Adventure, November 1915 — page 117: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

“was not easy to locate. The Posts of Pillage for the night-fly and smitten in mid-leap by his boring craft, drifted away and behind him as some swift-passing dream. On and on he whizzed, the sweat dripping from him, his breath coming hard, the muscles of his arms, shoulders and back ridging, knotting, bunching, rippling smoothly again, tensing and disappearing like the writhing of snakes under his skin. On and on he labored, taking rapids and chutes on the run, plunging phantom-like around the bends, driving like a wild duck . down the long straight-water reaches. He sped on a mission, countenancing no obstacle, taking no thought of himself, for before his grim-set. eyes was the vision of Masita, frozen in her tracks on the Mani- kuagan beach and demanding to know what a priest was for. He gritted his teeth at the remembrance as he whirled through the last mile of straight-water paddling and came to where the river widened before gush- ing through the neck of Ishimanikuagan Lake. Here he did not keep on the strong cur- rent but slanted through the shore-eddies, boiling black in the gloom beneath the overhang of the bank, and edged in to the rock-bristling shore-line whereon clung the tenacious roots of the tamaracks. The stars were out, but the trees leaned dark as a thirty-foot wall above the water, and in their shadow Lavergne looked for the signs of the secret landing-place. It Sometimes he felt cautiously with his paddle among the arch- ing roots, sometimes as his canoe lightly scraped the rock-wall he put out tentative fingers to assure himself of his surroundings. But at last with a grunt of satisfaction he ducked under an arch-like tamarack root+ and slid into a horseshoe-shaped cove. And instantly, as he lay to, the thin call of a curlew came out of the tamarack cover onthe shore. Drawing a deep breath, Francois whistled ‘in answer. “Chakoni,” he called, “is that you?” The tamarack cover swayed, a tawny figure moved in the obscurity, and Lavergne knew it for the tall, supple figure of the Nascaupee Indian who was Ivan Trevor’s head fort-runner. “Chakoni,”” he demanded, ‘‘is he here? The Factor, ishe here?” _ “Even so,” spoke Chakoni, cautiously lowering his natural high-pitched tone of 115 voice. “Hesmokes by the smudge fire with Sachelle, the chief trader, the Seven Islands, Moisie, Mingan and Romaine men.” “Good!” exulted Lavergne, with a sigh of relief. “I was half afraid he might be off on some scouting expedition. I must get to him in a hurry.” “Why?” asked Chakoni unemotionally. “T see that you have come as the wild duck wings from the camp of the Arctic Fur. But why? Did the Montagnais bastard begin to suspect his head voyageur?”’ “Come on to the camp and you’ll hear,” responded Lavergne, jumping ashore. “Lift the canoe and follow after me.” With a deft flip the Nascaupee lifted the canoe from the water to the bank and darted after Frangois who was plunging through the green brush. The way wound up over the tamarack ridge in a secret portage or cut-off to the western shore of Ishimanikuagan and coming out near its junction with the tor- tuous river itself. ‘They crossed the shore ridge, ferretted through a tangled slash, bridged a mossy, bouldered chasm on a fallen pine and debouched upon the bed of ground-hemlock that sloped like the dark~ green of grass to Ishimanikuagan, and all but screened by the branches of the hem- lock Lavergne caught the gleam of the Hudson’s Bay fire. CHAPTER X *ROUND THE COUNCIL-FIRE | At THE swish of running moccasins in the ground-hemlock, the Chimo Factor and the others raised themselves upon their elbows beside the smoldering mosquito smudge around which they were ringed. Fore Heffen, Francois!” exclaimed the Factor, lowering the monstrous long-stem- med pipe with which he was valiantly routing the winged pests. “What has happened?” “Helbaud has closed the Manikuagan against all travelers,’ Lavergne burst out, “fand seized the free-trader, Dubawni, and his daughter. He wants Dubawni in his company and the daughter in his house.” “The teffle!’”’ ejaculated the Factor. “But Dubawni won’t merge with Hel- baud’s company, and Masita won’t so much as eat in his house. But Helbaud swears they both shall be in his company by night. COMIC OOO KS (E@) as P bith gs | ra ty Ae bik aie i ean a oy i PR ay Mt hb ii eR as wre t URE tarts Pe eR TA Wee ote ie: te ee ee eee ’ .° me | ¢ al { hh Seay } ¢ LP an ld af! Pos bt oF a ys ew - mS : r ee ret sds! qi 4 hie eae. ye! pe CG ee ys re Sieaws ay rf rah [bd a, ty LU tal Pine Senge Boys SY os 655 ly Vea a rie Nt wee Wek wot / : —, ~ pe ~ We Vane eo SF aie ook ar 2 ST ETT a WAN ced OL See poe eB :