Tally and Omney came back after a long absence, but they had the packs, a little the worse for the fall, to be sure.
"I see this is the last can of soup and our last can of beans,"
ventured Mrs. Vernon, when she opened the food-pack.
"Um! Us know rancher--plenty grub in him lodge," said Tally, significantly. Everybody laughed at his wink that accompanied the words.
The ride from Flat Top had been so strenuous that the scouts camped that night in the fir-tree lodge, as they had called it. All retired early, as they hoped to make a start at dawn in order to reach the rancher"s, where Tally said he could buy a stock of food.
But a number of timber wolves howled about the camp all the night through, keeping the tired travelers half-awake. Towards dawn they must have followed another scent, as all was quiet in the forests thereafter.
The Captain was startled out of a sound sleep by a strange "s-swish"--close to her ear. Springing up with the remembrance of the wolves, she heard Tally whisper through the pine-boughs, "Tell scout come see caribou in valley."
In a few moments every one was up and out of the tree-lodge. The scouts saw the men crouching down behind a large boulder that stood near the verge of a steep descent to the green valley below. The curious girls soon joined them and then witnessed a most unusual sight.
Down in the valley, several hundred yards away, was a herd of caribou grazing on the juicy gra.s.s. A fine buck with antlers spreading far from each side of his head, jumped about as if worked by springs. If a cow got in his way he stamped his polished hoofs and threatened her with his flattened horns.
But the cows seemed not to mind such idle threats on the part of the bull, and continued grazing.
Julie laughed. "They"re suffrage caribou--they know how a male talks fine but seldom does what he brags about!"
This started an animated argument between Mr. Gilroy and the Scout Leader, which was suddenly hushed by the behavior of the buck. He lifted his nose, sniffed angrily and stamped his hoof in token that he resented any interference with his family"s breakfast.
"What"s the matter with him?" asked Joan in a whisper.
"Maybe he scented human beings watching him," suggested Anne.
Tally shook his head, but in another moment the scouts learned what had caused his annoyance. He now sounded a warning to the cows, and they all lifted their heads instantly and sniffed as the buck had done.
"Dear me, I hope they won"t run away," wished Ruth, and then she saw that they would not run--they would defend themselves.
From out the dark fringe of forest there now crept a number of lean hungry timber-wolves, looking like long grey shadows of the trees. So slowly and noiselessly did they move that only animals trained to defend themselves in the wilderness would have known an enemy was so close at hand.
As they moved, the four men silently lifted their rifles, and waited for the signal from Tally to shoot.
"Are those the wolves we heard last night?" asked Julie.
"Most likely, or some like them," returned Mr. Gilroy, in a whisper that only those next him could hear.
"Um! t"ree of "em--get reward fur dem coyotes!" grinned Omney.
The caribou, warned in time by the bull, saw the skulking beasts creeping, creeping like the shadows towards them, and they instantly formed their defence, as they always do in case of extreme danger when it is wiser to fight than to fly.
With their hind legs closed together like the center of a wheel, and their heads presenting antlers pointing towards the enemy like bayonets on the defence line in a battle, the herd stood perfectly still and waited.
"Wonderful sight!" breathed Mrs. Vernon.
"Oh, for that camera! It is in the duffel-bag," sighed Julie.
But the scene now grew too exciting for any scout to yearn over forgotten kodaks, for the wolves were almost near enough to begin their raid. The four rifles still pointed directly at them, but the signal was not yet forthcoming. Tally knew when to fire.
Just as the foremost wolf rose on his hind legs to hurl himself at the caribou nearest him, and the bull bellowed madly and wheeled to attack, Tally signaled. Four spurts of blue and four streaks of red--and three timber wolves rolled over dead!
At the sound of those dire sounds which the bull understood to be as deadly as a wolf, he lifted his snout high in the air, called hastily to his herd, and the wheel broke--the caribou trotted away swiftly and disappeared in the forest.
"That certainly was a sight worth seeing," sighed the Captain. "But I must hang that camera about my neck, day in and day out, or I shall miss the best pictures every time."
At breakfast that morning Mr. Gilroy said, "I had planned to cross the Continental Divide at Milner"s Pa.s.s, because of the beauties of the Fall River Road, but this unexpected slide down from Flat Top yesterday, disarranged all these plans. What shall we do about it?"
"What was your next point of interest, had we gone over the pa.s.s as you had planned?" asked Mrs. Vernon.
"Well, you see, I thought we would land somewhere near Beaver Creek on the western slope of the Divide. I know a number of ranchers living about that section, and I thought the scouts might enjoy spending a week or so on these ranches."
"If it"s all the same to you, Gilly, we"d rather enjoy the wildlife of the Rockies instead of ranching," ventured Julie.
"Oh, it"s all the same. In fact, I"d rather not use any time on the ranches while I still have many interesting moraines to explore," said he.
"Then we"ll plan a new route. What would you do next?" said the Captain.
"We are near the Meadow Fork of Grand River, I think, and we can follow that to reach Grand Lake. Then we can trail from there, along the North Fork of the Grand, until we reach Hot Sulphur Springs. After a visit to the Springs, we can go down Gore Canyon, cross the Gore Range, and thus reach Steamboat Springs."
"All right, let"s do as you just said," remarked Mr. Vernon.
"Tally give up Devil-Bear and timber wolves at Spring," now said Tally.
"All right, Tally, but don"t you think the girls ought to share in the reward for the wolves? We helped shoot them," said Mr. Gilroy.
"Um, sure! Scout git Devil-Bear money, too!" said Tally, amazed that any one should have thought otherwise.
"How so?" demanded Julie.
"Tally "gree to guide, hunt, fish, help Mees"r Gilloy an" scout all way frough summer. Devil-Bear kill in hunt, but Tally paid for time,"
explained the Indian, thus refuting the reputation many white men give the Indian, that he will take advantage of other races every chance he gets.
"Oh, no, Tally! We wouldn"t think of such a division!" exclaimed the Captain. "Give us the pelts and you take the reward."
As this suggestion was seconded by the others, Tally and Omney grinned joyously, for it was a windfall they had not looked for.
Further along the trail, Tally turned off to stop at a ranch-house and lay in a supply of flour and what other edibles the ranch-owner would sell him. Then they continued over the mountains.
Had the scouts come suddenly upon the Continental Divide they would have been speechless with the grandeur of it, but they had been riding past and over many peaks, canoeing down marvelous waterways, and had climbed all the ranges that led to the Divide, so that they scarcely realized that they were crossing the stupendous elevation until they heard Tally speak.
"Mos" over now, foothills all way to Sulphur Springs."
As they rode on, looking for Meadow Fork, along which Mr. Gilroy wished to trail, many questions were asked by the scouts and answered by the Indians.
Ruth then said, "I"ve heard a lot about Hot Sulphur Springs, Gilly, but what thrilling sight shall we find there?"
"Its name might lead you to believe you would see the apparition who is said to have charge of all sulphur worlds," said Julie, giggling.