CHAPTER XVII
THANKS TO THE WOLF PACK
"WHAT have you on your mind now, Roger?" asked Dick, realizing howserious his companion had become.
As a rule Roger was a light-hearted boy, so that the change was all themore noticeable whenever he devoted himself to evolving some idea thathad occurred to him.
"Oh, I was only thinking how easy it would be to get all the fresh meatwe needed if only we could stay in one place," was his reply.
"What sort of fresh meat do you mean?" continued the other.
"Four different times now," explained Roger, "I have seen those bigjack-rabbits jump out of some copse, or a crack in the rocks, and boundaway. Each time, just from force of habit, my gun would fly to myshoulder, and I found myself covering the jumper; but of course I didnot mean to pull the trigger."
"No, because our ammunition is scanty, and, if we have to fire a shot,we should bag something larger than a rabbit. But, Roger, please go onand explain what you mean."
"Only this," the other added; "we could easily make traps, and snaresome of these fat rabbits if we were in camp. Keeping on as we do,that's out of the question. So, in the end, I suppose we must use ourguns to bring down a deer, or a buffalo, if we have the good luck torun across one."
Mayhew came to a full stop just then.
"There is something coming this way!" he announced.
"It sounds to me as though it was a pack of excited dogs, or wolves inchase of a breakfast," said Roger, after listening a moment.
Dick nodded his head in a fashion that told that he was of the sameopinion. Indeed, as the sounds were constantly growing louder, therecould be little doubt concerning their origin. The snapping yelpsof wolves in full cry, once heard, cannot again he easily mistaken.There is a thrilling import to the sound that goes through one like agalvanic shock.
"They must he chasing a deer," Roger hazarded.
"Yes, and heading straight this way!" added Mayhew.
"Perhaps this is the chance we have been waiting for," ventured Roger,as he handled his gun eagerly.
"No harm done in getting ready, that I can see," observed Dick, sagely.
"Let us spread out just a little," suggested Mayhew, who, being aveteran hunter, knew all about the habits of wolves when in pursuit oftheir quarry.
"Yes, I like that idea," agreed Dick, "for they may pass to the rightor the left, and then the one on that side would get a fair shot.Remember, Roger, take your stand, and after that be sure not to move.If you did, you might cause the deer to sheer off, and us to lose ourbreakfast."
Mayhew stood still, while Dick hurried off to the right, and Roger tookto the left, though neither of them went more than a hundred feet. Infact the clamor was drawing so close now that at any minute they mightexpect to catch their first glimpse of the chase.
All of them stood like statues, their eyes riveted on the quarterwhence the wild yelps arose. They could hear the rush of somethingmoving swiftly through the brush, and the sound grew constantly involume.
Suddenly a running animal came into view, a lordly elk, Dick instantlydiscovered, and a buck at that. From the manner in which he ran it wasevident that either the elk was lame, or else had been chased so farthat he was becoming exhausted.
Close at his heels came four ferocious gray wolves. They were spinningalong at top speed, their red tongues hanging from between their openjaws, where the white teeth gleamed cruelly.
The boys had run across another species of wolf since leaving their oldhunting grounds near the mouth of the Missouri. This was the smallerprairie wolf, an animal akin to the coyote. But they saw at a glancethat these were the large, gray timber wolves, more to be feared thanany other species, especially if they were half starved.
The poor exhausted elk was apparently on his last legs. He seemed torealize this fact, too, for, as the boys waited impatiently for thechase to reach them, they saw him stumble, and fall to his knees, as heturned to face his foes.
Instantly the pack leaped upon him. One was sent whirling through theair, torn by the sharp antlers of the buck; but the others quickly hadthe gallant elk down on the ground.
"We must chase them off!" cried Dick, starting on the run toward thespot.
Roger and the guide followed, so that the three of them were runningas fast as they could in the direction of the tragedy. They knew howquickly wolves can tear the carcass of their quarry, and realized that,if they hoped to save a portion of the elk's best quarters, they wouldhave to hasten.
The wolves quickly discovered their presence; but they were also veryloath to abandon their feast. Indeed, it seemed for a moment as thoughthey meant to dispute the right of the newcomers to the game theircunning and ferocity had pulled down, for they crouched there, andgrowled, and bared their teeth as the trio approached.
"Be ready to defend yourself, Roger!" called out Dick, "but do notshoot unless it is absolutely necessary!"
The wolves realized that they must yield up their quarry unless theyreally meant to fight, which would be foreign to their crafty natures.Doubtless they knew that man was an enemy to be feared, even though hemight only be an Indian brave, armed with his bow and flint-tippedarrows.
