Adventure Magazine Cover — page 152: what you’re looking at

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

142 At breakfast he was singularly cheerful, talking nervously, at random. Once he said— “Say, Jim, how long do you s’pose it’ll take to cure that pelt?” Jim considered. “Why,” he replied, “if I stay home an’ tend to it, as I’m goin’ to, it ought to be pretty dry by tonight, I guess. Why?” But Wethers seemed not to hear the ques- tion. As he was preparing to start out, he suddenly asked— ‘“‘What’s the date today, Jim?” When they had consulted the dingy calen- dar, he smote his thigh. “By ——! I’ve got to see Injun Billy at the post tomorrow night. I’ve got to go out, sure. Clean forgot it. Told him I’d see him about a partnership next year. Wants me to go with him to the Waboos, after beaver. Great animal, the beaver. Can’t afford to miss that chance.”’ He talked on excitedly. “Say,” he said suddenly, “why don’t you come out with me and git rid o’ that silver? Pretty dangerous havin’ it ’round if the cabin caught fire, eh? You better do that.” Jim looked at him, surprized at this volubility. “All right,’ he answered, more to be congenial than for any other reason, “we'll both go out.” “Fine. We'll git an early start an’ make it before dark.”’ And Wethers strapped on his snowshoes and headed for his trap-lines, which ex- tended along the lake shore. The mid-Winter sun shone brilliantly all day, piercing the forest gloom with inter- mittent patches of scintillating, sparkling brightness. Conroy, watching over the silver foxskin, turning it often to make sure the air would dry it equally on all sides, caring for it as tenderly as if it were a baby, thought much of his partner. It was charac- teristic of him that he bore the humpback no malice for his unpleasant traits and shortcomings. To his straightforward mind, almost childlike in its guileless simplicity, | a partner was a partner and under that name could do no wrong. That evening, getting supper, Conroy heard the sound of two shots, in quick succession. He listened and presently they were repeated. He recognized Wethers’ rifle. What could he be giving the trouble signal for? He ran out into the darkness Adventure and shouted. An answering halloo came from the lake. Ten minutes later he found Wethers, wandering about aimlessly, with his muffler bound tightly over his eyes. He was moaning and cursing in misery. “What’s wrong, pardner?” Conroy’s big voice was suddenly husky with pity and anxiety at the other man’s helplessness and evident suffering. ‘“Snow-blind,” grated Wethers between set teeth. ‘‘Hit me this afternoon, crossin’ to Bear Portage. Can’t see nothin’! Been tryin’ to git home ever since. -! It’s 1? Conroy led him stumbling to the cabin, where he tenderly bathed his swollen and inflamed eyes with warm water. He had never seen a case of snow-blindness before, so ministered to his partner’s sufferings as best he could in ignorance. He talked softly to him, trying to get his mind off the pain of his eyes. “All right,.pard. All nght. You'll be better tomorrow. Here, I'll put you in bed, and you can go to sleep, mebbe. How was the traps? Got a skunk in one of ’em, didn’t yee”’ ge ares tense. “Thought I smelled a little skunk on you.” “Yup,” said Wethers, ‘he was no good, but I had to kill him to git him out of the trap. He didn’t squirt me, though. Say, I got to go out tomorrow, snow-blind or no snow-blind. I kin make it, if you’ll give me a rope to hold on to, an’ keep to the river. You'll do it, won’t ye? It means money to me. I got to see that Injun Billy about the beaver. Don’t leave me here, will you?” He grew almost hysterical in his earnest- ness. Conroy agreed soothingly, but Weth- ers would not rest until he had extracted a rigid promise from his partner to take him out tomorrow. After a short silence, he asked: ‘“‘Where’s the fox? Is it all right? You want to be careful of it, you know. Take no chances. You got it safe?” ‘Sure,’ grinned Conroy. ‘‘She’s right here in my shirt-front. I'll take care of it, you bet.” When Conroy turned in, Wethers was apparently asleep. The big man was mildly astonished at the sudden cessation of Pete’s pain, which had seemed so intensé a short half-hour before. He stood looking at Weth- ers a moment. snapped the Weasel, strangely MICLOOOK (©