Argosy All-Story Weekly, June 27, 1925 — page 91: what you’re looking at

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

—_— a —- “ree — = ’ y <= = Ky oe b La Wh i ‘4 : AW po” ; aa=-—_- » \ AF = - = ee ae By L. PAUL ae , HE only thing I can’t see,” said Whitey Wilkins, “‘ the only thing that worries me, is how the devil a man can get out of here in a hurry. Them’s long miles,. eighty o’ them, between here and that trading post, Fort Peril, long enough by water now, but a damn sight longer afoot once winter comes. And me, I don’t hanker to step ’em off in a hurry, no- how.” Big Bateese laughed. “ You don’ need for go mak’ call,” he replied. “We stay all winter here. In the spring w’en the ice go, we put the canoe on the water, and, voila, in three day we come on Fort Peril.” “ But what if a man gets sick?” Whitey persisted. “I know I’m green at this stuff, but last year, even though it was my first in the bush, we were near Trail’s End, and you had dogs. This year we're ‘way up 0 New country, and there’s neither dog nor toboggan nearer than the fort. And in an- other two weeks the river ‘ll freeze up tight- er than hell, and—well, there you are, 60 that’s that.” Bateese opened the door of their log cabin, a small structure which they had just completed in the center of their new trapping grounds at Elbow Bend on the Range River. ‘No toboggan?” said he, grinning. “ Me, I see him for sure.” Whitey Wilkins peered out; saw the still water of the river, the tree lined banks, dnd nothing more. ‘Where do you see a toboggan?” asked. Bateese stepped out, laid the trunk of a small birch. said. Whitey looked doubtful. “You ain't goin’ to clap a hand on them rocks by the shore and call them dogs, are you?” he asked. ‘‘ Oh, I know you could take a jack- knife and build a city out o’ things that grows, but dogs! Well, you won't find them easy, Bateese.” ” “‘ Wen we want, we find. Maybe we find two, t’ree later On, wen we want dogs. Bateese picked up a short cross-cut ~ which lay against the wall of the cabin. He had boyght it at the trading post, to he his hand on “a Here,” he 883 Co 1A@OO S Co