"TURNING AROUND FROM TIME TO TIME AS THOUGH HALFINCLINED TO COME BACK"]
They accordingly retreated, though turning around from time to time asthough half inclined to come back and have it out with the spoilers oftheir well won feast.
"We'll give you the leavings, never fear," laughed Roger, when he sawthat there was a fair portion of the elk still untouched, from whichthey could undoubtedly obtain an ample supply of meat. They set to workwith a will, and soon had obtained all they thought necessary.
All this occurred while the hungry wolves remained in sight, skulkinghere and there, sniffing the air in a beseeching manner, and once ina while giving vent to a plaintive howl that sounded strange, indeed,heard in the broad daylight.
No sooner did the three hunters start to leave the spot than the eageranimals could be seen turning, their natural sense of caution servingto hold them back, while the pangs of hunger urged them on.
"If there had been more of them," Dick commented, "the chances are wewould not have been able to take their meat without a fight."
"Even those four might have tried to scare us off if it was later inthe season, when they are half starved," Mayhew told them. "Just nowthe wolves are fat after the fall, when hunting is good; that is, fatfor their kind. But, when their flanks seem to almost meet, and theyare gaunt with hunger, they make a terrible enemy to attack."
The two lads exchanged glances.
"Yes, we know, for we have been through just such an experience," saidRoger, as he drew back the sleeve of his hunting tunic, to exhibit along, red scar. "That is something I carry to remind me of the time.I sometimes dream of it, and can see the terrible mob of half-crazywolves leaping up at my throat, while I did my best to beat them back."
"If it hadn't been for the coming of some hunters with their dogsjust in the nick of time," added Dick, "I think both of us would havebeen pulled down and killed by that pack. It was one of our narrowestescapes."
"And we have had a good many," said Roger, smiling as his memory spedback to former scenes.
As all of them were very hungry, their one thought now was to cook someof the happily-secured meat as soon as it could be arranged.
"Here is as good a place as we can find," suggested Dick, "and, unlessI am mistaken, we will be able to get what wood we want without goingfar for it."
"The kind that will make next to no smoke, you mean!" Roger remarked,and the other nodded.
There is a vast amount of difference in wood. Well-seasoned stuff of acertain variety will burn, and give off hardly any smoke; on the otherhand, if the fuel is partly green, or obtained from a certain speciesof tree, it will send up a black column that can be seen a long way off.
When hunters or Indians wish to communicate with each other, eventhough miles apart, they take this latter kind of wood f
or their fire;but, when they desire to do some cooking while in the enemy's country,with keen eyes on the watch around them, it is of course necessary toattract as little attention as possible, and on that account the kindof fuel that gives out no betraying smoke is chosen.
Of course this was what Dick and his two companions now did; and alsothe fire was built in a depression among the rocks so that it mightnot be too prominent.
Here they busied themselves cooking small pieces of the elk meat. Theirmethod of doing it was exceedingly primitive, for it was thrust closeto the fire by means of long splinters of wood, and turned around untilwell scorched, when it was devoured with much satisfaction.
It requires a vigorous appetite to really enjoy cooking of this type.Many boys of to-day would turn up their noses at such food, and gohungry for a while, though in the end they might come around and askfor a portion.
They spent half an hour about that small cooking-fire. At the end ofthis time all admitted that they were satisfied, and could not eatanother bite. However, at Dick's suggestion, some more of the elk meatwas cooked, to serve them for a "snack" in case circumstances shouldnot allow them to light a fire later on.
It was Dick who always thought of the future. Roger, with hishappy-go-lucky ways, was, as a rule, content to consider only presentnecessities. When he had eaten, and felt satisfied, he did not know whyany one should borrow trouble thinking of something far in the future.In fact, he generally took to heart that passage he had heard hisfather read from the Good Book at home, "sufficient unto the day is theevil thereof," and applied it to many ordinary occurrences.
After leaving the place where they had enjoyed this good breakfast, ofwhich all of them were in such need, they laid out a course that wouldtake them to a section of the country that they had not as yet visited.
All the time they could hear occasional strange roaring or hissingsounds that aroused the utmost curiosity, for they did not know atwhat moment they would come upon some new and startling mystery. Thisenchanted land was apparently the home of innumerable weird sights suchas a white man had never before set eyes on; and, as they continued toadvance, they were constantly reminded of this fact.
So, when Roger, who was a trifle in the advance, called out that theywere face to face with a gigantic "paint pot," the others held theirbreath as they pushed on to see with their own eyes what he could mean.