red-eyed fury,a giant of that wilderness, a bull moose, plunged head on, straight athim as he crouched for a shot.
A bull moose, interrupted in his display of anger, is a terrible creatureto behold. As the boy looked into his bloodshot eyes, as he took in atonce his huge head, his broad spiked antlers, his powerful neck, hewondered about his chances for life, and in the flash of a second knew asnever before what a glorious possession life was. Yet he did not waverfor an instant. Another life was at stake, the life of one without meansof defense.
In that tense ten seconds before the moose charged he had seen that whichcaused him to doubt the accuracy of his vision. The flaming red spot inthe top of the young tamarack tree was a red sweater worn by Faye Duncan.He had not seen that sweater before. She had worn a gray mackinaw intheir travels.
But now, still crouching, he waited his shot. It must be well aimed, backof the shoulder, a perfect shot, or--
Twang! The arrow flew. The next instant, with agility born of longtraining, he dropped sideways and backward. He was not a second too soon.The terrible impact of that powerful head, the awful rending of thosespiked antlers; what chance had a boy against these?
With all the force and fury of a crazed elephant, the moose wentthundering straight on.
With his senses reeling, the boy fought his way into a standing positionin the tangle of briars and young trees, then drew another arrow.
It was well that he found himself so prepared, for the moose, havingchecked himself in his mad career, turned and charged again. This time,only Providence could have saved him. Enmeshed as he was in theunderbrush, he was in no position to dodge. A small tree, directlybetween him and the charging terror, saved him.
Blinded by rage, the moose charged straight into the tree. The sound ofthe impact was like the dropping of a pile driver. The stout tree snappedoff at the roots. But the great beast was stopped.
It was enough. Again the bow twanged. A moment later the giant moose laybeating the brush in his death throes.
"Well," Johnny said, turning to the girl, who by this time had climbeddown from the tree, "that's what I call close."
The look on her sunbrowned face was deeply serious. "Yes, it was. I amsorry to put you in such grave danger."
"Oh, that!" he said, shrugging. "It wasn't great. I could have climbed atree. Then there would have been two of us." He laughed.
"But you didn't." The look on the girl's face was still serious. "I haveto thank you for that."
"It's all in a day's adventure," said Johnny. "Mystery and adventure addto the joy of life. Meanwhile, between us, we have a supply of food."
"Yes, and such a supply!"
"We had better take as much as we can carry," Johnny sighed. He wasthinking of the weary trek back to camp. "The part we can't carry away onour further journeys we can hide up in the rocks where foxes andwolverines can't get at it. It's a good thing to have a storehouse towhich one may return."
The girl agreed. Drawing her hunting knife, she assisted him quiteskilfully in skinning the great beast and preparing the meat for packing.
Once as she straightened up, he read in her eyes a question. She waslooking at the skin which he thought of only as waste product.
"I've seen pictures of boats made of skin drawn over a framework ofwood," she said.
"The Eskimos make them so. Large ones. Thirty-five feet long."
"This skin is tough," she said. "It's large, too. I wonder--"
"Hate to trust it," said Johnny. "Ice might cut a hole in it, thenwhere'd you be? Fresh water ice isn't like salt water ice. Salt water iceis crumbly. Fresh water ice is like flint. It gets a cutting edge."
She said no more.
"Guess we're ready," Johnny said a few moments later.
Wrapping a great piece of dark red meat in a square of skin, he lifted itto her shoulders.
"Carry it?" he said.
"Easy."
"All right. Let's go."
He felt like a brute, loading a girl so; yet in future their lives mightdepend upon that meat. Night was approaching. To return in the dark wasout of the question. And who could say what the little foxes, the wolvesand wolverines would do to that dead moose during the night?
So they trudged on with weary limbs, but light hearts. As the darknessdeepened there came over Johnny a feeling that was hard to analyze. Itwas a pleasing sensation, and had to do with th
e girl. He was herguardian, her protector. This day, with his bow and arrow he had savedher life. There could be no question about that. The tree she had climbedwas partially dead. In time, under the mad bull's wild onslaught, it musthave fallen.
"And then," he shuddered at the thought.
"Do you know," she said quite suddenly, "I didn't do a thing to thatmoose? Not a thing."
"Except invade his territory in a bright red sweater," Johnny chuckled."That was enough."