Argosy All-Story Weekly — "The Purple Limited" — page 95: what you’re looking at

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

THE WINGS OF THE SNOW. At once he turned back to the glade where Do-m’rai had fought Menzono, and, working swiftly as possible, stripped the skins from two of the wolves, fleshing them carefully, but leaving the hair on—time lacked to tan them properly. He cut branches from a tree, and made two hoops, using two branches to each—sapless, the boughs would not bend in a full circle with- out breaking. - These he lashed together to make the hoops, bracing them apart in the middle that they bellied out like shields, and over them he stretched the hides, turning the edges up, cutting them to shape, and stitch- ing them with thongs run through holes which he pierced with his dagger. Lash- ings were made of thongs, and he bound the strange footgear to his feet and ankles. Getting to his feet, he tried to walk, but the cumbrous things, though they bere him up, yet hampered and tripped him, being tied rigidly to his feet. For a long time he thought, then, stooping, cut free his heels so that only the toes were bound. And now, by walking with a slidmg mo- tion, he could progress with fair speed, de- spite the pilmg up of the snow on the web of the shoes, making them heavy and hard to lift. Delighted, glowing with satis- faction, Ku-ro marched along, striving ever for greater ease in the use of the new foot- gear, stopping from time to time to free the shoes from the piled-up snow. _ And when night came he camped far be- yond where he would have been with the old way of travel—imdeed, so pleased was he that he marched much later than usual, stopping only when the gathering dark made it impossible to take another step. And a happy man it was who rolled himself m skins before the fire that night! Next morning Ku-ro was afoot with the frst. gieam of dawn, and cooked and ate his food im haste, so eager was he to try the 661 though one were driving red-hot knives into the flesh, and barely could the young man move one foot after the other. It was the terrible mal de racquette, the sickness of the snowshoe, and by mid-afternoon Ku-ro was forced to give over and rest. At bottom no more than the protest of unaccustomed muscles, it grows till each step becomes a separate, age-long torture, and when most severe puts an end to travel. But Ku-ro persisted, grinding his teeth, cursing, tossing his head, till the frightful cramps overcame even his stout heart. At length he managed to build a fire and seated himself beside it, rubbing and knead- ing the knotted muscles, slowly working from them the hard lumps which preclaimed the fearful cramps. Presently the pain eased somewhat, and he cooked and ate some food, finally falling into,a restless and broken slumber, moaning in his sleep, wak- ing at times to renew the fire. When he woke fully at dawn the pam was almost gone, and he bound the smow- shoes once more to his feet and struggled | grimly on, gritting his teeth against the pam. But this, though calling for no little fortitude, was, after all, the best possible treatment, and by noon the pain was better —there remained only a stiffness, a trifling lameness, which by the following morning had entirely disappeared, and Ku-ro was a hardened snowshoe walker. So for day after day he journeyed, till at last there rose on the far horizon a range of hills’ whose outhme seemed familiar. Gradually they rose, till finally he recog- nized them, shouting aloud for joy as recol- lection came. That night he camped almost at the foot of the range—circling wide, he had come in from the north—and by the middie of the following morning he stood on the crest, gazing down into the Valley of the Ta-an. new shoes, though even yet he‘did not real- : - ize their full vae—to him they were but a means whereby he might journey in-haste. And famously they served him, for he trav- eled well-nigh ten times as far as he could have done in plowing through the snow. But about noon sharp pains began to Shoot up the backs of his legs, pains as CHAPTER VI. THE BATTLE. RANTIC with joy at the sight of the home from which he had so long been gone, the home he had not hoped to see again, Ku-ro stood and gazed into the f An CONMUC NOOLK CO